The customer value in Sharing Economy: The case of HousingAnywhere.com

Abstract

In the last decades, the sharing economy became an innovative alternative to traditional capitalist business models. Driven by the unprecedented connectivity of Internet this phenomenon has not only completely revolutionized the way in which companies operates, but it has also changed the customer experience and so the way in which customers purchase. Several studies have been developed in this regard but limited research has investigated the phenomenon from a customer perspective. This study tries to fill the gap in the literature investigating what are most relevant factors that influence customers’ behaviours in sharing economy and in particular in the house sharing market. From this perspective, companies and especially digital businesses have realized that the customer perceived value is a milestone to take in consideration for making strategic decisions, to gain competitive advantages and as a result to grow in the market. After a first part of literature review on the concepts of sharing economy and customer perceived value, the focus will switch on the real case of HousingAnywhere.com. With a focus on this Dutch start-up, which operates in the housing market all over Europe, the relevant factors identified in a previous study will be utilized to find if and how HousingAnywhere.com embraces this value. On the basis of the first investigation on what are the variables relevant for customers, this studies will try at the end to provide HousingAnywhere.com guidelines and suggestions to be attractive and keep growing in the market place.