In this case Intro Problem Definition Research Results Validation Implementation

Zicasso Website Repositioning.

A new brand, in need of a website to match it

Zicasso is a luxury travel company going through a brand repositioning. Its public website needed a more refined, premium, and trustworthy experience that better reflected the complexity and personalization of its travel offering.

This project was made in collaboration with the Marketing team, to transform the idea into design, and the Engineering team, to bring the design to life.

314K active users in the US · 57% female · 51.3% mobile traffic
Problem Definition
The website wasn't expressing the new Zicasso

The repositioning was centered on life-enriching, luxury travel experiences, but the existing website didn't reflect that ambition.

The experience lacked consistency

Different workflows led users through disconnected journeys, making the overall experience harder to understand and navigate.

The category had moved ahead

Competitors were already drawing from the language and conventions of luxury brands. As Zicasso evolved toward a more lifestyle-led position, the website needed to evolve with it.

Combining different data to get better insights

Benchmarking of competitors and luxury brands, performance data from existing PPC (pay-per-click) landing pages showed how users were actually behaving, guiding the way to four clear attributes for our new website.

Reference sweep of luxury, editorial, and lifestyle brand websites
Benchmarking

We looked not only at competitors actively repositioning around luxury and lifestyle, but also at luxury brands outside the travel industry — which led us to pursue an editorial, sharp, and confident website, one that matched perfectly with the rebrand made by the Marketing team.

Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Landing Pages
Finding 01

Less is more. Longer landing pages consistently saw higher drop-off. Pages with 8+ sections, and even individual sections with too much content, were more likely to lose users.

Finding 02

Luxury was already resonating. "Premier" and "Luxury" content consistently drove engagement, confirming that these themes aligned with what users were looking for.

Finding 03

Consistency mattered. Landing pages using components more closely aligned with the new visual direction — including colors and card patterns — performed better.

01 Immersive experience

Benchmarking showed luxury brands leaning hard into photography, video, and motion to feel aspirational, not just informative. We did the same — with more imagery of travelers, not just destinations, so people could picture themselves in these experiences.

02 Minimalism

Finding 01 was direct: longer, denser pages lost engagement. The new system prioritized clearer hierarchy, fewer competing elements, and content chosen for relevance over volume.

03 Personalization

Finding 02 showed generic travel content underperforming next to "Premier" and "Luxury" framing. Content adapted based on entry point and search intent, keeping the focus on what a Zicasso trip specifically offers.

04 Mobile-first

Mobile already represented the largest share of traffic. Responsive behavior and performance were considered from the beginning — while still designing for a significant desktop audience.

Backed by research

Data → design

The homepage went through a lot of iteration before we landed on the final version. Nothing here shipped simply because it looked right.

Zicasso homepage preview
Before & after

Same brand, new essence

From a denser, promotional layout to an editorial one built around hierarchy and restraint.

Before
Zicasso homepage, before the redesign
After
Zicasso homepage, after the redesign
Making the new brand feel alive

Used to guide attention, reinforce the new brand, and make transitions feel natural.

Destination carousel animation
Destination carousel
Section navigation animation
Section navigation
Hero text reveal animation
Hero text reveal
Rebrand — core pages
Homepage hero, rebranded
About Zicasso page, rebranded
Extending the system across existing pages
African Safari Tours listing page, restyled
Trip itinerary page, restyled
Europe travel agents & reviews page, restyled
Trip request flow, step 1, restyled
↗ View live site
Post-launch validation

10 users. 2 versions. 3 questions.

After launch, I ran a moderated usability test comparing the old homepage with the new one — 5 users per version, with 3 questions each.

Participants were screened to match Zicasso's actual customer profile: US-based, ages 40–88, post-graduate, household income over $100K, and experienced travelers.

Question 1 of 3

Based only on this page, what do you think Zicasso is for — and what product or service does Zicasso primarily offer?

Current home page

"It's a traveling website, you may book hotel and flight there."

"Global Travel & Tour Agency."

New home page

"A service where customized vacations around the world are designed by region."

"A curated travel experience and trip service."

Question 2 of 3

How do you think Zicasso works?

Current home page

"You may choose your destination, and that's it! The website will find the best offer for you."

"Both prebuilt and custom tours available."

New home page

"I can browse and purchase travels with you. Assuming Zicasso has local partners and connects me with those businesses that provide all the services at the destination, whether it's accommodation, or activities, etc."

"User inputs what they want to do online or calls the number, and the trip is designed for them."

Question 3 of 3

From what you see, what stands out as Zicasso's main differentiator?

Current home page

"Unclear... looks pretty straightforward and consistent to what I'm aware of across the industry, we travel regularly."

"As I saw so far, I didn't see anything stand out and catch my eyes."

New home page

"Premium/luxury type of offers. It's not the usual 'flight + 3-day/2-night all-inclusive in Punta Cana.'"

"Curated and tailored vacation experience — down to the schedule each day, and where people go, and where they stay."

"The level of customization."

Main conclusions
Implementation strategy

Built to evolve

Given the scope, the rebuild shipped in phases rather than all at once.

1.25 — v0 Quick wins

Copy, placement, and image changes on the homepage — small adjustments, fast to ship.

1.5 — v1 Brand alignment

Every page except home and about brought in line with the new visuals, consistent with the 2.0 pages.

2.0 — Endgame (for now) Full rebuild

New components, new interface, new experience — starting with home and about, the pages covered here.

Zicasso homepage, full page, annotated
Headline & CTA

A/B tested across behavior sets: "Your greatest travels are just beginning" won on overall conversion. Backed by prior Unbounce tests too — hero video beat hero image on CTA clicks, and a short, central "Get Started" button outperformed longer, busier variants.

Social proof

Users engage highly with sections that display social proof, including banners and review sections. The homepage leads with exactly that — ratings from Google and Trustpilot alongside features in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

Destinations

Selected by average commission, total converted commission, search volume, and trip-report mentions — one destination per key region, not whichever photo looked best.

Explore by month

Seasonal content is consistently high-engagement — in testing, "When to Visit" and similar seasonal modules kept attracting clicks, and search demand backs it up: "best time to visit Italy" alone drives 5K+ searches a month, with Iceland, Costa Rica, and Japan topping curiosity searches 8 months out of 12.

Experience tabs

Categories drawn from 12 months of trip reports, ranked by how often each theme was actually mentioned — "Premier" and "Luxury" led, confirming what research had already shown.