Derek Taylor was working in Hollywood on shows like The Voice and Fast & Furious 7 when he left it all behind to start his own empire.
Since then he’s made over $2.1 million on Airbnb. But not in the way you might think. In fact, he’s been doing the exact opposite of what most gurus are teaching.
In the beginning he asked himself: How do I make recurring income that shows up in my bank account month after month after month?
It took a while but he figured it out.
Before we get into his strategy, two confessions:
- For years Derek made people sign this scary NDA. He didn’t want his STR secrets getting out. That was selfish. Now he wants to help as many people as possible.
- He’s an INFJ: basically, an introvert that gets stuck in their head and never leaves the house. The fact that a guy like that can build a 7-figure business on Airbnb should give you hope.
After working for studios like Universal and Warner Bros. on over 100 productions, many of which you’ve not only heard of but watched, you’d think he’d be rolling in the dough.
Not the case. Derek would walk off set, where he was within spitting distance of The Rock all day, rip open his check, and look at it like, is that it?
Plus, no matter how high he climbed, he was still trading time for money. There was always a ceiling on what he could make.
So he said screw it, quit, dove deep into side hustles.
- Uber
- Postmates
- Day trading
- Wedding videos
- Life insurance
- You name it
And none of it worked. Derek felt like he was failing his kids, failing himself. He would look in the mirror and ask, the hell’s wrong with me?
But eventually he tries this thing called Airbnb and figures out a framework to make recurring revenue with it.
Step 1 is choosing a model.
Buying properties is too expensive. Arbitrage ain’t all it’s cracked up to be. Just ask the venture-backed companies that were doing arbitrage that are now shutting down left and right. But there is a third option.
Derek went with the management model. Or rev share. Handling the daily operations for someone else’s Airbnb in exchange for a fee.
Your wallet stays fat and your risk is zero.
- No mortgage
- No down payment
- No rent or leases
- No property taxes
- No utilities
- No homeowners insurance
- No HOA fees
- No repair costs
- No maintenance costs
- No furnishing costs
- No pest control
- No guest expenses
- No credit risk
Step 2 is to become the hunted not the hunter.
How? The more valuable you become to others, the more you’ll be pursued, right? So what’s the most valuable thing in the world? Time.
That’s what you’re selling. You’re giving these Airbnb entrepreneurs their time back.
Step 3 is to make them an offer so good, they feel stupid saying no.
Derek’s pitch? Do nothing and collect a check every month. This way, he’s giving them time freedom as well as financial freedom.
Step 4 is to deliver on that promise.
Derek came up with a standard operating procedure he refers to as ALPHA, which stands for Acquisitions, Logistics, Process, Holistic data, and Algorithm.
Simply follow a checklist for each component and clients will be all smiles.
Step 5 is to scale with the Airbnb Magnet Method.
Ask for referrals. When somebody gives you one, send them a $500 gift. Now they’ll send you more.
That’s the zoomed-out version of how Derek does Airbnb.
BNB Alpha Academy is your magnifying glass.
Cost is camouflaged until you apply.
I genuinely like Derek’s angle. But it feels like he’s just giving Airbnb property management a fresh coat of paint.