Skift Take

Building an active user base is the biggest challenge that any startup faces at inception. Giving users a reason to return regularly is needed from launch day.

New travel startups today are a mashup of existing booking models and social platforms; however, when a unique combination is found, these existing techniques can spur new successes.

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>> Supreme Golf, which positions itself as the Kayak of the golf industry, gives users the ability to find available tee times in 40 countries. Users can also read reviews of different courses and find deals.

SkiftTake: Easy online booking available for hotels and airlines has yet to become mainstream in many parts of the travel experience giving niche sites like Supreme Golf the opportunity to build a dedicated customer base.

>> Gociety is a social network for adventurers where members can share their outdoor skills and experiences as well as meet other members to plan trips or seek out advice. The site was launched in January 2014 and is currently expanding from Colorado and Utah to Washington and Massachusetts.

SkiftTake: Building an active online community is a very tough objective even when there are many people interested in a topic. Giving users a reason to return and share is critical to building a user base.

>> Firebnb is a last-minute deals site for Airbnb rentals that gives hosts the opportunity to promote availability at a discounted rate and for guests to find deals. The site currently only lists Airbnb rentals available in France.

SkiftTake: Last-minute deals have become very popular in the hotel booking market so there’s no reason why it wouldn’t also take off among peer-to-peer rentals.

>> Kojai is a photo-sharing app that uses GPS to pin users’ photos on a map and show their followers exactly where they stood when the photo was taken. Users can map their friends’ photos using icons and comment on one another’s photos.

SkiftTake: Kojai doesn’t offer a unique enough product to pull uses away from the photo sharing sites, including Facebook and Instagram, that they are already frequent.

>> RoadMojo is a platform where users can create timelines of their road trip with stories and photos, share it on social media, and search for new road trip ideas or itineraries.

SkiftTake: Road tripping has become one of several niche travel modes that startups have tried to build a business around; however, most road trippers use larger existing research and booking sites to plan and share their journeys.

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Tags: skiftseedlings, startups

Photo credit: Supreme Golf, which positions itself as the Kayak of the golf industry, gives users the ability to find available tee times in 40 countries. Supreme Golf

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