Writing listing descriptions with AI without overclaiming

A listing description should make the place sound like itself. AI writing tends to polish, and polish drifts into claims. Your job is to pull every claim back to a fact you can point at.

What you need

• A fact sheet: bed sizes, who it sleeps, bathrooms, what's in the kitchen, parking, access, noise, and what's nearby with real distances from your own measuring.
• A list of what the place doesn't have, such as no lift, steep stairs or no air conditioning.
• Your own photos, so the words match the pictures.
• Your platform's listing rules.

Why overclaiming matters

False advertising is "an advertisement containing a false claim or statement".¹ Many governments use laws and regulations to limit it.¹ The rules differ by country and state, and this page can't tell you where the line sits. Check with your consumer regulator, such as the ACCC in Australia, the CMA in the UK or the FTC in the US.

There's a trust angle too. One reference notes that "people may create false accounts and advertise vacation homes that they do not in fact own".² Guests are wary. An accurate listing, with its limits stated, helps a real host stand out.

How a draft goes wrong

Chat tools can produce believable text that's false.³ In listings, expect:

• Room features you didn't mention: a balcony, a fireplace, a pool.
• Vague claims: "steps from the beach", "fully equipped", "peaceful".
• Made-up local sights and walking times.
• A higher sleeping capacity than you have.
• Hotel-style promises, such as daily housekeeping.

Steps

1. Write the fact sheet first. Include the downsides.
2. Ask the tool to write a description using only the facts on the sheet, in a plain, friendly voice, with no adjectives that need proof.
3. Print or copy the draft. Underline every claim a guest could check.
4. Match each underlined claim to a line on your sheet or something visible in your own photos.
5. Remove or rewrite what doesn't match. Swap "steps from the beach" for the walk you've timed yourself.
6. Add the limits: stairs, street noise, shared walls, no parking on site.
7. Ask a friend to read it and tell you what they'd expect on arrival.

Words to watch

After publishing

Update the description when something changes: a broken appliance, a closed cafe, a new rule. An old listing becomes an overclaim by itself.

For the messages guests get after booking, see check-in instructions. For local registration or licensing, ask your council, not a chat tool.