If you’re an avid traveler, there’s a good chance you’ve used Airbnb. Or at the very least you recall their hilariously odd campaign during the 2008 Presidential Election, when all anybody wanted for breakfast was either a box of Obama O’s or Cap’n McCain’s. However, the Airbnb social strategy has come along way since then.
The Silicon Valley company, like Kickstarter and Uber, offers a unique spin on crowdsourcing — allowing people to offer their homes as short term rentals in as many as 33,000 cities across 192 countries around the world.
Airbnb, short for Air Bed & Breakfast, was founded in 2008 and has since secured over $100 million in venture capital funding from famous names including Sequoia Capital and Y Combinator. Despite the fact that social media marketing was nowhere near where it is today at the time of their launch, the company has developed an impressive approach that’s bound to be driving sales and growing brand loyalty.
Today, Airbnb is active on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, YouTube, and Pinterest. They’ve effortlessly mastered the art of social: championing the human personality behind their brand, maintaining superior aesthetics and design, and appealing to a wide audience through the enchanting foundation of its business (travel).
What a host! Well done 🙂 RT @AlexinaSF: Card, flowers, wine, & #SanFrancisco chocolate to welcome @Airbnb guests! pic.twitter.com/Hw41mE8zsl
— Airbnb (@Airbnb) May 22, 2014
And as for the cherry on top of the sundae, Airbnb has made some pretty distinctive moves during times of national news.
Probably the most impressive, however, is Airbnb’s constant encouragement to contribute to their Stories from the Airbnb community page, which suggests that maybe the world isn’t so big, after all.
Have you used Airbnb before? Did you interact with the brand before, during, or after your stay?
