Ecotastic rewards good deeds
A few weeks ago, we received a collaboration request from ecotastic , a company that wants to reward ecological action. We found the idea so interesting that we not only immediately agreed to provide some vouchers, but also to briefly introduce the company here. I conducted a short interview with Ralf, one of the founders:
DieStadtgärtner: Hey Ralf, I'm glad it worked out. First, explain to us how ecotastic works.
Ralf: ecotastic is a reward system for environmentally friendly behavior. Our users take photos of themselves, for example, boarding a carpool, having their coffee to go poured into a thermos they brought with them, or shopping for clothes at a secondhand store. Other users rate the images and award points that can later be exchanged for vouchers. This rewards sustainable behavior. At the same time, the uploaded images serve as inspiration for users on where they can practice sustainable behavior in their everyday lives.
DieStadtgärtner: Very nice idea! How did you come up with it?
Ralf: A key experience was a stay in the USA. Four fellow students lived in a shared apartment, and even though everyone had to go to university at the same time, everyone drove their own car. But unfortunately, here too, many people want to act ecologically, but often don't know where to start and lack that last bit of motivation. Motivated by this, Fabian and I have wanted to do something to improve the situation for a long time. At the School of Design Thinking in Potsdam, we met Anna, and together we came up with the idea for ecotastic and took the plunge.
DieStadtgärtner: And how are things going for you so far? Have you regretted your decision to start a business?
Ralf: Absolutely not. Of course it's stressful to start your own business and, at least so far, it's cost us more money than it brings in, but it's a really exciting time. We were able to spend the first eight months in the Social Impact Lab , where we could exchange ideas with other companies like Ruby Cup and Chidos . This support definitely made our start easier! We now share an office with Ecosia , another company with ecological goals. Seeing that it's possible to run a social enterprise profitably in the long term and at the same time contribute to improving the environment continues to motivate us every day. Our app already has over 1,000 downloads and is well received by users. Now we have to work harder on acquiring partners in order to create interesting vouchers for users. Overall, I'd say things are going very well.
DieStadtgärtner: What are your further plans with ecotastic, where are you headed?
Ralf: We want to continue growing and hopefully one day be able to earn enough money with ecotastic to live on without having to work as a freelancer on other projects on the side, as we currently do. Long-term, we want to be the payback system in the field of sustainability. Points will then be credited automatically, i.e., without uploading photos. For example, by booking a ride or shopping at a world shop. This should further lower the barrier to participation, and the connection between action and points will become more direct and therefore clearer. Furthermore, companies can both award points and have them redeemed. This will make marketing the app and acquiring partners easier for us.
DieStadtgärtner: Thank you for the interview, Ralf. DieStadtgärtner wish you all the best!
