Meet the new Vrbo: the inside story of how a vacation-rental site got remodeled

[Tripatini]

If you click on Vrbo to find a summer vacation rental, you'll find something new. There's a suite of new online tools to help you plan your next getaway. There's a psychedelic new "Vrbo" logo. And they're even changing the way they pronounce the site, from "V-R-B-O" to "Ver-boh."

It's a whole new Vrbo.

Sorry, I mean Ver-boh.

"We decided to refresh the brand," says Vrbo's president, John Kim. "We want people to be just as excited about finding the perfect place to stay as going on the trip itself."

But this isn't your average brand overhaul. It's a case study in how data can guide the changes a business makes, with the goal of creating a more customer-friendly interface. The new Vrbo could extend far beyond the site's core business of booking vacation rentals, touching other travel sites -- and perhaps even to your next vacation.

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