Creating a Better Place to Stay in the App Store.
Giving Airbnb’s App Listing a Total Renovation.
The Ask:
When modern travelers need a place to stay, their first destination to find something affordable and with local character is often Airbnb. The Airbnb app makes it incredibly simple for users to browse and book places to stay and things to do right on their mobile devices. While their app has seen significant updates over the years, their listing in the Apple App Store and Android Play Store had not seen an update in over five years.
The company needed to update its app’s listing to better reflect the current state of their business and highlight everything Airbnb offers, not just places to stay.
Additionally, the company wanted their new app listing to improve how they ranked for relevant key terms in each app store while still matching Airbnb’s core values and messaging.
The Big Idea:
Working as part of a team from Critical Mass embedded inside Airbnb’s head office, we took a deep dive into everything Airbnb to learn what drives the company and community that uses them.
The big thread we discovered that runs through Airbnb’s different offerings and makes Airbnb appealing is the sense of community between Hosts and guests. And with this in mind, we crafted a narrative using copy and images that highlight the Host/guest feeling of sharing experiences throughout the different offerings, while also emphasizing the benefits of using the mobile app.
The Solution:
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Many people already know Airbnb as a way to find great places to stay, but Airbnb Hosts offer much more than just places to stay. They also offer unique and local experiences for people traveling or virtually traveling. We decided to use this idea to craft the narrative of the listing, which also tied into a more extensive Airbnb brand campaign that would be soon launching, and focused on everything that Hosts have to offer.
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Using design, imagery, and copy, myself and the CM@Airbnb team set out to create a portrait of the warm and welcoming community the Airbnb brand had evolved into in the five years since they last updated their listing. The new listing would encourage guests to explore the world through the different ways Airbnb facilitated thanks to Airbnb’s many Hosts’ fantastic hospitality.
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As an interesting twist to the exercise, we were working on this listing just under a year into the COVID-19 pandemic with signs that it would continue for at least another six months worldwide. With this in mind, we found ways to subtly work in a strong emphasis on Airbnb not just for big travel plans but also short trips close to home, or that people could experience the world without ever leaving home.
The Result:
Our completely new and updated listing for the Airbnb app went live in February 2021 in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. The go-live launch coincided with the brand’s “Made Possible by Hosts.” campaign, which launched with a set of commercials during Super Bowl LV.
The project was very well received internally at Airbnb all the way up to their chief brand creative director. And more importantly, the Airbnb community responded positively to the new language in the app listing. The updated copy also helped the app rank significantly higher, and in many cases, first, for more off-brand key terms.
More.
My Contributions:
Message development
Research
Copywriting
See more @ these live links:
Note: Updates have been made to the live listing since this initial major update in February 2021, but this project remains the foundation for the Airbnb app listings when last checked.