Small villages in France have been facing a desertification problem for years. People are drawn to big stores and surfaces for their convenience, especially if they have a charging spot to charge their cars while they so something else, instead of waiting in the middle of nowhere.

Giving small businesses the possibility to become a charging spot while offering their usual services not only attracts locals back to the village center, but also EV travelers who can enjoy the local charm, food, shops, and attractions while on their charging stop.

With the electric transition taking place in France, Plug Inn achieves not only a B2B solution for small businesses, but a big step forward in EV transformation and sustainable travel.

Renault, the leader in electric vehicles in France, launch Plug Inn, and it became the AirBnB for plugs: an app that connects electric vehicle drivers with private electric charger owners.

Even if this help revitalize remote villages in France, small businesses were still struggling to increase their commercial activity.

As the leader of the electric transition, Renault decided to push Plug Inn’s capabilities to find a solution to this problem. The result was Plug Inn for Business, an app that allows small business owners to install a charger and offer it to the public, to attract more customers and increase their sales. And EV travelers now have more charging spots available, and better ways to charge while they eat, sleep, shop, etc.

The goal of Plug Inn for Business is to support sustainable tourism while putting small business back on the map, repopulating and further revitalizing mall city centers.

Using Plug Inn, an electric charging app, to help small businesses took redefining the app itself.

Being the AirBnB for plugs was great, but it wasn’t enough. And even through the app could have been useful for small businesses just as it was, a new approach was necessary to reach those who could benefit from it.

A new creative approach was put in place by transforming the app conceptually, visually, and from the UX point of view, as well as the user recruiting campaign.

A new strategic approach was necessary in terms of media and message to reach out to a different audience (small business owners) and recruit the right type of users.

Renault Plug Inn managed to transform its own business by redefining the app, transforming itself into a B2B solution for small businesses.

Plug Inn’s transformation from the AirBnB of plugs to a B2B solution created a new way for small businesses everywhere to attract more customers, potentially creating new jobs, and changing the economy of small communities in France.

Whether they own an electric charger or want to install one (or more), the benefits go beyond the possibility of monetizing the charge. The fact that charging an EV’s battery takes time, worked in favor of the businesses who offer services that allow people to use that time to do something else (eating, shopping, sleeping, etc). It’s a win-win-win situation in terms of sustainability, economic growth, and EV innovation.

Plug Inn for Business is looking to change people’s behavior when it comes to recharging electric vehicles, to transform small business practices in face of an increasingly electric future, and to promote sustainable travel while revitalizing small towns.

Renault is leading a revolution in the automotive industry by taking sustainable driving a step beyond the EV, improving the conditions for the electric transformation to take place and expand.