Greetings everyone, my name is Julie Masters and welcome to another episode of Inside Influence. In which I delve into the minds of some of the world’s most fascinating influencers – or experts in influence – to get to the bottom of what it really takes to own your voice – and then amplify it to drive an industry, a conversation, a movement or a nation.
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In a business landscape that’s changing rapidly – it’s no secret that the companies staying ahead of the curve are getting better and faster at reinventing themselves. Spotting opportunities, responding to competition, or – more frequently – even becoming their own competition.

But what – and this is a question I’m asking a lot at the moment – sits in the DNA of a company that can reinvent an entire category? Or a business that completely reinvents itself – or an individual that sparks the momentum that reinvents an entire conversation?

Some might say it’s being really clear about what your target audience wants… and others, including the prime example we’re looking at today, might just agree with the immortal words of Henry Ford: ‘If I had asked them what they wanted – they would have said faster horses”

My guest today is Joseph Michelli – is a psychologist-turned best selling author – who has dedicated his career to decoding how category reinventors such as Starbucks, Zappos and now Air BnB change the game.

In his latest book, The Airbnb Way, Michelli and his team took an unprecedented inside look at the influence of one of the largest disruption stories of our time. To give you some perspective on that… Air BnB now has over 4 million listings in 220+ countries – higher than the top five major hotel brands combined. In 2016 – in New York City alone – the estimated hotel revenue lost to Airbnb was totalled at $365 million. Four years later… there’s only one direction that number would have gone in.

The research of Joseph and his team involved interviewing hundreds of Airbnb hosts and guests in over 11 countries – what they found – was that the same five words kept playing on repeat. The power of belonging, trust, hospitality, empowerment and community.

So in today’s podcast, we take a deep dive into those words and quite a few more. The ground we covered including:

What it takes to truly reinvent an industry or product
Designing for trust – staying in a stranger’s house!
The power and influence of powerfully designing and telling your story
The noble art of hosting – probably the biggest one for me
The line between giving people options, and giving them too much choice

If you’re working hard to create something that cuts through business as usual – then this conversation is definitely for you.

So if you’re anything like me and this year has kicked off with a commitment to cut back on caffeine – pour yourself a herbal tea – get out your notepad and pen and enjoy the incredible insights of Joseph Michelli.