KeepsMe

KeepsMe's mission is to support the sustainable development of tourism in Armenia, with a platform that works for both travelers and businesses. We strongly believe that sustainable tourism makes Armenia a better place.

Over the past decade, tourism has been one of the fastest-growing industries in Armenia, and its infrastructure has grown with it. Small and medium businesses such as hotels, restaurants, and travel and adventure agencies have become a valuable part of the experience for a growing number of tourists.

2020 was expected to bring an unprecedented increase in international arrivals, with many new flights scheduled to Yerevan and Gyumri, including low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and Wizz Air. Then the travel restrictions of the pandemic changed everything for the industry.

The new reality called for a modern approach: keeping tourism stable, existing businesses running and Armenia attractive as a destination. To get there, we quickly built a new travel tech tool.

What KeepsMe offers

• For travelers: one voucher platform with attractive discounts from a wide range of Armenian brands. Vouchers stay valid for up to 3 years, so future travel plans stay flexible, and payments are fast and secure
• For local businesses: income in advance, with the service provided later, when things are back to normal. There are no monthly or sign-up fees, and small businesses benefit from the platform's sales tools and marketing campaigns

Users' main frustrations with digital voucher platforms, in their own words:

What users told us

• "I find it frustrating when a voucher platform has a limited choice of retailers and products. It feels restrictive, and I may not find what I need."
• "Sometimes the platform is slow or unresponsive, which is especially frustrating when I'm trying to make a purchase. It wastes my time and makes me hesitant to use it again."
• "When the platform is confusing or hard to navigate, finding what I need is overwhelming, and I may abandon my purchase altogether."
• "I worry about the security of my personal information and payment details. I want to feel confident they're protected from breaches and cyber attacks."

How a voucher platform can address them

• More choice: partner with more retailers, and offer personalized recommendations based on past purchases and preferences
• Speed: improve the technical infrastructure and servers for smooth, fast transactions, and offer several payment options so a network issue doesn't mean a failed payment
• Ease of use: an intuitive interface that's easy to navigate, with filters and search to find things quickly
• Security: stronger data encryption, compliance with data protection standards, and clear, transparent information about how users' data is protected

In September 2021, we started creating a design system and integrating it across all of the company's products. Until then, each product had its own UI kit, which worked but brought limitations and risks, so a centralized design system was needed. I was selected to lead this work.

My contributions

• Led the active phase of work on the company design system
• Created and maintained the design system and interface guidelines
• Took an active role in planning and managing the development team's work
• Integrated the design system into the company's products, from strategic planning and brainstorming to communication with external teams

What the platform delivers

• A list of places offering vouchers, each with a detailed description and usage rules
• A rating system, useful for tourists and for foreigners living in Armenia
• A clean summary of the most relevant information, with quick access to wallets, stats and transactions
• Scalable, end-to-end management in a table view: dealer onboarding, hierarchy management and custom business rules
• Yearly, monthly and daily reports, exported in the format that works best for each partner
• A separate portal for partners, with extra information to help them integrate with the system