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Subject: Airbnb

paulgraham.com

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Re: Subject: Airbnb

#91

Post by auston »

quickpost wrote: post #36

Fascinating conversation. Thanks for giving insight into how these deals work... >ABNB reminds me of Etsy in that it facilitates real commerce in a marketplace model directly between two people. Interestingly enough, I still tend to side with Fred's assessment of AirBnB's future. All my experiences with it as a user have been too unreliable to expect that it can scale to truly massive usability. Selling your old guit…

I disagree.

I opted for ABNB literally 5 out of 6 times this past February. All successful.

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#92

Post by staunch »

joshu wrote: post #88
jrockway wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is neither terse nor concise. Terse and concise means you write what you mean. When the VC writes, "we are still in the data-gathering phase", he really means "I see what you are saying, but my gut says no right now. I may contact you in the future when I know more." This is longer, but it actually means something. Instead of saying that he needs more data in order to make a decision, he's said that he needs mor…

I was in data-gathering about coffee until I read that you wanted coffee too. I have asked an associate to bring in some coffee for discussion.

I've completed my data-gathering-phase and need coffee too!

This has gone viral!

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#93

Post by mechanical_fish »

quickpost wrote: post #36

Fascinating conversation. Thanks for giving insight into how these deals work... >ABNB reminds me of Etsy in that it facilitates real commerce in a marketplace model directly between two people. Interestingly enough, I still tend to side with Fred's assessment of AirBnB's future. All my experiences with it as a user have been too unreliable to expect that it can scale to truly massive usability. Selling your old guit…

There are so many more subtleties to actually having a stranger come and stay in your house than there are to sending a stranger a book, guitar, etc via USPS.

So, PG is a good salesman, and he hit the nail on the head with this comment:

Just wait till all the 10-room pensiones in Rome discover this site.

If you ever read a Rick Steves guide (which are not exactly the scariest guidebooks on the planet -- they're fairly comfortable middle-class NPR stuff) or tour around Europe in backpacker mode you will become familiar with the pension, aka the German zimmer or the English B&B. These are rooms. In pubs, or very tiny hotels, or people's homes. Which get rented out. They are very common, they have been a tradition forever, and they aren't very formal. Maybe you call ahead. Sometimes that doesn't even work. Sometimes you call ahead but then the landlord forgets your reservation. But ultimately you turn up, meet the landlord, get taken to the room, you look around for two minutes, you say "si" or "no" and fork over a night's rent, and there you go. It's not like buying a house or getting married or anything.

Yes, it's a bit more subtle to rent a room than to deal in used books. But it's not that subtle.

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#94

Post by jrockway »

metachris wrote: post #68
jrockway wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is neither terse nor concise. Terse and concise means you write what you mean. When the VC writes, "we are still in the data-gathering phase", he really means "I see what you are saying, but my gut says no right now. I may contact you in the future when I know more." This is longer, but it actually means something. Instead of saying that he needs more data in order to make a decision, he's said that he needs mor…

You can call it meaningless, but people in the business do understand exactly how it is meant. The way he phrased it just sounds a lot more polite.

Just because people understand businessspeak doesn't mean it's good to use. You would know what I meant if I typed "teh" instead of "the", but we all try to write "the" anyway.

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#95

Post by pg »

seiji wrote: post #16

Great examples of VCs never saying no directly and of a strange insider be-terse-and-get-out-of-my-way writing style.

Actually he did explicitly say no a few weeks later. Fred is pretty good in that department.

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#96

Post by nupark »

This exchange cements my concerns about AirBNB only being huge if they can end-run the hotel regulatory system.

pg: Did they explain the long-term goal of being the market in accommodation the way eBay is in stuff? That seems like it would be huge. Hotels now are like airlines in the 1970s before they figured out how to increase their load factors.

fw: So I think it can scale all the way to the bed and breakfast market. But I am not sure they can take on the hotel market.

The problem is, the regulatory system (not to mention the neighbors) do not want unlicensed, widespread "crowd-sourced" illegal hotel rooms, and are working hard to block them:

http://www.frommers.com/articles/6912.html

Paul Graham talks about the 'eBay' of accommodation -- but a huge percentage of eBay's revenue comes from professional sellers, which is exactly what will run afoul of regulation in the rental/hotel market.

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#98

Post by borism »

nupark wrote: post #96

This exchange cements my concerns about AirBNB only being huge if they can end-run the hotel regulatory system. pg: Did they explain the long-term goal of being the market in accommodation the way eBay is in stuff? That seems like it would be huge. Hotels now are like airlines in the 1970s before they figured out how to increase their load factors. fw: So I think it can scale all the way to the bed and breakfast mark…

not only regulation.

hotel chains won't be sitting idly while few geeks eat their market.

oh and btw, isn't eBay kinda dead thanks to Craigslist?

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#99

Post by willgodfrey »

modoc wrote: post #86
robobenjie wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aww shucks, Thanks, Randall. We really enjoy hosting, and it seems like an even better deal for us (we get paid to make friends). About the only downside Iv'e experienced so far is that I have to wash sheets all the time (most people stay with us for 2-3 days and since we now have between 70%-100% occupancy thats a lot of sheet washing. I'm also about to go to Paris and the value proposition of airbnb there is even b…

If you're renting out your spare room 70-100% of the time, why don't you just get a roommate? Seems like it would be safer, less work, and you'd ideally have a better long term relationship.

Well, to look at it from solely a financial point of view, a room in an apartment is worth much more if you rent it out by the night or week rather than by the year (like you would with a roommate).

Here in my neighborhood, in Chicago, one can find a room for about $40/night; 15 nights and I already have half my rent. So yes, having a roommate might be less work (but that depends on what you consider "work") but I can make more money renting a room out by the night.

Re: Subject: Airbnb

#100

Post by tansey »

modoc wrote: post #86
robobenjie wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aww shucks, Thanks, Randall. We really enjoy hosting, and it seems like an even better deal for us (we get paid to make friends). About the only downside Iv'e experienced so far is that I have to wash sheets all the time (most people stay with us for 2-3 days and since we now have between 70%-100% occupancy thats a lot of sheet washing. I'm also about to go to Paris and the value proposition of airbnb there is even b…

If you're renting out your spare room 70-100% of the time, why don't you just get a roommate? Seems like it would be safer, less work, and you'd ideally have a better long term relationship.

They can probably charge a premium to the short term guests.
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