Airbnb has completely changed the way we travel, and even the concept of ownership itself. Very few companies have had the economic success and cultural impact that this startup has had. And yet, as we all know, it almost failed on multiple occasions. Many, many times.
Let's look at Airbnb's story, break it down, and see what we can learn.
On this workshop, Balthazar will take the startup's full story, the stuff you might not have heard before, and see what lessons we can learn.
International Business Environments and Operations 16th Global Edition test b...
Case Study: Airbnb by Balthazar de Lavergne
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CASE STUDY: AIRBNB
BALTHAZAR DE LAVERGNE
2. AN EASY RIDE ?
✓ Built the wrong product first
✓ Almost died before P/M Fit
✓ Feared competition & regulation
21. GO RAISE MONEY
✓ But difficult times ..
✓ So they became Ramen profitable
✓ 600k from Sequoia
22. “One of the startups from the batch that just started, AirbedAndBreakfast, is in
NYC right now meeting their users. (NYC is their biggest market.) I'd recommend
meeting them if your schedule allows.
I'd been thinking to myself that though these guys were going to do really well, I
should introduce them to angels, because VCs would never go for it. But then I
thought maybe I should give you more credit. You'll certainly like meeting them.
Be sure to ask about how they funded themselves with breakfast cereal.
There's no reason this couldn't be as big as Ebay. And this team is the right one
to do it.”
23. “It's also counter-cyclical. They just arrived back from NYC, and when I asked
them what was the most significant thing they'd observed, it was how many of
their users actually needed to do these rentals to pay their rents.”
24. “This is after only a few months. I bet you they will get hotels eventually. It will
start with small ones. Just wait till all the 10-room pensiones in Rome discover
this site. And once it spreads to hotels, where is the point (in size of chain) at
which it stops? Once something becomes a big marketplace, you ignore it at your
peril.”
25. EXPAND TO MORE
CITIES
✓ Conversion: Craigslist hack
✓ Acquisition: PR, Word of mouth
✓ No Adwords, that’s after P/M fit
26. :BE YOUR STARTUP
✓ Travel to every city
✓ Onboarding meetups
✓ Lived one year in a Airbnb
31. ATTENTION TO DETAILS
✓ The 7 star experience
✓ The superhost program
✓ The office
✓ The design
✓ The daily email
32. STAY FOCUS
✓ They could have diversified and didn’t: why ?
✓ Will now be the issue to sustain growth
33. TIME HORIZON
✓ Before P/M fit you need to survive —> Week
✓ After you get a plan —> Month / year
✓ Never think 10 years from now until you’re rock solid
34. BUILD TRUST
✓ Actionable rating
✓ Curated content
✓ Focus on supply
✓ Best Customer Support EVER