We’ve written before about why Couchsurfing’s technology needs an update – and about the members who continue to test and provide feedback on our new site. Let’s take a behind-the-scenes peek at the small team of engineers who’ve been working on these changes from our office in San Francisco, with the help of beta testing members here and around the world.
Beta testers log in from around the world to keep us on track and provide invaluable input – and they are also generous enough to visit us at Couchsurfing Headquarters in San Francisco, so we can explore site changes together in person.
Over the last several months been focused on developing a new foundation for Couchsurfing’s site and apps, building a modern, straight-forward service that improves how members connect to travelers and information.
For Couchsurfing’s engineers, one of the biggest benefits of the rebuilt site is that it unlocks the future – our ability to rapidly iterate and tune technology like our search relevance algorithm. We’ve always listened to data and feedback from our users – now we can act on it much more quickly and effectively.
The dogs get tired, but we keep working. Keeping the Couchsurfing service running for 9 million members and at the same time rebuilding in the background has been a huge project.
We’re going to continue adding new features, settings and tools over time. We’re a small team and with a long list of improvements that we’re eager to strike off one by one in the weeks and months to come. There’s a lot more to do – but now we have the technical platform on which to do it.
The office dogs bring energy (and the occasional cuddle) to Couchsurfing’s office – plus, taking a pup for a walk brings a breath of fresh air to a long day at work.