Visa Connected Card Studio

Challenge

Visa Debit Processing Services needed to showcase their experiences as a connected digital vision to their clients instead of separate product demonstrations

Outcome

Created an immersive, storytelling experience for Visa clients, which presented products and services from the cardholder perspective within the context of a larger, customer journey

My Role

Led end-to-end design and hands-on execution of the physical environment, managed vendor relationships for physical construction, and navigated internal stakeholder conversations around budget

I drove strategic conversations with Visa DPS leadership to develop a cardholder narrative that reimagined future digital moments and positioned Visa's offerings as a connected user experience rather than siloed divisional services.

Visa's Debit Processing Services team needed a dedicated space at their User Conference to showcase innovative products and services through design thinking and immersive client demonstrations.

I facilitated strategic conversations with Visa DPS leadership to collaboratively develop a cardholder narrative that highlighted key partnership opportunities with issuers. This narrative reimagined cardholder moments within a future digital context and served as a forcing function to present Visa's holistic offering as a connected user experience, rather than separate divisional services within a larger company.

Inside the studio

The Connected Card Studio was a purpose-built, walk-through environment that guided Visa clients through the future of the cardholder journey, station by station, with each moment grounded in both a compelling future vision and the data to back it up.

As attendees stepped into the Connected Card Studio, they were immediately immersed in Visa's point of view on the rapidly evolving payments landscape. The studio was designed in a U-shape, with the exterior wall communicating Visa's digital strategy and the interior wall lined with supporting data points that grounded that perspective in research. Moving through this opening section set the stage for what came next. The cardholder journey, which began with card issuance and activation.

Connected Card Studio prototype stations

From there, each hero moment along the cardholder journey was brought to life at dedicated stations along the outer wall. Prototypes and looping videos at each station gave attendees a tangible sense of what the future experience could look and feel like. On the inner wall, corresponding data points ran parallel to each station, providing factual rationale that supported the vision being presented directly across from it. The result was a space that felt both aspirational and credible.

The studio closed with a dedicated lounge where attendees could reflect, connect with Visa team members, and explore what a partnership could look like based on what they had just experienced.

I designed the Connected Card Lounge as a deliberate decompression space positioned at the studio exit. The relaxed setting gave attendees room to process what they had seen before moving into conversation. Visa team members were stationed throughout, ready to go deeper with any client who wanted to explore partnership opportunities. The transition from immersive walk-through to intimate conversation was entirely intentional. It gave the studio a natural close that converted attendee curiosity into concrete next steps.