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Original submission details

Original title: Re: Airbnb

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The original question / King’s College London

1.7 The main marketing approaches

Find a real-world example of an organisation using the main marketing approaches: ‘thinking first’, ‘seeing first’, ‘doing first’, ‘simples rules’ and the postmodern view.

Write a short description of how you think the organisation is using the marketing approach (approximately 100 words). Add an online link if you find a relevant one.

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Fiona’s response

Hahaha great team work! Loving this discussion, Anastasia, Stefano, and Andrea! I agree Airbnb is the ultimate ‘doing first’ poster child—Brian Chesky literally threw an air mattress in his spare room, called it a business, and figured it out as he went. That’s peak “Let’s just try this and see what happens” energy (McGrath, 2013).

Stefano, you make a great point—Airbnb eventually evolved into a ‘thinking first’ machine, using data-driven expansion to optimize listings and pricing (Guttentag, 2019). Andrea, your COVID-19 pivot example is spot on! Airbnb switched gears overnight to focus on local and long-term stays (Dolnicar & Zare, 2021), which screams agile marketing at its finest (McKinsey & Co., 2023).

So, what Im wondering is ….did Airbnb just stumble into greatness, or did they accidentally create one of the best hybrid ‘doing first/thinking first’ models? 🚀

References.

  1. • Dolnicar, S., & Zare, S. (2021). COVID-19 and Airbnb – Disrupting the Disruptor. Annals of Tourism Research.
  2. • Guttentag, D. (2019). Progress and Prospects for Airbnb: A Research Review. Tourism Management.
  3. • McGrath, R. G. (2013). The End of Competitive Advantage: How to Keep Your Strategy Moving as Fast as Your Business. Harvard Business Review Press.
  4. • McKinsey & Co. (2023). Agile Marketing: How Brands Stay Relevant in a Fast-Changing World.
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