Brian Chesky's Announcement

[Lizzie]

Hello Everyone,

I wanted to update you all on some news from Airbnb's CEO:

Brian Chesky has just begun a two-week trip to meet with members of the Airbnb community in six cities around the world. On the first day, Brian met with a group of hosts in Airbnb’s San Francisco headquarters. In his remarks, Brian:

• Pledged to help hosts create 1,000 Host Clubs in communities worldwide by the end of 2018. Globally, 114 Clubs are operating today.
• Committed to a series of engagements with our host community, including quarterly live chats with hosts from around the world.
• Announced the expansion of Airbnb’s Host Advisory Council, a formal organization that will provide host feedback directly to Airbnb leaders.
• Announced that he is changing his title to “CEO and Head of Community.”
• Pledged to invite hosts to a portion of one board meeting a year to make sure they have a seat at the table.

Here is the video of Brian's talk from the Community Event:

These announcements are all about listening more, and all the great feedback you provide helps to inform more community-driven actions and decisions. We really appreciate receiving this, and look forward to continuing to work with you more and more!

Please feel free to share any thoughts you may have, here in this thread.

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Robin4]

@Lizzie

I am far from the gold plated halls of Airbnb in San Fransisco, but I would love Brian to come here for a night and let me host him as a total unknown, just as I do every other guest.....I am sure he would take away from here a different perspective to that which he has at the moment.

I am the backbone of his business, and I would like him see just how far that backbone goes to keep him upright!

@Lizzie....I just watched that video and my reaction is......Boing!

Cheers.....Rob

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

well... it is good to know that Airbnb has no intention to replace hosts with robots, at least not yet 😄

It is a pity that Brian was hosting all together just 6 guests in his life (as he said) and times were different then. Maybe all three founders could run again one Abb listing beside their primary job as Head/ceo for a while. Just for academic reasons...  Something like "Boss undercover". 

For example I would love to see how their security-deposit/host-insurance policy would quickly change after a guest trash their place (or just womit on a sofa) ... and some first hand experiece with toddlers and small children would be educative too 🙂

[David126]

@Branka-and-Silvia0

What an awesome idea, there could be a selection of such listings that allowed all the senior staff to get some real live experiance.

You would want to cover the speectrum, price wise and type of listing.

Hopefully @Lizzie could pass the suggestion along.

[David126]

I am wondering how BREXIT came into it and I have a feeling he does not understand the issues involved.

Probably best not to go there.

[Maxine0]

That made me laugh too @David126 - not sure why he believes us Brits have left 'Europe' and are putting walls up ! We only left the European Union! And House of Lords voted in favour of a right to stay for all EU member state citizens to remain in the UK.

[Helga0]

Your brexit remark made me watch the whole video. He used the vote as exemple for a feeling of insecurity, like the Trump vote. Both improbable in the world before the crash of 2008. But in a world with secure decent jobs, tgere would be far less hosts too 😉

I like @David126´s idea and would gladly have Bruan as a vice-host during my next holidays - but tall as he is, he could not live in my place 😉 

more host clubs should be a good idea, for the company to get ideas and for the hosts to be heard. The development in only 9 years is amazing, but it diluted the engagement and the community spirit. I believe he is optimistic when he says thatpeople think of "community " before they associate airbnb with "business". I think that changed over the last 3 years. It's an important argument to sell nights and also to sell political ideas, so airbnb needs to keep the community idea alive. 

I'd be interested in participating in such a host club, to see in what measure it can be a two way street of ideas, not a one way propaganda tool. 

I'd like to see a separation too between professional hosts and private homes, but I don't think professional gosts would be less engaged in shaping policy. Maybe ever more engaged. 

[Helga0]

Sorry for the horrible spelling.  Advice from this host to airbnb: get the community center to work on phones, finally, after a year and a half. Impossible to edit more than three lines. 

[David126]

Well there is GREXIT, FREXIT, NEXIT and a whole list of other issues if he really wants to go there. My Grandparents went through 2 world wars so sometime I think we need a bit of perspective.

I have never understood the 'Community' aspect. AirBnB is a booking system.

[Maxine0]

Hello @Helga0 - really nice to see you and to read your always intelligent thoughts. Hope you and Augustos are well 🙂

[Maxine0]

We'll at least he is finally acknowledging that without decent hosts there is no business. And I do hope he will keep his word. If I were to make a suggestion it would be that Airbnb split out 'commercial rentals' with multiple listings from hosts own single home and private room in host present properties. Then let the 'guest' community market decide whether they want a commercial or a community host booking.

Commercial rental businesses, IMHO, are unlikely to be joining host clubs nor much interested in community. And as such their interests and needs are very different from home owners who are far more vulnerable. 

I wanted to attend tomorrow's London meeting, tweeted Brian directly - no response. Emailed him directly - no response. Hummm - the whistle stop tour meeting a handle of hosts, is perhaps a missed opportunity. An open invite sent a month inadvance to hosts would have given a much greater insight to him than a couple of hours before jumping on a plane to next location. He'll burn himself out if he's not careful.

1000 host clubs is quite an ambition, if each one will include an airbnb staffer. The host Advisory Board is a good idea so long as it directly engages with hosts and is not just a one way street.

Chip Connoly's advice to Brian was spot on - do 'for' the community not 'to' the community.

Here's hoping he succeeds - respected and happy hosts = happy guests. And bad guests should be thrown out of the community as it is they who cause the most damage to the community of hosts.

And finally, the host Security Deposit Host Guarantee scheme should actually mean something. Too many hosts have suffered damage by guests whose deposit is handed straight back to them the moment they say "I didn't do it' or they just point blank refuse to respond to a resolution centre request and airbnb close the ticket and refuse to engage further. He needs to know that has caused many a great host to leave airbnb.

[Helga0]

Hi @Maxine0, 

a pleasure to see you again. Auguste was quite sick in November/December, an aspergillus infection, which is stress induced (without stress, parrots fend it off, as it is everywhere). I cut back a bit on hosting, winter slow down helping and made the description clearer ("bed means bed", no daycare for lost souls)

not as drastic of course and Edith softened it a bit in corrrecting my French. 

But it's picking up again and I'll have to block some nights soon. At the moment, I coach my young neighbor in hosting, whocan't 

[Maxine0]

Oh @Helga0 I'm so sorry to hear of Auguste illness, I know how much he means to you. Hope he is fit and well again and biting naughty guests! Glad you are back to hosting and coaching your neighbour - lucky girl to learn from the best mentor in town ! Hope Edith is well and fighting fit.

I still miss the Anecdotes group - it was so much fun and so much easier to retain bonds and get over any spats. Hey ho.

Shame the Host Groups Brian intends to create will be so localised, we all learnt so much more from each other when we were in a mixed group of every nationality and culture. After all, guests are from every corner of the world and it helped in our cultural understanding of their quirks and to be more open to vivre la difference .........

Likewise the dedicated creative and artists groups or vegan, veggie and well being groups - all enabled birds of a feather to flock together, irrespective of nationality ......... Brian could learn a lot from that and break down the cultural barriers by recognising lifestyle interests are more important and attractive than location and hemming people into that. Seems to run Contrary to the 'don't just go there, live there' message to guests. Hey ho. @Lizzie - please take note

If Euro Tunnel will allow Auguste to travel with you - do come for a visit, he'd fit right in, here in Brighton and likely end up photographed and published in Brighton social media groups and even books. Don't let fame go to his little feathered head tho' 🙂

Sending best wishes, luck and love across the Channel 🙂

[Helga0]

@Maxine0,  yes the Anecdotes group is what I associate with community too, that really felt like having tea with people from the whole world. And finding friends everywhere. I miss that very much. 

Auguste has not bitten anyone in many months. Maybe the matching program matches guests with him?

I believe you can't bring animals to England without a quarantine, but I'll look it up. I'll spend most of April in Germany and Austria, renting the whole atelier and thought about renting the whole place a few times a year, making at least one trip elsewhere, not visiting family. An England and Scotland round trip would be very attractive and I never was to Ireland yet. I'd love to meet you all in person / see you again. 

[Maxine0]

Not entirely sure about quarantine for parrots @Helga0 - yes please look it up. An England, scotland tour would be great - and maybe a trip to Ireland and stay with Ellie (Carrounthill bnb) in Kerry. She and I spent New year together on an airbnb hosts Boat in Playa Blanca, Lanzarote - it was fab as was she.  May 2017 when you are back from your trips would be ideal as weather a bit warmer and also May is the Brighton Open Houses artist and designers, and live performance from dance to theartre etc festival - you'd enjoy that I'm sure. I have a non-airbnb spare room for friends and family, so doesn't interupt play if I have (and I will) guests in airbnb suite. Stay in touch - it would be lovely to finally meet you. 🙂