Airbnb Hopes to Woo New Hosts With Setup Program

With revenues at record levels and more people renting their homes to earn extra income, Airbnb is working to attract new hosts.

That’s the thinking behind “Airbnb Setup,” a program the company launched Wednesday (Nov. 16) to make it easier for people to turn their homes into Airbnb properties.

“Airbnb was born during a recession,” CEO Brian Chesky, who founded the company with Joe Gebbia, said in a news release.

“Joe and I couldn’t afford to pay our rent, so we inflated three air mattresses and created an AirBed & Breakfast. Today, just like during the Great Recession in 2008, people are especially interested in earning extra income through hosting.”

When delivering the company’s quarterly earnings report earlier this month, Chesky said Airbnb had seen a number of people turning their properties into rentals to earn extra income. At the time, he hinted at an event mid-month aimed at aggressively increasing its host numbers.

The new program pairs new hosts with a “Superhost” – the company’s term for a seasoned and top-rated property owner – and ensures their first booking is with an experienced guest with a solid track record on Airbnb.

“We’re launching with 1,500 Superhosts in over 80 countries who are dedicated to helping new Hosts get started,” the company said in its announcement.

The program also gives new hosts access to a team of support agents who can help with account issues and payments.

Meanwhile, the company said it would expand AirCover, a series of guest protections launched earlier this year.

The expanded version of AirCover offers protection for hosts as well: guest identity verification, reservation screening and $3 million in damage protection, including coverage for cars, boats, art and valuables.

The launch comes as Airbnb is set to begin letting customers see the total price of rentals — including all fees before taxes. Starting next month, the company will also prioritize total price rather than nightly price in its search rankings so that the best total prices will rank higher.

These changes came more than a year after Airbnb said it would review its fees in response to social media backlash about fees that were not immediately displayed as part of the price.