AirBnB has just taken strong action against COVID-19 with global cleaning and protection protocols. Why did it take so long?

Seven months after the coronavirus pandemic began wreaking havoc and hospitality around the world, AirBnB, despite everything announced on October 7, mandatory COVID-19 security practices for all of its international households (except mainland China) to help curb the continued spread of the virus.

As of November 20, all AirBnB hosts and visitors must comply with mandatory progressive cleaning procedures as well as social distance and mask requirements. According to the company’s Announcement of October 7, entitled “Meeting for the Health of Our Community”, Hosts who do not comply are at risk of being suspended or expelled from the platform. Customers must also comply with updated regulations at the time of booking.

This represents a major change in AirBnB to manage the pandemic and restore customer confidence, following the recent global ban on the vacation platform and preventing customers in the United States, Canada and Australia from booking short-term homes in the cities where they live.

The platform brought its “improved cleaning” procedures for the first time in April, when stocks were reduced by 72%, adding mask and gloves for cleaning equipment, as well as disinfecting high-touch surfaces such as remote controls, switches, handles of cabinet doors and handles, but compliance is voluntary. Since then, more than 1. 5 million AirBnB listings have been “approved” for meeting the platform’s COVID guidelines, resulting in a three-fold increase in bookings for those homes compared to homes. that were not indexed in the program, according to AirBnB’s internal data.

“In April, AirBnB announced that we were going to develop the first global standardized rules for cleaning and disinfection in the house by sharing induscheck out, which included a five-step cleaning process, piece-by-piece checklists, and more resources for hosts,” an AirBnB spokesman told me, “Our protocols were developed in consultation with leading experts in hospitality and medical hygiene , adding the former U. S. Surgeon General to the U. S. Dr. Vivek Murthy, and were informed through the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But it’s not the first time And the World Health Organization. month, we incorporated our “enhanced cleanliness” recommendation into our mandatory COVID-19 protection practices, as cleanliness remains paramount in today’s changing environment. This commitment will help provide more assurances to verify to all of our stakeholders: hosts, guests, their communities and governments. “

In the short-term leasing industry, this is no small thing, as it assumes that other platforms will likely adhere to mandatory suppression procedures and blank interaction protocols, adding HomeAway, VRBO, Booking. com, Expedia and Travelocity. potentially disproportionate have an effect on hosts, who must now implement stricter and more expensive suppression measures in a sector that already operated with tight profit margins before the pandemic hit, as average daily reserves and rates began to fall.

So why now?

“Airbnb is suffering from staying in the middle of those things,” says Tom Caton, director of earnings and co-founder of AirDNA, which largely monitors AirBnB’s registration and booking data as well as his next initial public offering. “It’s a platform where other people can list their addresses in undeniable terms. With great uncertainty at first, Airbnb left fitness and cleanliness in the hands of the hosts and optional selection led approximately 1. 5 million rentals to enroll in the initiative to gain the prestige of “enhanced cleaning” in Hectorize visitors over mandatory hospitality regulations is a tricky step to take, whether it’s a pandemic or not. However, now that there is much at stake with the threats of the moment and more data available, AirBnB takes care of the scenario by implementing those policies and protocols ».

At first glance, AirBnB’s new COVID protocols via hotel criteria would possibly be too few, too late for many travelers who were already about to enter the short-term rental market prior to COVID-19 (at the most travelers still liked hotels for short-term hotels), term leasing in many pre-pandemic surveys), but the platform implementation strategy for many short-term rental insiders seems practical as the industry looks to rebound .

“COVID-19 is different from anything you’ve found before,” says Omer Rabin, managing director of Guesty, one of the world’s leading genuine property control systems generation platforms that allows hosts to manage visitor bookings and experiences. “Airbnb and hosts had to adapt Therefore, no platform can be judged for acting too much or not temporarily enough by offering mandatory protocols to a global audience. But rigorous cleaning protocols are now an essential and expected “convenience” of the new popular. no other WiFi or flexible cancellation conditions. In our recent survey of 400 international asset control corporations published in May this year, 60% of respondents said they had implemented more rigorous cleaning procedures to prevent the virus voluntarily. platform, it made sense to provide assistance and recommendation before applying strict regulations at the start of the pandemic. “

It remains to be seen how AirBnB’s new COVID security policies will change the direction of guests. No matter how you eliminate smart intentions or time, the new platform’s cleaning lens messages will put great pressure down on host profits at a time when millions of other people are slightly satisfied or absolutely contemplating their short-term rental market homes. Many of the hosts I spoke to, after overheads such as loan payments, furniture fees, insurance, utilities and disposable products like the paper and coffee toilet, a few weeks only make a profit on their cleaning margin.

The way the platform’s new clean-up and security policies, the effects of hosts can have a massive effect on the closure of the company’s IPO. Since the beginning of this year, the total number of active AirBnBs classified ads international (not counting mainland China) has already decreased by almost 20% according to AirDNA. Si more hosts make the decision that the new cleanliness and protection protocols of the platform simply do not diminish the effects, this percentage is likely to increase.

“All that is basically, when you run a business, is for profit and Airbnb rightly believes that building a reputation as a non-Covid option makes a lot of sense,” says Caton of AirDNA. “From now on, it depends on how many of your hosts will appreciate this point of interference in their own businesses and leave the platform altogether. Only time will tell.

I’ve been addicted to other people who live their lives to the fullest. Most other people’s memories fade over time. Mine gets clearer every day because

I’ve been addicted to other people who live their lives to the fullest. Most other people’s memories fade over time. Mine are becoming clearer every day because forgetting them would be unforgivable. I sailed to Antarctica, rappeled down to an active volcano, hiked on America’s most exclusive golf courses, atetimo cooked with one of America’s best chefs, and smoked Cuban cigars in Havana cafes before most people knew the Cold War was over.

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