The Key To Great Content Lies In The Background For Peerspace

What would you like to create (and where)?

Peerspace is a fascinating location rental site that is often used by creatives and business professionals alike for a wide variety of spaces and use cases.

"Having the ability to rent spaces for short periods of time is a game changer for our talent that get booked to produce content and need a space to shoot. From foodie creators that need kitchens to shoot in to beauty creators that need to shoot makeup tutorials with good lighting, the flexibility to book a space for a few hours versus a flat daily really helps the talent to manage their production budgets and find a space that suits their specific needs," offers Ali Grant, founder of Los Angeles-based digital communications agency Be Social.

They are the leading marketplace for hourly venue rentals for meetings, events, and media production. They make it easy for guests to find and book spaces in cities around the world, from photo studios and meeting rooms, to backyards and bars. Their peer-owned global network of spaces allows guests to hold personal and professional events in unique locations, while hosts earn additional income simply by opening their doors.

“It’s incredible to see how guests use the same space to bring completely different visions to life. Venue and equipment can be prohibitively expensive for a lot of creators, so having access to hourly space rentals, many of which include or have the option to add things like lighting equipment, unlocks opportunity for content creators at any budget. Peerspace opens up an entire world of options and we love seeing what our guests are creating,” says Luke Tarbi, CMO of Peerspace.

Rony Chammas is the founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Peerspace. Rony came up with the idea of Peerspace as an MBA student at NYU Stern. Chammas often walked by a local art gallery that was vacant for most of the week, and thought that would be a much more engaging place to meet than a boring meeting space. Chammas has been on a mission to give the world more choice and reason to meet, create, and celebrate together ever since – all while making it easy for anyone to earn money by renting their space.

Goldie Chan: What types of spaces and uses does Peerspace focus on?

Rony Chammas: Peerspace is in the business of democratizing access to space. Our mission is to make it easy for anyone to find the right space to fulfill your creative vision, whether that’s a photo shoot, a milestone birthday party, or a team meeting. We want to make it easy to access a wide variety of spaces that suit plenty of creative needs and a range of budgets.

We’ve seen just about everything made in a Peerspace. While there are endless ways to use a Peerspace and thousands of offerings across the world, traditional uses of Peerspaces include: photo shoots, music videos, TV commercials, birthday parties, filming for a documentary interview, hosting gatherings, workshops, team meetings and offsites, venues for birthday parties and more.

Chan: How is Peerspace optimized for creatives?

Chammas: The real challenge for most creatives today is limited access to unique locations outside of their home or office. When you’re creating out of your house or don’t have the muscle and resources of a large company behind you, bringing your ideas to life and making them look good takes more work and ingenuity than many realize.

At Peerspace, we’re looking to open the doors to other ways of doing things - literally.

Our spaces are where a brand’s vision can come to life. We pride ourselves on having the most inspiring and diverse supply to support creatives who are looking to create unique content. We currently have over 40,000 spaces listed across the US, Canada, UK, Australia, France, Germany, and Spain. These spaces have been used for brand and personal photo shoots, music videos, and film production. More recently we’ve seen Peerspace locations used for Twitch streaming, filming YouTube content and podcasting.

Chan: What are fun use cases of Peerspace?

Chammas: Over the years, users have been having a lot of fun and getting creative with their use of our spaces. Since there is a renewed enthusiasm and appreciation for getting friends together after the last few years, many folks have used our filters to find outdoor spaces to host summer parties.

For example, a recent group is hosting a fish fry - something that they may have never thought to host outside of their home or local gathering spot. We’ve seen stars like Kendall Jenner use Peerspace for a Vogue Italy shoot, Drag Race star Shea Couleé has filmed music videos in Peerspaces, Bachelor star Caelynn MIller-Keyes recently hosted her engagement party in a Peerspace, and Big Boi lists his Atlanta recording studio on the site. We’ve seen folks use Peerspaces for cooking classes or craft sessions, book club meetings, or to plan a movie marathon.

It’s pretty incredible to see how creative guests are both in the events they plan, and in how they use the space. Our team at Peerspace is always finding new and exciting ways that folks are choosing to meet, host events and produce content, and it really validates the need for – an interest in – having a wide variety of spaces that you can book by the hour.

Chan: How can space owners on Peerspace create a more attractive listing?

Chammas: As more users make their way through our spaces, our team and Peerspace hosts learn a lot about what it takes to successfully interest potential users.

For folks who are interested in listing a space, you can make the listing more attractive by:

• Answer Before They Ask - We’ve found that answering any questions upfront in your space’s description removes friction for guests, and makes life easier for hosts. Include as much detail as you can about parking, lighting, sound and other features, so it’s clear for guests and you don’t have to field as many questions as a host. It’s even better if you can share any quirks that they might encounter, or Wi-Fi speed as many creatives rely on this for their work.
• Going the Extra Mile - Many spaces (often, those that focus on production) provide additional services and access to production equipment. This could be anything from snacks for a crew, to actual lighting or filming equipment. When you think about it from the perspective of a user, if you need extra space to bring a vision to life, you’ll likely benefit from having amenities and tools around to enhance your project.
• Build a Resume - Users often don’t know what they are looking for in a space before they book it. They’ll look around, assessing the ‘vibe’ of a space for inspiration and direction of their project. With permission of your past users, flex your versatility by showing how your space is able to be used and how it has been used in the past.

The bottom line: look to set your potential guests up for success. The more they know from the start, the less likely they are to rely on you for answers via direct message. The better experience they have, the more likely they are to positively review and book again.

Chan: What is in the future of Peerspace?

Chammas: We’re constantly gathering feedback from both our hosts and guests. We want Peerspace to be the easiest and most delightful platform for booking spaces, and as we look toward the future, we are working towards making it even easier for people to list and book, eliminating any current friction that may exist in the process.