For Sonder's mobile app, should we emphasize adding new features to enhance the guest experience or streamline the booking process to improve conversion rates?

Introduction

For Sonder's mobile app, we're facing a critical trade-off between enhancing the guest experience with new features and streamlining the booking process to improve conversion rates. This decision will significantly impact our product strategy and user engagement. I'll analyze this trade-off by examining our product goals, user needs, and business objectives to determine the most effective path forward.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• Business Context: I'm thinking our revenue model might heavily influence this decision. Could you share how our revenue is currently split between bookings and in-stay services?

Why it matters: Helps prioritize features vs. conversion optimization Expected answer: Majority from bookings, growing in-stay services Impact on approach: Would focus on booking process if it's the primary revenue driver

• User Impact: Based on user feedback, I'm assuming we have data on pain points in both the booking process and guest experience. Can you confirm if we've conducted recent user research on these areas?

Why it matters: Ensures we're addressing actual user needs rather than perceived issues Expected answer: Yes, with specific insights on booking friction and desired features Impact on approach: Would prioritize addressing validated user pain points

• Technical Feasibility: Considering our current tech stack, I'm curious about the complexity of implementing new features vs. optimizing the booking flow. How would our engineering team assess the effort for each?

Why it matters: Helps balance potential impact with implementation challenges Expected answer: Booking optimization is easier; new features more complex Impact on approach: Might favor booking optimization if resources are constrained

• Resource Allocation: Given our current team structure, I'm wondering about our capacity to tackle both areas simultaneously. Do we have dedicated teams for booking flow and guest experience features?

Why it matters: Determines if we can pursue a hybrid approach or need to choose Expected answer: Limited resources, need to focus on one area Impact on approach: Would necessitate a more focused strategy on one aspect

• Timeline and Market Pressure: Considering the competitive landscape, I'm thinking about the urgency of this decision. Are there any upcoming market events or competitor moves we need to account for?

Why it matters: Helps prioritize short-term gains vs. long-term strategy Expected answer: Increasing competition in short-term rentals market Impact on approach: Might favor quicker wins in booking optimization if market pressure is high