Get Paid For Your Pad | Airbnb Hosting | Vacation Rentals | STR Revenue Management EP135: The Airbnb Story with Leigh Gallagher
Mar 13, 2017
38:27
Airbnb owes much of its success to the visual appeal of the site, which has been referred to as “Pinterest meets real estate porn.” But did you know that in Airbnb’s early days, Brian and Joe spent time with hosts in New York and took the pictures themselves to help upgrade the listings?
The Airbnb story is a compelling one, and you might be surprised by many moments in Airbnb history that made a significant impact.
Today Jasper chats with Leigh Gallagher, Fortune editor and author of The Airbnb Story: How Three Ordinary Guys Disrupted an Industry, Made Billions … and Created Plenty of Controversy. They discuss the company’s early struggles, pivotal moments in their growth and development as well as the ongoing controversies that plague Airbnb.
Topics Covered
The inception of Airbnb and its early struggles
•Joe and Brian met at RISD
•Rented out their apartment in San Francisco to pay rent
•Each racked up $20,000 in credit card debt during development
•Launched at SXSW but gained little traction in first year
•Investors skeptical due to issues around safety
When Airbnb finally began to turn things around
•Pushed to apply for Y Combinator in 2009
•Received critical advice from Paul Graham
•Go to your users
•Do things that don’t scale
•Obtained investment from VC Greg McAdoo
The major challenges of creating a company around the Airbnb product
•German competitor Wimdu
•Ransacking incident in June 2011
•Building a culture
•Hiring seasoned executives, i.e.: Chip Conley
How Airbnb shifted from technology to hospitality
•Began as a platform with software as product
•Realized hosts were product
•Sought to formalize standards and teach hospitality at scale
Airbnb’s grand ambitions to expand to products outside homes
•Experiences
•Restaurant reservations
•Event booking
•Flights
•Other services
The controversial aspects of Airbnb
•Legal challenges
•Neighbor issues
•Safety incidents
•Discrimination
Connect with Leigh
leighgallagher.com
Resources Mentioned
The Airbnb Story on Amazon
The Airbnb Story at Barnes & Noble
Connect with Jasper
Email: jasper@getpaidforyourpad.com
Twitter: @GetPaidForUrPad
Instagram: @GetPaidForYourPad
Facebook: www.facebook.com/getpaidforyourpad
This episode is sponsored by Hostfully.com where you can create a custom digital guidebook for your guests!
The Airbnb story is a compelling one, and you might be surprised by many moments in Airbnb history that made a significant impact.
Today Jasper chats with Leigh Gallagher, Fortune editor and author of The Airbnb Story: How Three Ordinary Guys Disrupted an Industry, Made Billions … and Created Plenty of Controversy. They discuss the company’s early struggles, pivotal moments in their growth and development as well as the ongoing controversies that plague Airbnb.
Topics Covered
The inception of Airbnb and its early struggles
•Joe and Brian met at RISD
•Rented out their apartment in San Francisco to pay rent
•Each racked up $20,000 in credit card debt during development
•Launched at SXSW but gained little traction in first year
•Investors skeptical due to issues around safety
When Airbnb finally began to turn things around
•Pushed to apply for Y Combinator in 2009
•Received critical advice from Paul Graham
•Go to your users
•Do things that don’t scale
•Obtained investment from VC Greg McAdoo
The major challenges of creating a company around the Airbnb product
•German competitor Wimdu
•Ransacking incident in June 2011
•Building a culture
•Hiring seasoned executives, i.e.: Chip Conley
How Airbnb shifted from technology to hospitality
•Began as a platform with software as product
•Realized hosts were product
•Sought to formalize standards and teach hospitality at scale
Airbnb’s grand ambitions to expand to products outside homes
•Experiences
•Restaurant reservations
•Event booking
•Flights
•Other services
The controversial aspects of Airbnb
•Legal challenges
•Neighbor issues
•Safety incidents
•Discrimination
Connect with Leigh
leighgallagher.com
Resources Mentioned
The Airbnb Story on Amazon
The Airbnb Story at Barnes & Noble
Connect with Jasper
Email: jasper@getpaidforyourpad.com
Twitter: @GetPaidForUrPad
Instagram: @GetPaidForYourPad
Facebook: www.facebook.com/getpaidforyourpad
This episode is sponsored by Hostfully.com where you can create a custom digital guidebook for your guests!
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