Airbnb, once off limits for Feld Entertainment travelers, has turned into an opportunity for director of sourcing, procurement and travel Christine Zajda. Airbnb for Work answers two big demands of her job at once: maximizing the travel experience for employees while controlling costs.
Feld provides live family entertainment tours across more than 70 countries on six continents via household names like Monster Jam, Marvel Universe Live, Disney on Ice, Disney Live and Sesame Street Live. The company spends about $25 million annually on travel, largely to get performers and crews from one location to the next. Most of the company's 3,072 travelers are on the road for extended periods, some traveling for as many as nine months without going home. Experient, which works with Airbnb, handles the group bookings for the performers and crew, and Feld's team directly manages travel for 450 other employees.
Forbidding—& Then Embracing—Airbnb
Feld's lodging program has a mix of midscale, upscale and luxury hotel brands. Senior executives frequent higher-end properties like Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons and JW Marriott, while road warriors like the sales team use brands like Aloft. The lodging program is unmandated, and Zajda views out-of-policy bookings as teachable moments. She took a much harder line, however, when Airbnb emerged. Citing security concerns, she forbade travelers from booking on the platform. "Anytime something new is on the market, it's a little scary. We're responsible for our travelers, and [it seemed like] Airbnb didn't' have the same level of security," she said. A conversation back then would have gone like this: "What do you mean you are going to stay at someone's house you don't know when we are perfectly willing to pay for you to go to a hotel?"
Nonetheless, Zajda discovered from expense reports, a few travelers were booking on Airbnb anyway. She had to take action. In November 2016, Zajda reached out to Airbnb to learn more about the program, including safety and security, and asked the company for Airbnb rates for Feld's top 10 cities. "Wow, what a difference," she said. After her due diligence, her team met with the company's risk management team, legal team and executives in March 2017. To her surprise, they already used Airbnb."They said, 'What do you mean? It's Airbnb. We all use it.'" She easily got clearance to move forward with a formal Airbnb for Work program and launched a road warrior pilot in April. "They were thrilled!," she said. Feld started marketing the program to all travelers at its October travel fair, with one restriction: Feld employees are not permitted to stay in shared spaces.
Learning about the Airbnb platform and host requirements alleviated Zajda's security concerns. "You have to go through a verifying process with Airbnb, regardless if you are a host or a guest," she said. Plus, Airbnb's dashboard tells her where her travelers are staying, their upcoming stays and the Airbnb host's contact information. She also can enforce policy by reviewing reservations and contacting travelers to make changes. Anytime someone makes a reservation with which Zajda is not comfortable, she tells the traveler to find something else.
Feld has had one minor incident with Airbnb. A host claimed a Feld traveler had damaged the property, and the host wanted payment. Airbnb's travel support team looked into the incident and the in-app discussion between the host and the traveler. Airbnb determined Feld didn't need to pay for the claimed damages. After the incident, Zajda recommended her travelers use Airbnb's search filters to find hosts who have been on the platform longer and thus have been vetted by Airbnb and travelers. She also recommended that travelers conduct all communications with the host on Airbnb's app in order to have a record of the conversation.
Satisfaction & Savings
From October through May, Feld's Airbnb program has saved more than $81,000 on lodging. Zajda said her travelers report great experiences. Rather than staying at five-star hotels, some book group stays at big homes where they can have small meetings at beautiful locations. The New York marketing team, for example, booked an Airbnb property on a mountaintop in the Poconos for an inspiring, creative meeting. Feld now pushes groups toward Airbnb experiences—and, of course, savings. The company will host a contest to award the best Airbnb meeting experience.
Zajda said 10 percent of the travelers she manages directly use Airbnb, and the number is growing. She acknowledged, however, that some travelers, particularly females, are not comfortable with it. She underscored that no Feld traveler is required to use Airbnb. "It's a program for those who want to use it," Zajda said. "We want to make sure we know where they are when they do use Airbnb and ensure travelers are following certain safety parameters." She added: "I think a lot of corporate travel managers really need to take a second look at the program and how to use it. It's a great way to increase the traveler experience while saving the company money."