Airbnb Gets More Brand Punch From Its Marketing Spend, Numbers Show

Online travel shoppers are ruthless. They just want the lowest price served up to them in the fastest way possible and care nothing for brand loyalty. Or so the conventional wisdom goes. Airbnb’s S-1 filings, however, show that it is possible to break that mold and win over customers with a unique brand in the age of the ubiquitous Google search. Perhaps the most important aspect of the Airbnb story is its ability to build a brand. After all, short-term rentals had existed as a sleepy corner of the accommodations market for decades before Airbnb came around. But for most consumers, Airbnb introduced them to the market, or at least reinvigorated the consumer impression of what it meant to stay in a short-term rental. Airbnb has become a verb and denotes a particular way of traveling and staying local. The Airbnb Advantage Let’s check in on Airbnb’s peers in the traditional hotel space, Expedia Group and Booking Holdings. Their rooms are highly commoditized with price and loca