Dive Brief:
- Airbnb announced new social features for Airbnb Experiences, its booking solution for activities and tours, according to a company announcement.
- The features are meant to help guests connect with one another before, during and after experiences. Additions include a direct messaging option, the ability to see guests who are already going on a specific experience and the option to see the people a user has already met.
- Users maintain control of the features, choosing what information, if any, to share with others. Airbnb also unveiled other updates, including smarter search and improved map functionality, an expanded Reserve Now, Pay Later option and improvements to its artificial intelligence-powered customer support.
Dive Insight:
The new social media features for Airbnb Experiences are part of the company’s ongoing bid to be more than a travel-booking platform for consumers. Earlier this year, the brand overhauled its app in support of Experiences, which lets users book local activities including gallery tours, shopping excursions and horseback rides. The move was accompanied by a social-first marketing campaign.
The changes to Experiences, which was a relaunch of an existing product, were designed to help travelers form deeper connections with their destination cities by engaging with locals, according to CEO Brian Chesky. Now, the platform’s latest updates are designed to help consumers connect with each other before, during and after their excursions.
The features include the ability to see what guests are already going on an experience — along with where they are from — before booking for oneself. The addition is supported by a recent survey indicating that over 70% of travelers would like to know more about other guests before booking an experience.
Users can also request to directly message guests they first met during an experience within the app. Additionally, in the Connections section of a user’s profile, travelers can see who they’ve met during their experiences to allow them to reconnect. For each experience, users can choose whether or not to share their profile.
Airbnb also updated several other features and will offer more options for homes just outside of a traveler’s search criteria. For example, the app will provide options with similar prices, different amenities or stays in nearby areas for less. The Maps tool now lets users easily filter for nearby landmarks, restaurants and attractions. Later this year, Airbnb will also allow users to see different map views, including satellite, transit or street.
Additionally, the app’s AI assistant will be available in additional languages and countries and can recognize a user and their reservation or listing to provide more tailored responses. The assistant will also let users take actions, like canceling a reservation, directly in the app. Airbnb at the same time is expanding its Reserve Now, Pay Later feature, which was launched in the U.S. earlier this year, to be available worldwide starting next year.
