How many folks on average do you think are aware of the “shared economy?” If you thought it was a lot, well, its not much…Only about 8% of consumers have used Airbnb and HomeAway and an even more astounding 66% of consumers have not yet heard of sharing-economy companies which include ride-share giant UBER.
So according to the law of diffusion of innovation we are still on the early left hand side of the curve
That great, it means there’s tons of work to be done and opportunity abounds. How can you make an impact? Consider as the industry reaches critical mass what that will mean for the way in which goods and services are delivered and how folks interact. Specifically for your interests, whether it’s surf travel, fishing or golfing.
Does it now seem possible that communities of like-minded people, lets take the surf travel niche as an example, may come together in the form of an online community that is bound by a common interest and provides access to shared space, local knowledge, personal tours, rented equipment? Well, that is the Live-Swell.com story and vision. The list goes on and on…..those who embrace it will be able to achieve things and experience things in way previously not imagined.
The shared economy is trending upward strongly and while there are dozens of challenges with this disruptive change they are likely to be addressed and the movement will charge on ahead ultimately providing greater access to resources more affordably and authentically, something that benefits all parties embracing it.
For example, the question often arrises after committing to a surf vacation of whether or not to bring a personal surfboard? I often find myself trying to justify the airline bag fee or if it’s worth it in the first place to bring one along….so back and forth go my emotions. I ultimately decide its not worth it and arrive in Zihuatenjeo Mexico on a casual trip that under the right conditions and at a moments wind switch could turn into an epic surfing component of the trip but, snap, I did not bring my board. Goof!! So I decide I’ll look for a rental and it works out, I got some great slides at “Las Gatas” point break and cruised over the coral heads with my 8’0″ yellow foamy with a broken stringer and missing foam material in the shape of mouth bites.
So here is another idea, what if I could log into my online community of global surfers and see if a fellow local surfer may have an extra board for rent that may likely be a bit better in quality and he may know where to go to a secret spot or even have some inside tracks on lodging.
Participation from like-minded surfers in a community leveraging the shared economy has the potential to impact surf travel for the better as we know it.
Live Swell