Airbnb launches recommendations tool to become competitive with TripAdvisor and Yelp

This story was delivered to BI Intelligence "E-Commerce Industry Insider" subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here.

Airbnb is getting into the recommendations business in an effort to become more competitive with TripAdvisor and Yelp.

The peer-to-peer lodging service has debuted Guidebook, a tool that offers local business recommendations and reviews to renters, according to the New York Times. Guidebook lets Airbnb users share information about restaurants, bars, attractions, and more.

This app should extend the life of Airbnb transactions. Renters previously had no reason to use Airbnb after they confirmed their reservation, but now they can spend more time on the site or in the app by browsing recommendations and reviews. Furthermore, Guidebooks should put Airbnb on par with Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Foursquare in terms of one-stop travel booking services.

The new tool is another way Airbnb is trying to disrupt the hospitality market. The site has already been taking market share from traditional hotel chains, as U.S. travelers who have used Airbnb at least once in the last five years are more likely to use a P2P lodging service than a traditional hotel in the future, according to Goldman Sachs data cited by Bloomberg.

But hotel chains are making moves to hold their ground. Expedia recently acquired HomeAway, another home rental site, for $3.9 billion. And as travelers clamor for alternatives to hotels, online travel agencies such as Expedia must take advantage of this trend.

E-Commerce INSIDER: The Daily Newsletter You Need to Succeed

Most retailers are struggling to stay ahead on all fronts. Whether impacted by various ad format performances, delivery & logistics, social commerce, or the world’s transition to mobile...the e-commerce research team at BI Intelligence has you covered.

Getting the right idea from the right research at the right time can give you the edge over your competitors and allow you to adjust your strategies quickly.

If you want to succeed at ANY aspect of e-commerce, you've simply got to know what's happening all around you. But it's easily a full-time job just to follow the news...and an even bigger job to try to make sense of it.

So don't. Let us do it for you.

No one else attends the conferences, digs into technical journals, analyzes the reports, and brings it all to you in a simple, easy-to-understand format like E-Commerce INSIDER, the daily briefing from BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service.

With E-Commerce INSIDER, you'll know the newest and hottest technologies, the breaking deals, the important trends and the shifting landscapes.

More importantly, you'll know what to do with this knowledge.

To learn more about the exclusive E-Commerce INSIDER newsletter, click here.