We all know it’s crucial to get reviews from guests if you want to build a great reputation as a vacation rental host. But did you know that leaving reviews is equally important?
It’s why leading OTAs like Airbnb and Vrbo strongly encourage you to review your guests after each stay.
While leaving a review of one guest isn’t a big task, reviewing every guest on every OTA quickly becomes time-consuming. So, let’s look at how you can streamline the process with your PMS – and our useful review examples!
Why reviewing your vacation rental guests is important
Leaving reviews of your guests is a crucial part of building a great online reputation as a vacation rental host. Reviewing guests helps you to:
- Meet OTA requirements: Although leaving reviews doesn’t directly impact your Airbnb Superhost or Vrbo Premier Host status, getting reviews does. And guests are more likely to leave a review when they see that their host has already reviewed them.
- Rise in search rankings: As your reviews of guests encourage more positive reviews from them in return, there’s a higher chance you’ll rise up the OTA’s search rankings and ultimately get more bookings.
- Inform other hosts: Many OTAs allow hosts to see existing reviews of potential guests. Leaving reviews means you’re giving other hosts useful information to inform their decisions, potentially even safeguarding their accommodation from difficult guests.
- Encourage guests to be considerate: Guests want good ratings too! If guests know they are going to be reviewed, then they are more likely to be on their best behavior. This increases the odds that they’ll follow your house rules and leave the property as they found it.
Tips for leaving reviews of your guests
To maintain your status as a thoughtful host, your reviews need to be thoughtful too. Make sure that the feedback you leave is professional, useful, and appropriate. Here are some tips to guide the process.
- Follow the OTAs’ guidelines: Remember that different OTAs have different rules regarding your guest reviews. For example, on Airbnb you have 14 days to write your Airbnb guest review from their check-out date. Check you’re aware of these differences before you set up your review process.
- Be honest and fair: Your reviews should accurately reflect your experience of your guests. Use objective standards like adherence to house rules or the condition of your property after check-out to keep your feedback fair.
- Think about other hosts: What would you like other hosts to know about the guest? Think about what will be useful. For example, stating that you would happily host the guest again reassures other hosts that they can welcome them too.
- Stay professional and respectful: Again, remember that other hosts – and the guest – will be able to read the review.
- Consider private feedback options: On certain platforms, like Airbnb, you can leave private feedback alongside your public review. This allows you to give guests feedback without publicly embarrassing them. It also gives you a separate space to raise issues with guests if you prefer to keep your visible reviews positive and encouraging.
- Personalize your reviews: To save time, you’ll probably want to use review templates like the ones we provide below. However, tailoring your responses will allow you to provide the personal touch that guests truly appreciate.
Example guest reviews to help you get started
Unsure what to write when leaving reviews of your guests? Here are a few examples that you can use for inspiration or edit as you see fit:
Positive reviews of guests
A positive review of your guest after they leave can be the perfect end to a great overall guest experience. Your reviews don’t have to be in-depth, but make sure they convey your appreciation of, and enthusiasm towards, the guest. Here are some examples you can use.
- [GUEST NAME] and his/her/their family were the perfect guests. They left the property spotless and followed all house rules. I would happily host them again!
- [GUEST NAME] was a pleasure to host! Excellent communication and very respectful of the property. He/She/They is/are welcome back anytime.
- [GUEST NAME] and his/her/their friends were wonderful guests. They kept the place neat and tidy. I would definitely welcome them again in the future.
- Hosting [GUEST NAME] was a breeze. He/She/They was/were quiet, considerate, and left the apartment in great shape. Hope to see him/her/them back soon!
- [GUEST NAME] and his/her/their group were fantastic guests. Very polite and left everything clean and organized. I would love to host them again.
- [GUEST NAME] was a dream guest. Communicated clearly and promptly, and treated the property with great care. Would host again without hesitation.
- [GUEST NAME] and his/her/their family were excellent guests. They were respectful and followed all the house rules. I would be delighted to have them stay again.
- Hosting [GUEST NAME] was a pleasure. Very friendly, punctual, and left the property immaculate. Definitely welcome back anytime.
- [GUEST NAME] was a fantastic guest. Great communication and left the place in pristine condition. He/She/They is/are welcome back anytime.
Negative reviews of guests
Leaving feedback when you haven’t had the best experience with a guest can be trickier than singing their praises. Aim to keep your reviews professional and diplomatic while honestly addressing the problems that have arisen.
Here are some examples of negative guest reviews, based on different problems. Don’t forget to customize these templates to suit the specifics of your experience with the guest (while keeping the tone appropriate!).
- We had an unfortunate experience with [GUEST NAME], as he/she/they caused significant damage to the property. The repairs were costly and time-consuming. Future hosts should be cautious and ensure clear communication about property care.
- We kindly request that our guests take time to tidy up before checking out to help facilitate a pleasant stay for the subsequent guests. Unfortunately [GUEST NAME] left the rental property in an unclean state. This necessitated extensive cleaning and caused a delay for the next guests. As a result, I would not recommend hosting him/her/them again.
- [GUEST NAME] disregarded our no-smoking policy, which was clearly stated in the listing. This resulted in lingering smoke odor and additional cleaning. Future hosts should be aware of this behavior.
- We ask that all guests avoid hosting parties at our property for the sake of our neighbors. Unfortunately, [GUEST NAME] hosted a party without prior approval, which violated our no-party rule. This caused noise complaints and inconvenience to neighbors.
- [GUEST NAME] did not respect the check-out time, causing delays for our cleaning crew and the subsequent guests. This lack of consideration disrupted our schedule. Future hosts should be aware of this potential issue.
- Unfortunately, [GUEST NAME] was not communicative during his stay, which made it difficult to resolve some issues that arose. This lack of responsiveness led to avoidable complications around the check-in and check-out process. I would advise caution.
- [GUEST NAME] had more guests stay overnight at the property than is allowed in our house rules, exceeding the occupancy limit. This was against our policy and created safety concerns. Other hosts should be mindful of this behavior.
How using a PMS makes leaving reviews easier
We’ve established that leaving reviews for every single guest can quickly become time-consuming. However, a good PMS (property management system) should equip you with the tools to handle reviews smoothly and efficiently.
Automated guest reviews
A good PMS should give you the ability to create a templated positive review that you can schedule to publish automatically. This saves precious time while ensuring you review each guest after their stay. Make sure this template can be personalized so you can address specific points and provide that final extra touch of hospitality.
You also want to ensure that you can pre-set a date for when you want each review to be published, e.g., 5 days after the guest has checked out. If the guest doesn’t warrant the good review you have scheduled, this delay effectively acts as your ‘safety valve’. For instance, if you learn after the guest departs that they’ve left their room dirty or damaged, you still have time to manually change the scheduled positive review.
With eviivo Suite, you can set up automated reviews for Airbnb and star ratings for Vrbo, then customize and amend them manually as needed – all from within our platform. This allows you to enjoy both total control and complete convenience when managing your review process.
Centralizing reviews from multiple platforms
Imagine the time you’d save managing all your reviews without having to toggle between OTA extranets. eviivo Suite’s unified guest messaging inbox makes it possible by centralizing reviews from Airbnb, Vrbo, Expedia, and your direct booking website in one place.
Use the inbox in eviivo Suite to view and respond to reviews from guests, as well as automate, schedule, and amend your reviews of guests. Using the inbox, you’re able to:
- Immediately see positive or negative reviews, regardless of source.
- See what actions you need to take by filtering reviews based on their source (direct, Airbnb, Expedia or Vrbo); read/unread status; feedback status (positive or negative); whether you’ve actioned (replied) or are yet to reply; and more.
- Cross-reference reviews against the existing booking information in eviivo Suite – giving you all the info you need to respond to or review a guest in one click.
- ‘Pin’ reviews from guests for you to action/reply when you have the time.
- Integrate reviews from various sources into one standardized rating system, for a simpler, clearer view of guest feedback.
Conclusion
Reviewing your guests matters. By consistently leaving reviews, you can grow your online reputation, rise through the OTAs’ search rankings, and drive more bookings.
Simplify the review process with a PMS that allows you to centralize, automate and edit your reviews in one place. With eviivo Suite, you’re free to schedule automated reviews for Airbnb, Vrbo and your direct website guests, while integrating reviews within our unified messaging inbox. As a result, you save valuable time staying on top of your feedback and building an enviable online reputation!
You might also be interested in… 
