Airbnb has gained a lot of popularity over the more than a decade. Online Rental Marketplace Like AirBnB has gained recognition as one of the best real estate rental websites across the world. Airbnb allows users to offer and rent accommodations worldwide.
What makes it so successful, what are the business models adopted by Airbnb and what is the best method to adopt for Airbnb like website design and development?
This article would help you know how Airbnb website is different from others and how to develop a website like Airbnb.
About Airbnb
It is an online marketplace located in San Francisco, California. It helps the customers avail of home rental and amazing travel experiences.
How Does Airbnb Work?
Airbnb's working model comprises two different types of users and they are:
- Guests
- Property owners
So, the rental marketplace website development process is not an easy one. Hence, a lot of businesses choose to hire an e-commerce rental website development firm to get a custom website with different services and functionalities. Also, to build a website like Airbnb, you need to learn about its working model from both guest and property owners’ perspectives.
Working Model of Airbnb For Guests
- Guests go through the login process to register for the rental services via a website or website.
- After setting up the profile, the guests are asked to their photo, ID and contact information, etc
- Airbnb lets guests
- search using multiple filters like property type, prices, space period and location, etc
- After the guest place the request to book a stay, they get the confirmation.
- Once confirmed, the website/app allows them to make payment for the stay using different payment methods.
- Next, they can check in and enjoy their stay
Working Model of Airbnb for Property Owners
- The property owners also need to register or log in to the website/app. They need to have a minimum of 18 years of age to register.
- After creating the profile, they can add the property information like space area, location, type of apartment, guests required.
- The property needs to post sharp images of their property and set a specific rent. To help you upload high-quality pics of your property, Airbnb lets you hire professional photographers too
- A property owner should give all the information to the guest regarding hygiene standards, quiet hours, etc
- Once the guest agrees to the terms & conditions, the property owner can approve the stay or reject it if needed.
- The property owner gets the payment within 24 hours of the guest's check-in
What Is The Business Model Adopted By Airbnb To Earn Profits Through Website?
Airbnb makes money through different models like :
- They charge 3-4% as transaction fees from the property owner against each confirmed booking.
- Airbnb charges the guest 6 to 12% as booking fees based on the reservation size which comprises service fees, currency exchange fees, occupancy, cleaning fees, etc
- 3-5 % fees are charged by Airbnb to registered host members to list their property on the Airbnb app or website.
- Normally 10% service charge is taken against each reservation the host receives.
You can also earn money through subscription services offered to travelers and property owners through your website.
Essential Features For A Website Like Airbnb
Let us have a look at some common features that work for both guests and property owners. Apart from these two panels, the admin panel is also important. We will learn about features to be included in the admin panel as well.
Common Features For Guests and Property Owners
- Login
- Personal profile
- Verification
- Messaging
- Calendar
- Payment
- Notification
Features For Property Owners
- Booking Management
- Listing Management
- Reviews
Features For Guests
- Search & filters
- Booking management history
- Wishlists
- Geolocation features
- Rating and reviews
Features To Be Included In The Admin Panel
This panel plays an important role on your app/website as it helps manage the guest and host activities :
- User management
- Customer support
- Cancellation management
After learning about the features to be considered during Vacation rental marketplace development let us know about the steps to follow to build a website like Airbnb
Come Up With An Idea And Validate Your Idea
This is the very first step towards a successful Airbnb-like website development journey.
Looking at the growing competition, you need to come up with a unique idea and spend enough time to understand whether your idea will work or not. Research the market and try to find answers to questions like :
- Do you want to target a specific city or a particular audience?
- Find out if websites similar to Airbnb are present in the market? How would you make your website stand out from the rest?
Once you get the answers to the above questions, you will have a clear picture of how you want to move toward your business goals.
Determine Your Budget
You need to determine the initial budget you are ready to set up for the website development. Well, to attract investments for your business venture, you need to present your website to the world for which you need to launch an impressive MVP.
2. Create a Prototype
Building a prototype would help you test your website/app. It will help you know how the different screens going to perform. The web development company in the USA or the city you hire would help you perform this task for you.
Collaborate With A Tech-team
Certainly, the job is not over after creating the prototype as it needs a lot of effort and patience, hard work of experts, and investing ample time. So, assign the project to experts of the tech team which includes,
- Mobile app developers
- Designers
- Front-end & back-end developers
- Quality Assurance experts
- Project manager
Instead of hiring 5-10 different professionals, hiring a travel website design company would save your time and give effective results. You can also choose to outsource your website development project overseas
Select The Right Tech Stack And Create An MVP
Here is the tech stack used by Airbnb to run an efficient app/portal
- Application Framework: Ruby on Rails
- Programming languages: JavaScript, Ruby, Java, CSS3, HTML5
- Automation Frameworks: Capybara, RSpec
- JavaScript Framework: React.js
- Data storage: Redis
- Web application server — Puma
- Web server — Nginx
- SQL data storage — PostgreSQL
- Hosting — AWS - Amazon Web Services
Grab The Investments
You can start grabbing investments with a functional MVP. Investors, local community assistance, and crowdsourcing can work. Also, advertise your business to present your product and its potential as much as possible to raise funds
How Much It Would Cost To Build A Website Like Airbnb?
The final price of any online rental marketplace solution would depend on different factors like:
- The functionality you wish to integrate into the rental marketplace platform
- The development method you select is custom solutions or ready-made solution
- Rates and location of the development company.
Conclusion
Certainly, the travel industry will continue to grow in the coming years, and thus investing in travel booking websites like Airbnb would be a wise decision for entrepreneurs. After knowing about the working model, business model, tech stack, features, and cost of website development to build a website like Airbnb, you know that this needs the right expertise to get desired end product.
So, if you are looking for the right expertise and experts to help you build a website like Airbnb, Webfox, a professional website design and development company in the USA would help you get the desired results. Our experts have in-depth knowledge of how an Airbnb-like marketplace works. Get in touch with us to discuss your idea to help us bring it on screen.