PlanetPass
The go-to platform for sustainable tourism
Modern tourism's carbon footprint paints a grim picture globally, accounting for 8% of all greenhouse gas emissions and a potential 40% surge by 2050. Tourists lack an environmentally-friendly way to travel, get to know the world, and vacation that is user-friendly and accessible. A staggering 40% of tourist sites struggle to cope with waste generated by travelers.
To tackle the unsustainable travel industry head-on, my team and I built a game-changing response to these critical issues: PlanetPass. Our platform offers a holistic solution for environmentally-conscious explorers. By seamlessly integrating sustainable accommodations, transport, activities, and dining, PlanetPass empowers travelers to explore with minimal ecological impact.
My Role
Strategic Designer
ESG Consultant
UX Researcher
Methods
Survey Creation
Synthesis
Value Proposition Framing
Prototyping
Team
Camila Ordonez
Bhasmah Gudairi
Louisa Buck
1. Carbon Footprint of Global Tourism
Tourism is responsible for 8% of the world's carbon emissions. From plane flights and boat rides to souvenirs and lodging, various activities contribute to tourism's carbon footprint.
This is where it comes from:
Transportation
49%
Agriculture
8%
Services
8%
Construction & Mining 6%
Lodging
6%
Lodging
6%
Other
1%
Goods
12%
Annual Global Tourism
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Source: Lenzen et Al (2019)
Our Iterative Approach to Design Thinking
Understand
Define
Empathize
and Ideate
Prototype
2. Understanding User Needs through Primary Research
We conducted a survey of and asked college students and young professionals ages 18 - 30 living in New York, who are from 24 different countries and 43 cities.
Exploring the respondents’ travel styles and identifying key considerations and pain points within our target audience led us to create important insights for our product vision.
Factors to Sustainable Travel
Costs
Skepticism on impact
Belief that you are not harming the environment
Trip Booking Considerations
Costs
Accessibility of the place/location
Comfort
Activities offered at the location
58%
selected 6,7 or 8 on a scale of 1-10, on how important sustainability is when traveling
Pains
Costs
Timing
User Experience
Tourists lack an environmentally-friendly way to travel, get to know the world, and vacation that is user-friendly and accessible.
Key Insight
4. Context Setting and Ideation
Desirability
Feasibility
Viability
Sustainability
While developing our unique selling point, we used the model of the Innovation Sweet Spot by IDEO, and considered it incomplete.
We added a fourth layer to it: sustainability, as the widespread impact of an innovation should encompass all business considerations and planning – whether their impact is of ecological and/or social nature. A key question that arose was: What positive, social and environmental effects would our product/service have?
The Concept
-
Prioritization of sustainable options to enhance travel experiences
-
Promotion of sustainable tourism options that support local economies and reduce carbon emissions
-
Description of the platform as a provider of sustainable tourism options
The Problem
-
Traditional tourism often neglects sustainability and fails to prioritize environmentally-friendly practices options
-
Local communities may not receive adequate support from tourism revenue
-
Travelers often struggle to find a comprehensive platform that offers sustainable travel options in one place
The Offer
-
Sustainable travel options in one place, with a user-friendly experience
-
Travel plans with a focus on the circular economy and partnerships with sustainable organizations
-
Budget-friendly tourism plans with rewards and points
3. Synthesizing our Insights through Design Frameworks
Based on our data, we created user personas to help us create an intuitive and user-friendly experience that aligns with what the users expect and prefer. These facilitated a consensus among our team and provided a shared understanding of the target audience, making it easier to align goals and objectives.
Further, we created a prioritization matrix to rank the personas' preferences on the various features to ensure we focus on features that will have the greatest impact on user satisfaction and business success.
5. Business Design
Competitive Landscaping
GTM Strategy
Website
#1. The hub for all information on PlanetPass - the types of sustainable travel options available, pricing, and booking details.
A convenient way where customers browse travel options, make bookings, and manage reservations while receiving push notifications and alerts.
App
Newsletter
Effective way to keep customers informed about sustainable travel trends and new offerings while sharing tips and customer success stories.
Direct communications campaigns are used for targeted and personalized communication with customers.
Powerful platforms to engage with customers, build brand awareness, and promote sustainable travel options.
Social Media
Marketing Strategy
Awareness
Consideration
Conversion
Popup in Times Square
Traveler Influencer Campaigns
Sustainable Travel Blogs
Google Ads & Paid Social Ads
Retargeting Ads
Discounts & Promotions
Customer Reviews & Testimonials
6. Prototype: Booking a Sustainable Trip
Digital Experience
We added some key features to enhance the overall user experience, and incentivize website usage through added value compared to the competition.
.png)
Accommodation Filters
Provide a streamlined search based on the experiences, impact, and destination tailored to the user's preferences.
.png)
Pre-designed Itineraries
Either customized plans for a customer's preferences or pre-set for specific destinations and experiences.
.png)
Transparency
All our partners are accredited by a third-party certification for the sustainable practices.
.png)
High Standard Certifications
Ensure all partners are sustainable and environmentally-friendly and meet specific ethical standards.
.png)
Real Impact
The assurance of sustainability and eco-friendliness through the third-party certification held by all partners.
My Role
Value Proposition
I conceptualized the idea of a sustainable tourism platform and defined our unique value proposition centering around providing travelers with a user-friendly and accessible way to explore the world while minimizing their environmental impact.
Business Design & Marketing
I formulated the project's go-to-market strategy by leveraging the human-centered insights gained from the data through persona creation and the prioritization matrix.
UX Research
I led our primary research phase in data gathering, empathizing with our diverse target audience, understanding their motivations, frustrations, and preferences, and tailoring our product to their specific needs.