How Hoteliers Are Winning Despite Airbnb

Olson: “It’s smart for us to realize as hoteliers what is drawing guests to the Airbnb platform. The best thing we can do is focus on what it is that customers want.”

NEWPORT BEACH, CA—Hoteliers have banded together to bring out the unlevel playing field they are on with Airbnb in terms of regulations, and it is also focusing on social spaces, customer service and consistency in its product, R.D. Olson Development’s president Bob Olson tells GlobeSt.com. Olson says there are various regulations over the hotel industry that do not yet govern Airbnb, putting the sector at a disadvantage businesswise.

R.D. Olson was recently named Developer of the Year by Marriott International at the hotelier’s Annual Owners Conference at the J.W. Marriott in Los Angeles. The prominent national award recognizes the “best of the best” and spotlights the company’s accomplishments for the development of hotel projects in high-barrier markets such as California and Hawaii. We spoke with Olson about the threat of Airbnb to hoteliers and how this sector can stand out at a time when the sharing economy is gaining ground.