A visiontype of a new product direction at Displate
Product Design, Product Management, Strategy, Product Research
Thomas Dyrks
Displate was exploring new ways to deepen engagement with its most loyal customer base. The strategic goal was to increase retention by expanding the product offering, beyond wall art - into adjacent formats that would still celebrate fandom and self-expression. One concept that emerged was a collectible card format: smaller, portable Displates that could be used differently - traded, displayed in alternate spaces, or collected as themed series. However, before committing significant investment, the company needed a clear, tangible representation of what the user experience and positioning could look like. To align teams and de-risk future decisions, we decided to build a visiontype - a strategic prototype that connects long-term vision with short-term execution. Visiontypes help organizations move fast without falling into misalignment, enabling leadership to see, feel, and challenge the idea early in its life cycle.
My role
As a Head of Digital Product Design, I led the 5 day process, in which:
Outcome
The visiontype served as a catalyst for productive discussion and strategic clarity. Key outcomes included:
While the product idea showed promise, several challenges stood in the way:
Unclear positioning
The card format was new and ambiguous - was it a standalone product, a complement to core Displates, or part of a broader collectibles ecosystem?
Cross-functional misalignment
With multiple departments involved (product, design, marketing, engineering, and operations), early efforts risked being siloed and inconsistent.
Need for early clarity without overcommitting
The company needed to explore the idea thoroughly without creating premature specs or roadmaps.
Lack of shared excitement and direction
Stakeholders needed something inspiring and tangible to rally around—but not overly detailed or prescriptive.
As Head of Digital Product Design, I led the visiontype effort, focusing on crafting the product vision, designing the prototype, and facilitating alignment across the organization. We followed a fast, iterative process.
We conducted a brief landscape scan of collectible formats and card-based experiences, both physical and digital, identifying patterns and inspiration.
Using insights, we created low-fidelity concepts to explore use cases, customer touchpoints, and aesthetic directions.
Live events are at the heart of the experience. Users can interact in real-time as products are revealed during live auctions, boosting excitement and community participation.
The experience is built around gamification. Collectibility is driven by unlockable content and rewards, encouraging users to engage and complete their collections.
Drops are designed to feel exclusive. Customers join lobbies and queues, with only a short window to buy - without choosing the exact edition. Miss it, and it might be gone forever. But don’t worry - reselling is always possible on the marketplace.
Users can track how product value evolves over time, monitor marketplace trends, and evaluate demand for specific editions. They can make offers and trade with others based on real-time activity.
Based on feedback from internal stakeholders and select users, we refined the concept to better fit the Displate brand and customer expectations.
The final prototype was developed in Webflow using custom code, showcasing key flows, storytelling moments, and experience highlights. It wasn’t a spec - it was a story about what the product could be.
I met individually with executives to walk them through the prototype, gather feedback, and frame the vision in terms they cared about - retention metrics, brand evolution, and operational impact.
The visiontype served as a catalyst for productive discussion and strategic clarity. Key outcomes included:
Clarity beats consensus
We didn't need everyone to agree on every detail. We needed a shared direction—and the visiontype delivered that.
User education is a product problem, not just a marketing one
Particularly in new categories, experience design plays a crucial role in onboarding and trust.
Derisking too early can kill momentum
Instead of spending months in speculative analysis, we moved fast, built something concrete, and used it to learn - saving time and avoiding unnecessary complexity.