#1: Airbnb's Director of Experience, Katie Dill, tells us why Airbnb uses "stories" to design

[@paolaquintero2172]

It will be great to have subtitles in the videos in order to resolve accesibillity issues.

[@keylarodriguez579]

Love love love this episode! Thanks so much, this was a great first one! I enjoy learning how other design teams work, collaborate and communicate.

[@maxinemae652]

this was awesome. thank you guys for bringing this to the mass audience!

[@larissacoutrim3805]

I'm currently working as a business designer at an innovation company in BR, and watching this was such an inspiration! Thank you soooo much! Can't wait to see the next ones! 😄

[@HighResolution]

🤗 this means a lot, thank you for watching and stick around we have a lot coming your way

[@hectorwearden202]

33:54 How do you explain the role of design to people within the business? 1. Educate: talk about solving problems (it's not just about how something looks like, it's how it works). 2. Tell a story about where something was poorly designed (after all, 'when good design is there, you don't even notice it' so show the opposite). 3. Design is for all. Share the 'story' & get others to participate.

[@marchenrytube]

Very insightful conversation, i can't believe this was recorded in 2017. She really knows her stuff.

[@andressasiegel]

Amazing!! Thank you guys. I'm really excited for the next videos.

[@PAWSITIVELY.PURRFECT]

As a UX Designer who will be starting his first major job at a major organization soon, where I probably will be one of the few UX designers there - that last part of the interview was SO crucial! Thanks for this folks!

[@PerLundgrenper]

Good talk! I was especially inspired by their pair system where designers can complement and learn from each other. I think a lot of teams make the misstake of hiring people who have the similar strength, which severely limits the team as a whole. Katie also has a nice way with words, which always gets extra points from me as a writer who implements design thinking in my work.

[@gregorykendall1387]

Super helpful to see how big companies work and think in term of design process. It also helps a lot for job interviews :)

[@subtlemeat]

I really really appreciate you guys efforts on designer interview. That brought a great benefit to other designers around the world. Thank you again for this!

[@phinehasjoy7318]

CC Cheng

[@akshayverma1]

Great initiative and thanks so much for doing this! You're putting this great treasure-chest of insights and advice into the reach of designers around the world, who'd otherwise have no way to access it. Medium articles and the like are great, but there's nothing like a good video interview. :) I'd definitely go over this again and pull out the actionable stuff that I can apply. But, it would be great if maybe at the end of these videos you guys could recapitulate a little bit or add timecode links to the main points in the video description.

[@ExploringDiaries]

Hi Akshay, we completely agree with you. There maybe material available worldwide, but nothing comes close to learning from the people involved themselves. We are trying to create series on 'Design Thinking', the trailer is out on our channel. It would be great if you could check it & perhaps join the conversation as we release the episodes. Cheers! #AwesomeByDesign

[@JulioReguero]

She knows what she’s doing, and if you don’t believe me take a look at the design of Airbnb across mobile and desktop platforms. It’s gorgeous and for the most part intuitive.

[@jingyilai6039]

Thank you so much for the video. Is it possible to have captions? even auto-generated ones. I want my friends with hard hearing to see this as well

[@shoaibprasad7749]

Loved this line (Design works well with data scientist team and user research team). This is the most common thing that is ignored while starting a design project. Loving this high resolution series.

[@ExploringDiaries]

Hi Shoaib, Hope you're doing great. Design is proving its effectiveness across disciplines & the understanding for the same is going to be a part of the 'Design Thinking' series we will be starting. The trailer is out on our channel, it would be great if you could visit & join the conversation. Cheers! #AwesomeByDesign

[@NicoandAndy]

Finally met Katie last night :) Now I came back here to watch this again!!

[@TreavorUnion]

I gave her a Lyft ride a couple of years ago. I was on a sabbatical in Austin and staying at a tech house Airbnb. I told her this and she was like "I work for Airbnb! In UX." I was like, "Oh hey! I'm a UXD, too!" And we talked about how Lyft and Airbnb have a similar ethos.

[@victorw2306]

and she's working for lyft now lol

[@willphy1012]

Great interview. Ever consider adding subtitles? That would be really helpful.

[@Dolfino]

very interesting. Thanks for creating this show!

[@giovanniatalmi2347]

Really inspiring interview. Great work guys!

[@avelc7704]

thank you guys for putting out quality videos for our industry. respect

[@karthikrajendran3394]

She seems like a good leader. It would be a privilege to work for her.

[@mirandadragon8369]

LOVED this interview!!! Thank you

[@batphobic]

Consider putting links in the video notes to things referenced during the interview, such as Katie's mention of a TED talk about chickens...?

[@eechen001]

www.ted.com/talks/margaret_heffernan_why_it_s_time_to_forget_the_pecking_order_at_work

[@helenchang2017]

Fantastic interview! thank you! Any thought about adding subtitles? That would be helpful : )

[@daanondecock6475]

I love AirBnB and have used them about 40 times, but its based on the strength of the end product of nice and affordable places to stay, and is despite their user experience which I find to be rather lacking. They have done little in the past 6 years to make it easier for you to find the right place and the right place in a fast and efficient fashion. I so want to be able to sort my results by price and reviews, I want to be able to hide homes that I've looked at and I know don't fit my needs, I often travel to go to an event and would love to be able to see on the map when searching where homes are in relation to my destination(s) and the distance from those destinations, I want to know and see where mass transit is compared to a potential AirBnB, I want trailers/campers to be their own category and not show up when I'm looking for actual homes, I want to know the safety ratings of an area I am thinking of booking in, I'd like the hosts cancellation policy to be more obvious and I'd like to be able to filter based on that, I have a couple of dozen great reviews and would love to have Super Guest status like how hosts can have Super Host status, is there self-check in or not, and I'd like hosts to have some requirements for standard photos they should be including (I won't book a place that doesn't have a picture of the bed(s) I/we will be sleeping in). As it is I spend so much time switching back and forth between Google maps where I have mapped out distances between points and figuring out what areas would work best, then I go back to AirBnB and search that area, then I go back to Google Maps and look at the Street View to check out the house and surrounding area, and then I get directions between that AirBnB and my destinations around the city and whether I can walk to them, get to them by light rail, or if I'll need to Uber/Lyft there when I didn't drive there. Which brings me to my next point, I wish AirBnB asked me about some of the upfront stuff like; am I flying or driving, will I have a car (whether I drove my own or rented), what time do I expect to arrive, is having coffee shops/restaurants or shopping nearby important to me or not, etc. Show me homes that match those details. What Katie sounds great, but I don't see how it's being applied at AirBnB.

[@Jan123.]

Daanon DeCock Awesome feedback. So true!

[@latinamamai18]

Daanon DeCock Hi I’m about to reserve a 2 bedroom apt for 1 year through Airbnb. How do I know I’m not being phished. I saw the post online and I contacted the host via email. He responded via email and he sent me the link to book the reservation, but his email was not on the Airbnb list. What should I look out for?

[@daanondecock6475]

I have never used AirBnB for a long term booking. I think the longest was 4, maybe 5 days. Pretty sure AirBnB recommends that all communication between host and guest go through the app, I can definitely see where it would be easier to handle disputes that way, but I have used text and occasionally email to verify small details, like sending the host an ETA of my arrival if I am en route driving from another state. Even that though would probably be best done through the app. Say you show up and you have trouble checking in and something isn't as they said, AirBnB probably won't care if you only have that communication in a private text message. I definitely would never do any sort of payment discussion or handling outside of AirBnB. Also, read all the reviews and look for any red flags. If there aren't any reviews, probably not a place you want to select for a long term stay.

[@NicolaDiMarco]

Yes! And let's talk about customer support! I've been suspended for a (their) mistake while traveling and it was basically impossible to contact them

[@KarimElkharraz]

Amazing guys keep on

[@alessandrotrezzi1330]

Would be very interesting to have a look at some design deliverables. She's talking about storyboarding, videos, prototypes and the big wall, if I'm correct, with all the user stories / scenarios. Any chance we can have a look? Maybe in the upcoming episodes? ;)

[@qentrepreneurship9987]

Hey guys thanks for this vid...great job, good quality

[@bertrandlirette4782]

I was kind of surprised to hear that AirBnB's vision of design 3 years ago wasn't really up to date. Saying their designers were at the end of the production line is really surprising to me. Glad to see it changed now!

[@harambeboy]

Awesome, keep em comin!

[@empireravenshadow5]

Can't believe this is free

[@BLKMARKET]

Great interview.

[@AV-uf2bk]

80 talented individuals i have no idea how she keep them in a one track

[@ShankarMurugesan]

Very useful. Thanks folks🙏

[@SunLikang1216]

Good questions. Insightful answers!

[@YoussefRina]

amazing guys!

[@empireravenshadow5]

She knows her stuff

[@HighResolution]

If anyone watching has any follow up questions about the stuff we discussed here, comment here and we will respond! 🤗

[@MrIvanisawesome]

I'd love to know how Airbnb justify nearly 80 people working on the experience design team; what do that many people do? My frame of reference is advertising where an agency with 80 designers (an enormous number) would be servicing multiple clients. Thanks!

[@Keefkerr]

If possible, would be interested in some of the guidelines that Katie's team follows when creating a user storyboard. Maybe an example or relevant article?

[@15or20]

For Airbnb and others, I'd love a high level overview of the company to see how each department weighs against other departments. I'd love to see how the design/UI/UX teams work with executive/the C-Suite and/or developers or other departments. I think it'd be interesting, but also show how the company's culture embodies itself through interdepartmental dialog... or lack thereof.

[@MrIvanisawesome]

Thanks so much for responding @Katie Dill! Its actually crazy how much your team do considering how few people you actually have. Respect!

[@HighResolution]

I think it is important to clarify the roles on the team but I think this is a really good question. I don't think the team is only made up of designers. Experience design teams generally need to have content strategists, design ops, data analysts, user researchers, product managers etc. Katie discusses this at 35:39.

[@graphixobeatz]

Hi folks! Awesome! Some of y'all can to add subtitles of this videos? Our community need so much of contents like that. The rest of world thanks!

[@natanadaz]

How could I support you guys without purchasing any of the Partners products? Patreon? This whole project is absolutely beautiful, congrats and Thank you for that!

[@bernardmaling3575]

OH MY GAW!! I went to a "UX" meetup and there was no storytelling. There was no problem-solving for the users. There was no personas that pinpointed direction. It wouldn't have been so maddening but they looked down on me for being a bootcamp graduate.

[@hayleyxu7234]

That's incredibly amazing!

[@gluehAffe]

Great insights!

[@SunOh-xp1jf]

Can you please provide the auto generated English subtitles for episode from 1 to 12 of this series?

[@tejasbhalerao01]

"The people problem is the most important to start with; the business case and data should be supportive and not the lead."- Katie Dill (Director of Experience, Airbnb)

[@DeepfriedBaby]

"The business case, the quant data that you have behind it is absolutely useful; its supportive, it shouldn't be the lead."

[@romanoshyyko6916]

Thank you guys! Great work

[@rachelosborne4217]

Awesome interview. Enjoyed!

[@azambarjastehUX]

Thank you for this interview

[@ShoaibMahmudOfficial]

Really Loved it.

[@BornAndErrorOccur]

Some great gems dropped..

[@benniasal6089]

Thanks - awesome content!

[@arvindbhallamudi9585]

The best podcast!!

[@ruizhang5170]

Very insightful😮

[@abroter]

add a subtitle please

[@jnever9768]

I get why people are reluctant to place blame in organizations that they are currently employed. But I'm sick of designers placing the blame on ourselves for being in that scenario as pixel pushers and not product thinkers. I guess it all depends on context but if she did her due diligence as she said she'd know exactly why the design role at airbnb wasn't working when she signed on. It seems like it is working now which is great but we should be honest with ourselves on how that scenario comes about.

[@benny_august]

This is awesome!!

[@Decadesindesign]

Awesome!!

[@tryciarafaela]

Do you work with user experience and leave the subtitles hidden? Wow, nice experience.. Just not.

[@GlugEvents]

Super interesting. :D

[@AmitDas-fz9jy]

Any references, detailed approaches to learn about stroies in customer journey mapping? I have read through the comments but anything specific on how to get started on it, detailed, would be great. I am planning to get this started at my company and it's going to be very helpful. Thanks in advance. :)

[@kanakarajukanaka7467]

Sesuw

[@JasonoftheNorth]

Amit Das There are several free UX classes now on places like Lynda.com and Udemy. You may find some stuff on Coursera, too. Journey mapping specifically may be labeled under classes like User Research or User Empathy. Good luck! 😊

[@barbararezende5835]

Incredible!

[@snippetsnackbooks-es]

Very cool Vlog ;)

[@stepoutdoorz]

Great stuff.

[@Vladyyy]

Has that Jennifer Lawrence type voice

[@zhongwang5776]

Great talk！Thanks a lot for sharing！Could you please use the automatic captioning function？I‘m not English speaker and very much hope to see the subtitle. Appreciate！

[@jingyilai6039]

Are there captions?

[@edrdesigner]

Super

[@DeepfriedBaby]

4:24 This host has a bias, and even a disdain for other professions. Katie handled it wonderfully.

[@joell6888]

Where was the disdain? He said there was a flip side to his thoughts.

[@julianafeix1332]

I love it!

[@revolvency]

I'm more interested on High Resolution business model, but after 1 minutes it's already solved 👍

[@paintbox33]

Hey guys, great Insights! I work in the same industry as Airbnb, would you guys be interested in interviewing one of our design leaders?

[@ColumCoyle]

Bernard Kearney what's your company name?

[@paintbox33]

Colum Coyle i work for HomeAway, in their UK office.

[@FarrukhShumail]

Is that you Jay Pharoah ?

[@AbhinavYadav-zm7ut]

hahaha thought the same

[@annapankina5501]

Interesting conversation! But this "ad-reading" in the middle is super annoying.

[@Upstatetrash]

It annoys me to no end when people try and monetize their content.

[@amannvig]

@@Upstatetrash you guys serious?! haha

[@JulioReguero]

In life nothing is free, nothing!

[@subrahmanyammuramalla147]

Design is just being intentional about something; rest of it is solving the problem to see if our intention can be implemented. That much is enough. P.S. She looks hot this way!!!

[@namu5583]

Anyone found the chicken lady TED Talk?

[@historia_tego_swetra]

Jarred (Jerry) "reading text from a huge screen" - jeez, man, it was so boring you are not in high school anymore

[@kittens3029]

She doesn't seemed too thrilled to be there

[@ironbronz4378]

Indeed

[@gvyyuy]

Ahahah I thought the same

[@JulioReguero]

You don’t seem like you like her and/or the video.

[@DeepfriedBaby]

Not everyone has the personality that fits your expectation.

[@josegonzalez570]

she looks super jaded

[@ram9ajju]

Listening to these podcasts of great designers is really worthwhile & enlightening. The only annoying part for me is the American accent. Can't focus constantly as it gets too boring and not specific. Vocabulary from a lot of people seems to be more repetitive as well. Constant use of words 'cool', 'awesome' , 'right', '' just annoy the hell out of me as they don't seem to be used in a particular context. They are always all over the place. Also sentences like 'getting shit done' are not pleasant to listen at all. Again just my opinion. People can disagree and I am fine with that.

[@geovanyramirez3062]

No sé ingles maestra

[@arashlowni3428]

Ya but how many does Katie get paid?

[@tlacuache_mt]

No sé inglés Carito :c

[@mete3254]

W A S T E O F T I M Ę

[@csjames69]

Don't like Airbnb. Would rather stay at a hotel.

[@joselivingroom5951]

No one asked tho

[@jackburgoyne918]

This is so awful.

[@davidkang5264]

The shrill belgian bailly warm because preface retrospectively deliver between a freezing maria. verdant, regular grease

[@adismell]

My God, this a cold fish, isn't it... so boring. Someone like that has nothing to do with the image of airbnb.

[@Danno1850]

You're a cold fish

[@dodgycable5763]

You don't know what you're talking about. She isn't the public face of AirBnb but one of the people behind the brand, doing the thinking.

[@rushipatel7786]

@@dodgycable5763 Doesnt matter behind or in the front.... What Luke is saying is that , theres clearly no passion in the speaker.

[@nataliagorelova4989]

@@rushipatel7786 No, you just clearly don't understand design thinking.

[@DeepfriedBaby]

You're not hearing what she is saying. She gave a lot of insight into high level strategy, carefully said. Very professional.