Tools

Explore

Videos Channels Figures

Atmrix

Tools

Explore

Videos Channels Figures

Atmrix

RB

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

I pitched the spin-out of Expedia as an HR experiment to retain talent, as Microsoft was so large that many talented individuals could hide away and not contribute meaningfully.

Video

How Rich Barton Built Expedia and Zillow — Audacious Goals, Provocation Marketing, and More

@ Tim Ferriss

How Rich Barton Built Expedia and Zillow — Audacious Goals, Provocation Marketing, and More

04/18/25

Related Takeaways

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

We took 150 people from Microsoft to join Expedia, and almost all of them chose to take the adventure, which was a testament to the opportunity we presented.

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

I pitched the idea of Expedia as a consumer-focused travel software company, emphasizing that it should prioritize travel over software.

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

Expedia started as a venture within Microsoft, and I left the operating system group to pursue it because of my wife's medical residency requirements.

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

The hardest part of recruiting for Expedia was convincing the spouses of potential hires, as they were often the most skeptical about the risks involved.

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

Expedia was profitable and growing rapidly, which made it a successful business even during the dot-com crash, unlike Microsoft, which took years to recover.

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

On the day of Expedia's IPO, my son was born, and I jokingly promised the team I would name him Expedia if that happened.

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

The highest highs during my career were around the spin-out and IPO of Expedia, especially the moment my son was born on the same day as the IPO.

Reid Hoffman

10/15/14

@ Y Combinator

During our offsite when PayPal was burning cash, I pitched LinkedIn as my best startup idea, but I can't disclose Max and Peter's ideas from that session.

Rich Barton

04/18/25

@ Tim Ferriss

I asked for $100 million for a television advertising campaign for Expedia, believing we could build the biggest brand in travel.