Mark SimpsonHelping short-term rental hosts get the tools, tactics and training to grow direct bookings with confidence

Airbnb vs Direct Bookings: The Secret Strategy

7 Apr 2025 · 1 min

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Short excerpt from a YouTube video ("Airbnb vs Direct Bookings: The Secret Strategy") in which Mark Simpson explains why Airbnb and similar platforms prefer hosts to remain on-platform. He argues platforms dislike talk of direct bookings because it educates hosts they can bypass the platform; he references Brian Chesky being asked about direct bookings on a podcast in late 2023 (by Tara Schwisher), and says Chesky dismissed the idea because increased direct bookings would negatively affect Airbnb's stock price.

Questions this video answers

April 7, 2025

Tara Schwisher

Chapters

Mark Simpson, why do you think Airbnb would prefer that hosts don't hear what you've got to say?
Well, it's a good, good question. So, I mean, if you think about it, they want their whole ecosystem to be on Airbnb, just like what booking.com would like all their ecosystem to be there and Expedia the same. And when there's people like me who are talking about direct bookings, obviously it's educating hosts that they don't need to be just on their platform. So obviously they don't like when I say what we've got to say. But it's not just me. There's so many people talking about direct bookings, obviously they don't like it. And you know, Brian Chesky was on a podcast back end of 2023 and Tara Schwisher asked him directly about direct bookings and if hosts on the platform should do direct bookings. And he dismissed it as he should do because obviously the, the more that direct bookings happened, the stock price of Airbnb would fall.