Airbnb has introduced a dashboard particularly aimed at corporate travel managers. This enhancement to its existing Business Travel Programme has three key components:
- Activity Tab — this details employee itineraries booked through Airbnb
- Reporting Tab — this collects and manages booking reports and exports financial reporting data
- Employees Tab — this manages approved and pending employees who are permitted to book business travel using Airbnb
The official release states clearly that there will be "central billing to improve the business travel experience for travellers and travel managers".
The use of the term 'travel managers' by a new entrant to the sector is highly unusual, especially one in a market segment which has no history of attracting business travellers or publicly stated intention to follow the traditional financial model of negotiated rates and discounts in exchange for guarantees of volume.
But history happens more quickly in the digital age.
Airbnb launched its original business programme a year ago and claims that its corporate business has increased 700% since then. Admittedly this would be from a very small base but the accommodation community marketing site now openly boasts Google, TBWA, Twilio and SoundCloud amongst its 250 corporate clients.
It is not uncommon for companies which are predominantly B2C to claim business clients publicly when their strategy turns to expanding into the higher margin corporate business. Low cost carriers have been known to put out press releases about high profile account wins which infuriate established carriers who politely acquiesce to their clients' wishes in not making public statements or talking to the press about their clients.
But this launch is different — it comes all singing and dancing with the seal of approval from named senior managers at all four companies including Darragh Ormsby, global travel manager at Google.
Continued below
Airbnb has recognised travel managers directly in its new business toolsAirbnb is spot on. They are not merely offering a booking tool; the capacity to provide traveller tracking and suitable financial and reporting structures is also there.
What is probably also spot on is the product. Airbnb rates do not come with lots of ancillary charges in addition to the room rate which are allowable business expenses (and a travel manager and data nightmare) such as WiFi access and parking as the budget hotel chains such as Travelodge model. All the extras will be bundled into a product that will be lower cost than the traditional hotel room yet have the benefits of the burgeoning serviced apartment sector (kitchen facilities for that morning coffee or midnight snack)
Of course there are also drawbacks — there is no reception and 24-hour service to cater for your every need and answer every question. However, for the kinds of accommodation required when a number of a company's employees travel together, ie for a strategy weekend or to attend a conference or a sales pitch, it means being able to stay together as a team and enjoy the privacy to discuss business without fear of who might be sitting at the next table in the hotel restaurant.
It also is bound to look appealing to those on longer-stay business trips who would rather trade the traditional support which a full-service hotel gives for the extra space and amenities that a home can offer.
It might not yet be a competitor for the two-day banker trip between Hong Kong and New York but for the under-30s and those on a project who need to stay for a month, the attractions are obvious and the sector most under threat is likely not to be hotels but serviced apartments.