Airbnb is reporting a sizable increase in bookings via its corporate travel platform - so much so that Airbnb for Work is now “one of the most significant growth drivers” for the company’s Homes sector, says David Holyoke, Airbnb for Work's global head.
From 2016 to 2017, Airbnb for Work bookings tripled, and the number of companies signing up for and booking via the platform (based on users with unique corporate domains) now hovers near 700,000, nearly double that of companies using the service in April of last year.
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About 275,000 of those companies have a relationship with Airbnb to manage their corporate travel, meaning a stakeholder - such as a travel manager - within the organization is directly connected to Airbnb for Work’s teams and tools to facilitate bookings.
Airbnb for Work first launched as Airbnb for Business in 2014 and saw its bookings triple from 2015 to 2016.
Holyoke says Airbnb for Work is now, overall, one of the top two fastest-growing businesses within Airbnb - the other being Experiences - and the number of companies engaging with and booking through the platform is jumping by the “thousands” each week.
Furthering this growth, Airbnb will officially launch an integration into SAP Concur’s corporate booking tool in the next few weeks, signaling the first time Airbnb listings will appear in a corporate travel partner’s platform.
Airbnb for Work trends
As more and more business travelers book with Airbnb for Work, new trends in travel habits are emerging. The average length of stay for a “traditional” business trip on Airbnb, for example, is now about five days, compared to six or more nights a year ago.
The fastest-growing segment of trips is three nights or fewer, which Holyoke says “really demonstrates how we’re starting to expand our use cases and gaining traction for more than long-term stays from a business travel standpoint.”
Travel managers and companies are coming to us and saying it’s getting increasingly hard to keep costs down.
David Holyoke - Airbnb
On the other end of the spectrum, Airbnb for Work stays of 14 or more days have grown nearly 3X in the past year, which Holyoke says is a trend for larger companies focused on mobility and relocation.
“As [bigger companies] are moving people around the world and attracting talent, we continue to be a great option for transitional homes as people are looking for where to set up their permanent roots,” he says.
More than 30% of Airbnb for Work trips include at least one weekend night - an indication that “bleisure” trips remain popular - and about 60% of Airbnb for Work stays have more than one guest, which points to a growing interest in collaborative trips - an area Holyoke says is “under-recognized” among companies of all sizes.
Traveling as a group allows people to “come together, take a large home with a lot of open common space for collaboration and for productivity sessions,” he says. “Then [everyone also has] their own personal space. It provides a more productive trip and a lot more value and savings for individuals and companies.”
Of the 60% of Airbnb for Work trips with more than one guest, 40% have three or more guests.
SAP Concur integration
Though initially announced last year, Airbnb will officially begin incorporating its inventory into SAP Concur’s search and booking tool in the next few weeks.
The move is a first for Airbnb to have its marketplace supply next to hotel listings in a corporate travel partner’s platform, and Holyoke says the partnership will “open up access to tens of millions of more employees from around the world and the 20,000 companies that Concur works with.”
Airbnb listings on SAP Concur will include full homes and apartments - no private rooms or shared homes - that are instantly bookable. Although Airbnb declined to give an exact figure, Holyoke estimates the number of listings makes up about 60% of Airbnb for Work’s supply and is somewhere “in the millions.”
Asked if additional corporate travel platform partnerships are in Airbnb for Work’s future, Holyoke says the current focus is on SAP Concur, but “depending on how that relationship goes, we’re always evaluating other partners and strategic opportunities that make sense for us.”
In the coming weeks, Airbnb for Work will also begin testing unique landing pages for companies. The new feature will allow companies to customize search and booking options to align with their corporate travel policies and use cases.
Who is using Airbnb for Work, and why?
About 40% of the Airbnb for Work community comprises large enterprise companies of more than 5,000 employees, and Airbnb counts Gap Inc., Twitter and Columbia Sportswear Company among its customers.
Another 40% is made up of employees from startups and small- and medium-size businesses of as many as 250 employees, and mid-size companies of from 251 to 5,000 employees represent the fastest-growing segment of travelers - currently 20% - on the platform.
For companies, Holyoke says Airbnb for Work is an attractive alternative to doing business with hotels in that it helps them manage costs and appeal to a workforce looking for flexible travel policies.
“Business travel costs on the lodging side continue to increase typically about 4 to 6% globally every year on average. If you look at major urban markets were there is a lot of compression about having more choice and more options, travel managers and companies are coming to us and saying it’s getting increasingly hard to keep costs down,” he says.
“They’re looking for us to help complement and round out their program, especially when we can bring five million listings in 190-plus countries in 65,000 cities - the scope of that makes it very appealing for a company.”
Companies are also fighting hard to find talent, Holyoke says, and travel managers are looking to Airbnb to stay competitive with what other companies are offering. “You wouldn’t have seen this a decade ago, but people coming in are asking: ‘What’s your travel policy? What things do you allow me to do? Can I stay in an Airbnb?’”
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