Hi Airbnb, Here is A Kind Suggestion.
My first experience with Airbnb went back to 2018 when I was only a freshman in college and ready to book an exciting trip to Los Angeles. The Bohemia-style house was fantastic, and the host was friendly and kind; everything was exactly what I wanted. I still have pictures of the house, full of the beautiful memories of my first spring break. Because of this first great experience, Airbnb is always my first choice for seeking travel accommodations.
After reading The History of Airbnb, I am amazed by the two founders’ farsighted business ideas and the ambition to disrupt the hotel and hospitality industry. However, when I go back to their website with a high expectation to check out the latest news with Airbnb, I am disappointed. Well, they are not all bad, but plenty of space for improvement.
Intriguing content is hidden
You can see from the screenshot above, at the very top, they provide the navigations to their primary services such as Place to stay (homestays for vacation rentals), Experiences (activities that are hosted by local experts), and Online Experiences (explore the worldwide experience at home). And, they have this beautiful picture that utilizes visual components to grab your attention.
They also have the search bar, and when you scroll down, you will have the section of Inspiration for the next trip, Discover Airbnb experience, Shop Airbnb gift card, etc.
However, something feels off.
When I click on their official website, the page automatically lands on Place to Stay, which is reasonable since it is their primary service. And, they are good enough to inform you that if you click the options at the top, you can go to another service page. However, when I click the Experiences option, the page looks the same as the Place to Stay.
When I click the Online Experiences page, it does go to a different page which introduces various programs you can engage at home. Because the Online Experiences page is direct, I cannot help questioning why the other two are so messed up? Is it because of the pandemic? Is Airbnb paying more attention to its online business? Well, that is my guess; while the world is recovering from the pandemic, Airbnb needs to work on other services as well.
It is not pleasurable to use the website for a fundamental reason- the contents on the pages are not what I am looking for.
As a consumer, if I land on the Place to Stay page, I expect to see lots of interesting, unusual, and fun houses Airbnb has. Those unique houses are one of the most crucial advantages of Airbnb compared to hotels. Airbnb is fun and diversified. However, the only thing (sort of) related to accommodation is this “tent” in the homepage picture. Yes, it is nice, but not enough. So, I keep scrolling down and expecting to see more, but NOT… The content is everything but accommodation.
Consequently, I start to wonder where I can find those attractive houses, so I poke around for a while. Then, I find a I’m flexible button, and it finally takes me to the accommodation pages (The button called I’m flexible is confusing, so I do not know what to expect if I click that. However, if Airbnb can rename it to “Explore more exciting houses,” it will be self-explanatory). This page includes treehouses, tiny houses, domes, etc, and it is so compelling that I want to book one immediately.
And that is what you guys should do! When we land on the page, you should put those diverse and compelling houses the first thing we can see.
As I mentioned before, the Experiences page looks exactly like the Place to Stay. And learning from the previous experience, I am hoping if I click I’m flexible, I can see exciting experiences and tourisms Airbnb offers, but NOT…. It is still about the houses. Man, Airbnb, that is not what I am looking for!!! I am on the Experiences page, and you should provide content about local tourism. So, again, I start to look for content. When I scroll down to Discover Airbnb Experience and click Experience, I finally find those programs.
Dear Airbnb… You have a lot of exciting content, but they are all hidden. The logic behind the website is messy, and you fail to understand what your users are looking for. If the consumers need to make an effort to find information, that is your guys’ problem- You should put that interesting and helpful information in a conspicuous place.
What else can they improve?
Desktop vs. Mobile
Their website on mobile devices is pretty similar to desktop, but certain features are hard to find. For example, unlike the desktop, it is easier to find Experiences and Online Experiences at the top to understand what Airbnb offers. On mobile devices, those options are missing. Also, the language switching function is hidden at the bottom, which I consider an essential function for international users and worthy in a more prominent place. However, if I make it horizontal, those functions appear, but Online Experiences is missing (inconsistent design with desktop). I think it should be a better way to make it work vertically.
AI
According to the article, “Sharing More About the Technology That Powers Airbnb”, they have successfully applied AI in areas like improving search, preventing fraud, and helping hosts optimize pricing. I think that is great, but it will be even better if they can utilize chatbots to help users navigate information and improve customer experience.
Ok, is there anything they are good at?
Yes, of course!
The aesthetic and brand personality.
Besides the undesired web design I mentioned before, I have to say the photography on the website is fantastic. Let us first enjoy some of the pictures on the website.
Doesn’t it make you want to quit your job and get on a plane? I know I am! Those pictures stimulate my desire to travel and liberate me from real life shortly. Moreover, if you go to their Become a Host page, the photography’s tone and the smile on the hosts’ faces make you feel warm, amiable, and trustworthy. The aesthetic suits well with their brand personality.
If I can use Sally Hogshead’s fascination theory to describe Airbnb, it must be Passion and Trust. Passion comes from the lust for creating spirited and unique trips, and Trust comes from providing a trustworthy and considerate homestay.
Airbnb Blog and Airbnb Newsroom are awesome, but again, hard to find!!!
Airbnb has categorized their blog into six sections, as the below screenshot shows, and worthy of mentioning that all the contents can be translated into ten different languages. However, even though their contents are detailed and thorough, you can see from the second screenshot that the likes are ZERO… I am not surprised since their official website doesn’t give a clue to their audiences that they have a blog.
The situation of Airbnb Newsroom is better than their blog. At least we can find that at the bottom of their official site. What a waste of those interesting content!
All in all, if I can give Airbnb one piece of advice
Guys, You need to make your wonderful content visible!
