Discovery
“Where is it?”
Product design case study2025–2026
Voucher Centre.
Designing the Voucher Ecosystem
What appeared to be a voucher usability problem revealed a broader systems problem. This project transformed fragmented promotional experiences into a scalable ecosystem used across 60+ markets.
- Role
- Product Designer
- Team
- Checkout
- Timeline
- 2025–2026
- Scope
- Discovery → Strategy → Validation → Pilot → Scale
Systems ThinkingProduct StrategyInformation ArchitectureService DesignStakeholder AlignmentScalable Ecosystems
+32%Voucher usage
+22%Orders using vouchers
18%Vouchers shared
−27%Voucher-related support contacts
01 / Opportunity
A recurring support signal became a product opportunity.
Not on the roadmap
Where is my voucher?
How does it work?
Is it still valid?
Why can’t I use it?
Through ongoing collaboration with Customer Support, I noticed that questions around vouchers and promotional benefits kept recurring. I ran an initial exploratory investigation to understand whether these were isolated support issues or signals of a broader product problem.
I documented the opportunity in a product brief, presented the case to my Product Owner and wider stakeholders, and secured alignment to investigate it further.
Promotional benefits were everywhere.
Clarity was nowhere.
60+markets
A fragmented promotional ecosystem combined different voucher types, eligibility rules and expiration across channels and countries.
Ownership, sharing and market-specific conditions added further complexity. I needed to understand where the customer experience was breaking.
02 / Evidence & Reframe
Evidence changed the problem
The initial signal pointed to redemption.
The evidence showed users were struggling before checkout.
01Product analyticsReconstructed funnel
Voucher issued
100%
Voucher discovered
~64%
−36 ppLargest drop-off
Voucher opened / viewed
~51%
−13 pp
Voucher engaged with
~39%
−12 pp
Voucher applied
~27%
−12 pp
Successful order with voucher
~23%
−4 pp
Biggest drop happens before checkout.
Are we solving redemption — or losing people much earlier?
02Support signalsReported themes
32%Where is my voucher?
26%Eligibility / conditions
18%Voucher not applying
14%Expiration / validity
10%Sharing / ownership / other
03Customer interviewsQualitative research
User 04
“I remember having one, but not where it is.”
User 05
“I don't know if this applies to what I'm buying.”
User 06
“I need to know the conditions before I start shopping.”
Triangulation
Behavioural data showed where the journey was breaking. Support signals and customer interviews helped explain why.
Comprehension
“What does this mean?”
Eligibility
“Can I use it?”
Continuity
“Will it still be there?”
04Current-state journeyFriction before checkout
01Receive
02Discoverbreakpoint
03Understandbreakpoint
04Shopbreakpoint
05Evaluatebreakpoint
06Checkout
07Apply
08Confirm
Checkout was where the problem became visible.
It wasn't where the problem started.
Reframed question
How might we make voucher value visible, understandable and actionable throughout the shopping journey?
What I needed to validate
01
Ownership
Would one predictable destination improve discovery?
02
Context
Would contextual entry points increase engagement?
03
Clarity
Would earlier eligibility reduce failed attempts?
03 / Explore & Decide
Exploring the interaction model
I explored four models, each resolving a different part of the problem.
Pattern research
The central-ownership hypothesis came from the project research. I used pattern research to challenge that direction and understand how other models balanced ownership, timing and control.
The pattern supported central ownership —
not a specific solution.
01Concept directionsFour models explored
01
Checkout-focused
Shipping
Payment
3Review & pay
Apply a voucher⌃
Apply
Apply
Apply
- Strength
- Strong context
- Weakness
- Discovery happens too late
Users understood the interaction, but discovery happened too late.
02
Automatic application
1 ⌄
1 ⌄
1 ⌄
A voucher has been applied
Subtotal
Discount
Total
Pay
- Strength
- Low effort
- Weakness
- Weak transparency / control
Reduced effort, but created questions around control and eligibility.
03
Dedicated Voucher Centre
Vouchers
Use now
- Strength
- Strong ownership and overview
- Weakness
- Passive discoverability
One reliable place for what customers have, value, eligibility, expiration and conditions. Strong ownership. But how do users discover it?
04
Voucher Centre + contextual discovery
Voucher available here
15% OFF
Voucher
Voucher
- Strength
- Centralised ownership + contextual discovery
- Trade-off
- Higher implementation complexity
Best balance of ownership, visibility and continuity.
Centralise ownership.
Distribute discovery.
02Primary navigationProduct trade-off
My initial preference was stronger primary-navigation visibility. Stakeholders challenged it because that space competed with higher-frequency customer journeys. I cared about solving discoverability, not owning a navigation item.
Before
How do we maximise visibility?
After
How do we create enough discoverability without competing with higher-value workflows?
04 / Validate & Learn
Validate the riskiest assumptions
01Usability testingV1 → V2 → V3
V1Hierarchy problem
Vouchers
All (12)Active (5)Used (3)Expired (4)
15% off skincare
Min. spend €30 · Selected categories
Valid until 30 Jun 2024 · Terms
Free shipping
No minimum spend · Online only
Valid until 12 Jul 2024 · Terms
€10 off fragrance
Min. spend €50 · Selected items
Valid until 25 Jul 2024 · Terms
20% off makeup
Min. spend €40 · Selected categories
Valid until 1 Aug 2024 · Terms
Information-heavy
V2Comprehension improved
VouchersUseUseUse
Available (6)Used (2)Expired (3)
15% off skincare
Best valueFor skincare and facial care
Valid until 30 Jun 2024
Free shipping
No minimum spend
Valid until 12 Jul 2024
20% off makeup
For makeup and beauty tools
Valid until 1 Aug 2024
Clearer hierarchy + progressive disclosure
V3Core interaction validated
1. Select voucher
Your vouchers
15% off skincare
Valid until 30 Jun 2024
Continue to shop
2. Shop eligible products
SkincareMakeupFragrance
15% off
15% off
15% off
3. Applied at checkout
Checkout
Voucher applied
15% off skincare
Subtotal
Discount
Total
Place order
End-to-end flow
Usability testing moved the design from information-heavy voucher management to a clearer end-to-end flow. Once the core interaction held together, I moved to behavioural validation.
02Behavioural experimentContextual discovery
Does better discovery actually change behaviour?
Hypothesis
Earlier contextual discovery should increase voucher engagement and downstream usage without harming checkout conversion.
Keep + iterate
Control
Existing voucher discovery
Skincare
for your natural beauty
Explore
Best sellers
Variant
Contextual discovery → Voucher Centre
You have 15% off skincare
Valid until 30 Jun 2024
View vouchers×
Skincare
for your natural beauty
Shop skincare
Recommended for you
15% OFF
15% OFF
15% OFF
15% OFF
Primary signal
Voucher engagement
IncreasedSecondary signal
Voucher redemption
Moved in the same directionGuardrail
Checkout conversion
No meaningful negative movementLearning
Discovery was a behavioural problem,
not just a visibility problem.
05 / Pilot
Pilot before scale
Usability testing refined the interaction. Behavioural validation reduced uncertainty. The pilot tested the system under real-world complexity.
The pilot tested something prototypes couldn't:
whether the system still worked when real campaigns, real customers and real market rules collided.
01Product state matrixBeyond the happy path
Available
15% off skincare
Min. spend €30
Valid until 30 Jun 2024 · Terms
Expired
10% off fragrance
Expired on 12 Jun 2024 · Terms
Ineligible
Free shipping
Min. spend €50
Valid until 31 Jul 2024 · Terms
Add €20 more to qualify
Used
€10 off makeup
Used on 2 May 2024 · Terms
Multiple eligible
20% off skincare
For selected items
Valid until 1 Aug 2024 · Terms
Can be combined with other offers
Campaign conflict
15% off fragrance
Not valid with current offer
Valid until 25 Jul 2024 · Terms
This voucher can’t be combined with active promotions
Shared
€5 off skincare
Shared with a friend
Valid until 30 Jun 2024 · Terms
No eligible products
Free gift
No eligible products
Valid until 31 Jul 2024 · Terms
Browse eligible products to use this voucher
Pilot→Observe→Fix→Retest→Scale
The pilot wasn't only validation.
It was risk reduction before scale.
06 / System & Product
Building the system
I translated the validated interaction model into a scalable product system.
01Shared languageMany terms → one Voucher Centre
Different internal mechanics. One understandable customer model.
02Component architectureValue · status · eligibility · expiration · ownership · conditions · action
I designed the reusable VoucherCard around a stable information architecture for value, status, eligibility, expiration, ownership, conditions and action.
03Voucher CentreOne predictable destination · multiple types and states
One predictable destination brought multiple voucher types and states together. Centralised ownership did not mean centralising every interaction.
04SharingSame ownership model
Referral value joined the same ownership model.
One evolution, not a separate product language.
The challenge wasn't designing a voucher card.
It was creating one customer-facing model for many different business rules.
Once the model held together, the work shifted from proving the system to refining the experience.
07 / Impact
Measurable outcomes
+32%Voucher usage
+22%Orders using vouchers
18%Vouchers shared
−27%Voucher-related support contacts
The outcome went beyond making vouchers easier to use.
The new model changed how users discovered, understood and used promotional value — while reducing support friction for the business.
How I would approach this today
Present-day retrospective
AI compresses the loop.
It doesn't replace product judgement.
AI finds patterns. I decide which ones matter.
One continuous system
Raw evidence→AI-assisted synthesis→Human judgement→Hypothesis→AI-assisted exploration→Near-code prototype→Test→AI-assisted synthesis→Human decision→Engineer-ready spec→Ship + measure
DecisionKeepIterateKill
The speed changes.
Product judgement still decides what ships.