A Lesson On Listening And Acting

I’ve never used AirBnB, but I know they started out to be a disruptor to the hotel and to a lesser extent, the timeshare industry. I also know that they’ve had some significant pushback from consumers and hosts alike. 

Here’s a series of tweets from Brian Chesky of AirBnB. I’m not saying that this is a better alternative to timeshare because people have different needs, budgets and expectations. I am however saying that addressing the issues in this manner is commendable. 

“I’ve heard you loud and clear—you feel like prices aren’t transparent and checkout tasks are a pain. That’s why we’re making 4 changes: 

1. Starting next month, you’ll be able to see the total price you're paying up front.

When you turn this on, you’ll see the total price (before taxes) in search results, as well as on the map, price filter, and listing page. You can also view a full price breakdown with Airbnb’s service fee, discounts, and taxes.

2. We are prioritizing total price (instead of nightly price) in our search ranking algorithm. The highest quality homes with the best total prices will rank higher in search results.

We started as an affordable alternative to hotels, and affordability is especially important today. During this difficult economic time, we need to help our Hosts provide great value to you.

3. To enable Hosts to set more competitive prices, we’ll be launching new pricing and discount tools. Hosts told us they’d like our help to better understand the final price guests pay and what price to charge to stay competitive.

4. You shouldn’t have to do unreasonable checkout tasks, such as stripping the beds, doing the laundry, or vacuuming. But we think it’s reasonable to turn off the lights, throw food in the trash, and lock the doors—just as you would when leaving your own home.

If Hosts have checkout requests, they should be reasonable and shown to you before you book.

Thank you for all the feedback. We will never stop improving Airbnb.”

There’s a lesson that the timeshare industry would be wise to learn from. The question is…will it?

Ch…Ch…Ch…Changes

With apologies to David Bowie, today I’m going to say something about changes. In particular, the ability of the developer to institute oftentimes major changes to the contract between you and them. 

You may think that changes are not allowed. You’d be wrong. Well, partially wrong. You can’t make changes. They can. That’s called unilateral change. One party can and the other can not. 

What changes can the developers make?  Where to begin!  Perhaps you purchased at a resort that was one of several properties owned by Developer X. 7 years down the road, Developer X is acquired by Developer Z. For whatever reason, you don’t like Developer Z’s business practices. Can you have your contact dissolved?  No, you can not. 

We’re not talking about fees here by the way, which the developer has the right to increase as they see fit. Guest Certificates which used to be $49 are now $89. The ability to split a week into a 3-night stay and a 4-night stay which used to be no cost is now $70! These are 2 small examples of why it’s imperative to ask the right questions concerning fees before purchasing. (For more questions to ask, I’ve identified 19 Questions To Ask Before Purchasing A Timeshare, available for only $18.99)

So, the developer can institute unilateral changes while you, do not have that right. 

You can not decide to change how much or even when you pay. You can not wake up one morning and decide to give your timeshare interest to another person because the developer may block you from doing so. You can’t say you don’t want the timeshare any longer because you used to be able to use it towards a particular cruise but now you can’t because the developer and the cruise line parted ways. Well, technically you can say you don’t want it any more, but saying it means nothing. 

None of this is meant to dissuade anyone from purchasing a timeshare. I’m just pointing out the obvious one sided nature of the contract. Yet another reason to not purchase a timeshare on a whim.