Airbnb faces radical change: booking of services now possible
Up to now, the Airbnb app has mainly been used on vacation and when travelling. With the addition of services, it should now be interesting all year round.
Screenshot of the revised app
(Image: Airbnb)
Airbnb can now be used to book not only accommodation, but also a range of services and activities. The US company has now announced this and presented an extensive overhaul of the app. For example, you can order a chef, a personalized photo shoot, a haircut, or a massage directly in the app. The activities include horse riding tours, museum tours and cooking classes. People would choose hotels based on their services, whereas Airbnb used to be all about the accommodation itself, explains Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky: “Now we offer the best of both worlds.”
Airbnb on the brink of radical change
The new offers are initially available in 260 cities around the world. You don't have to be on vacation to book the services, you can also order them directly to your home. Initially, the “services” are available in ten categories, but more are to be added. Airbnb assures that the services are “checked for quality in terms of expertise and reputation”. The providers have an average of ten years' experience, have verified their identity and submitted relevant evidence.
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For Airbnb, the move could herald a radical change for the app, as it has usually only been used a few times a year so far. If you can soon book services in your hometown, you could use the app much more often – and Airbnb could earn much more in return. Co-founder Nate Blecharczyk believes it is possible that his company will be surprised at how big the business ends up being. What's more, people already generally spend significantly more on food, shopping, and activities when traveling than on accommodation. Airbnb could now get a lot more of that too.
Even activities with celebrities
The so-called discoveries are available in more than 650 cities for the launch, Airbnb explains further. New ones are to be added every day. As an example, the company presents a conversation with an architect from the Notre Dame restoration team or a horseback ride with an expert on the Incas in the Andes. As Airbnb Originals, there will also be activities “with the most interesting people in the world”. Airbnb includes beach volleyball player Carol Solberg, singer Sabrina Carpenter and footballer Patrick Mahomes. However, you can only enquire about activities with them in the app.
Airbnb takes 20 percent of the fee from the providers of the experiences and 15 percent from the services. From this, the company pays transaction costs for payments, customer service and insurance, among other things. However, those responsible for the services and experiences are not exclusively tied to the platform. In Germany, the average cost of a discovery at launch is expected to be 66 US dollars, which is currently equivalent to 59 euros. The first service categories were selected based on the interests of the users.
(mho)
