Airbnb is on a blitz as of late, announcing major product changes, wooing hotels, and drawing the battle lines against the OTAs all within the span of a few months.
During a speech at this year’s ITB Berlin, Airbnb’s Co-Founder Nathan Blecharczyk announced new updates and initiatives both on the B2C and B2B front.
Rolling out throughout 2018, a raft of improvements are being made to achieve a lofty goal. In Blecharczyk’s words, the aim is to make “Airbnb for everyone.” Significantly, this includes a full-scale attempt to attract more hotels onto the platform.
Blecharczyk’s presentation then demonstrated exactly how the company intends to evolve, openly revealing its intent to compete directly with OTAs in the online booking space.
Updates include new ways of working with (and rewarding) partners, delivering extra perks to guests, and enhancing the Airbnb platform to deliver a superior user experience.
In the following post, we’ll dive into the details. As well as discussing some of the big changes Airbnb is making, we’ll look at the wider implications for travelers, OTAs and the hospitality industry at large.
More rewards for hosts
One of the major changes coming is an upgrade to Airbnb’s “Superhost” program, which recognizes outstanding hosts that tick certain boxes, including having a 4.8+ rating and 90% response rate.
Airbnb now wants to offer better rewards to its Superhosts, such as discounts on smart home products and increased visibility and exposure on the platform. These added perks are likely to incentivize more hosts to aim for this elevated status, helping to raise standards and so enhance the guest experience.
More rewards for guests
The company also wants to offer more rewards to guests. To that end, it’s launching “Superguest.” Coming this summer, this new rewards program will recognize the most valued customers with exclusive benefits, services and rewards.
By negotiating with its hosts, Airbnb will be able to provide an elite group of guests with perks like access to exclusive inventory, last-minute bookings, airport pick up, and flight upgrades.
