Open Air Homes’ Constant Obsession with 5 Star Reviews

Open Air Homes has always grown slower than our competition. We see it as our secret to long term success. We have watched as the competition was focused on expansion above all else. We chose instead to direct our energy towards maintaining 5 star ratings, and with this obsession buried deep in the psyche of everyone who works here, we are now just beginning to scale with intention. We consider 5 star reviews more than just a goal, but an obsession – one that motivates us to provide superior hospitality and service each and every day.

Future of Hospitality Demands a Better Experience

At Open Air Homes, we have always been obsessed with 5 star reviews. I mean obsessed. I personally read every review that comes in for the company, and we react to the feedback in every instance. This obsession carries our brand and will carry us into the future of hospitality, as guests begin to demand a better experience year over year. Guests for too long have been willing to overlook some mishaps, but now that companies like Airbnb are going public, they are going to demand the level of service and sophistication that comes with a 5 star experience.

There have been a number of brands that have grown very quickly in this space. I will spare naming them, but there are quite a few who chose to buy up smaller competition, and try to meld them into one common experience. From the consistently bad reviews online, we can see it hasn’t worked all that well.

At Open Air Homes, we recognize that we are growing at a faster rate than ever before, providing consistent jobs for an expanding employee base. However, we make sure to instill in every employee, the value of focusing on making sure the customer is taken care of – always.

I believe that slow growth and a passion for exemplary customer service will be the foundation for the hospitality chains of the future that are currently being built within the short term rental industry. We owe it to our guests to always offer them an unrivaled experience.

We Strive to Be the Best

Obsessing over 5 stars allows hosts in any city of the world to grow their business, just as we have done in Los Angeles over the past 8 years. We have grown by word of mouth exclusively, and this is only possible when you strive to be the best.

Whenever there is anything less than a 5 star review, we immediately call an all-hands meeting to address the complaint. We work to understand how we missed the mark and brainstorm strategies to improve and safeguard against similar scenarios.

Likewise, we celebrate employees when they are mentioned by name for their stellar commitment to our guests, and we recognize that even during Covid, there is still a very human element to this business that can never be replaced by technology.

Firmly Rooted in Customer Experience

Open Air Homes has reached a financial stage that now allows us to begin scaling significantly. While we are excited to develop, we must never lose sight of our roots. We are firmly rooted in the customer experience, and in creating a better future for the hospitality industry as a whole.

Open Air Homes is in the process of closing out our first raise, a “friends and family” round. As we start to scale the business to a number of exciting destination cities over the next three years, we will be as focused as ever on our obsession with the guest experience. We will not lose sight that it is this dedication that keeps guests coming back and homeowner partners happy with the quality of guests we have staying in our homes.

As we enter the next phase of building the ecosystem of the Open Air companies, we are continually looking towards our past experiences with guests and homeowner partners to ensure we are offering the most comprehensive offering around. That offering begins with our dedication towards being not the biggest in the industry, but definitely the best.