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Comment by amiadsoto | Hacker News Reader

Hi, I am Amiad, the co-founder of SuperHost. I'm here to answer any questions!

Thanks

Your website starts with two questions asked by customers, then claims it will take care of them for you by answering professionally. However it does not explain for those two examples, how they would be answered. Let's assume the answers are not as simple as "instructions on top of washer" and "look on google maps". How would you answer them?

Great Question. Thank you.

When we answer our guests we either do it by phone and resolve their problem or question, or by message on email/airbnb platform. We find that our guests are very satisfied by the level of detail that we put on our answers. For example our directions from the airport are a full page with both public transport options and prices and other more private options like shuttles and taxis.

I hope that answer your question. Feel free to ask me any other question you may have.

I don't think that really answers the question. There will evidently be questions that require the owner's actual interaction. (Eg. Q: which light switch controls the outdoor lights; how much water do I give your plant?). The only thing I can think of is getting some information beforehand from the owner (which at that point may as well be given to the renter).

This solution is great for general area questions, but guests will likely still have specific questions about the actual building they are in (how do I turn on the hot water, etc). How will you deal with that?

Edit: Koby's response just popped up as I was composing this; I like the idea of learning from previous responses!

Thanks! I appreciate the feedback!

For most of the cases, answers can be found in the listing, and guests are looking for clarification or confirmation. As we do get access for the listing, we can learn a lot from your previous responses and repeat that in future scenarios. Also, as we are experienced hosts we understand Airbnb platform better so we can give answers to problems people face with.

Lastly, you are right, some of the questions cannot be answered by us, those are a fraction of the inquires and we give you, the host, the option to not let those interrupt you in your vacation. If you do want us to send you important questions we will. Think about us as a personal receptionist desk.

Koby, co-founder of SuperHost

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