Airbnb Ecosystem: tip of iceberg
People-to-people platform of Airbnb benefits all its stakeholders, including hosts, guests, employees and the communities in which it operates. According to its CEO, Airbnb is “a more vertically integrated, end-to-end, full-stack ecosystem powered by people.”[1] Generally, Airbnb ecosystem can be divided into two groups: narrow and broad.
Narrow Airbnb ecosystem comprises services that directly generate revenues for Airbnb, while broad ecosystem contributes to the development of peer-to-peer lodging, travel and experiences industry in general. Airbnb ecosystem in a narrow level integrates the following types of services:
- Accommodation
- Experiences
- Adventures
- Restaurants
The travel industry disruptor supports stakeholders in its narrow ecosystem in various manners. For example, in a rare event of accidental damage, the property of every Airbnb host is covered up to a million dollars.[2]
Airbnb has caused an ecosystem of new start-ups that produce products and services for peer-to-peer lodging industry. This can be specified as broad Airbnb ecosystem and includes a range of products and services. Table below illustrates the most popular types of such services referring to notable examples:
| Products and services within Airbnb ecosystems | Notable examples |
| Cleaning services of properties | FlyCleaners: On-Demand Dry-Cleaning App
Proply: Full-service cleaning, key delivery, welcome gifts and restocking Porter: laundry, cleaning, restocking |
| Property management for hosts | Guesty: responding to guest inquiries, screening potential guests, coordinating key exchange etc.
Urban Bellshop: check-in, listing management, cleaning Nest: controlling temperature, |
| Analytics | Beyond Pricing: automated pricing suggestions
Smart Host: pricing advice Everbooked: pricing suggestions based on a wide range of factors |
Services within broad Airbnb ecosystem
Additional products and services within Airbnb broader ecosystem include automating check-in process, providing keyless entry around the clock, concierge services and welcoming guests and software products such as data presentation and analytics. Moreover, physical products such as toiletries, remote locks, and noise signallers and financing services for Airbnb hosts have also emerged as new businesses to join the ecosystem. It can be stated with a high level of confidence that with the accelerating development of sharing industry in the global scale, Airbnb broad ecosystem is expected to further expand in short-term and long-term perspectives.
Airbnb Inc. Report contains a full analysis of Airbnb ecosystem. The report illustrates the application of the major analytical strategic frameworks in business studies such as SWOT, PESTEL, Porter’s Five Forces, Value Chain analysis, Ansoff Matrix and McKinsey 7S Model on Airbnb. Moreover, the report contains analyses of Airbnb leadership, business strategy, organizational structure and organizational culture. The report also comprises discussions of Airbnb marketing strategy and addresses issues of corporate social responsibility.
[1] Menze, J. (2018) “Interview: Airbnb CEO says it’s now “100%” battling online travel agencies” PhocusWire, Available at: https://www.phocuswire.com/Interview-Airbnb-Brian-Chesky-hotels
[2] Airbnb Statistics (2019) Property Management, Available at: https://ipropertymanagement.com/airbnb-statistics/