Credit card upgrade

U.S. Bank wanted to introduce a new way for existing credit card customers to upgrade to more rewarding products through digital channels. Until this point, upgrades were only possible through call centers, creating unnecessary friction for both customers and internal teams. I led the design effort to define, prototype, and deliver the bank’s first digital credit card upgrade experience. This initiative aimed to increase card engagement, reduce attrition, and create a scalable framework for future product upgrades.

Note: Due to NDA restrictions, specific metrics and proprietary insights are omitted. This case study focuses on process, methodology, and design impact.

Duration

January 2023 – January 2024

Team

2 Experience Designers
Content Designer
A11Y Consultant
Product Manager
Front and backend engineers
QA testers

My role

Led a three-day design sprint to establish the product vision and priorities
Directed visual and interaction design across responsive web, iOS, and Android platforms
Collaborated with stakeholders and subject matter experts across business lines, risk, and accessibility
Guided the team through stakeholder alignment, design reviews, accessibility audits, and risk assessments
Delivered interactive prototypes and finalized visual designs for agile development

Problem

Credit card users were decreasing their spend because many were enrolled in the wrong card product. These users often had no rewards or rewards that did not fit their lifestyle. Most were unaware that they might qualify for an upgrade to a card better suited to their needs.

Goal

Design the first digital credit card upgrade experience for U.S. Bank that would:

Clearly communicate each product’s value proposition
Reengage users and increase active spend
Strengthen customer loyalty and reduce attrition
Decrease reliance on costly email and mail campaigns

Discovery

I led a three-day design sprint with participants from product, engineering, design, and subject matter expert teams. We mapped the existing call center process, identified major friction points, and prioritized what to include in the MVP.

Key activities included:

Defining “How might we” statements
Conducting competitive analysis
Establishing personas
Sketching and storyboarding solution ideas
MVP value mapping

The group generated many great ideas through the sketching exercise. Knowing we could not execute on every one of these, the value mapping exercise helped to narrow down the scope, while focusing on business and customer priorities. Through this process, the team clarified success metrics and the end-to-end user flow for a digital upgrade experience.

Early concept sketches from the design sprint, exploring the card offer layout and points calculator interaction on mobile.

Design

Created interactive prototypes for usability testing. Although testing was facilitated by a researcher, I attended sessions to observe user behavior and take notes.
Led iterative design and content refinement informed by research findings and stakeholder feedback.
Collaborated closely with marketing, compliance, risk, and accessibility partners to ensure the experience met internal and regulatory standards.
Ensured visual and interaction consistency with existing U.S. Bank design patterns.
Developed a structured documentation system for multiple product upgrade paths, including card art, disclosures, and product value propositions.
Partnered with the Behavioral Science division later in the process to shape future A/B testing and iteration strategies, laying the groundwork for subsequent design improvements.

During usability testing we learned that testers weren’t familiar with the card upgrade capability and were pleasantly surprised by the opportunity. This insight helped guide the design team in strategic entry point placement and messaging. Comparing current card with the upgrade offer was also seen favorably, leading our team to focus on the card comparison experience.

Mobile app screen showing a personalized credit card upgrade offer, highlighting key benefits and rewards details.

Desktop web experience displaying a side-by-side comparison of the customer’s current card and the new upgrade offer to support informed decision-making.

Outcome

We delivered the first digital credit card upgrade capability for U.S. Bank. Upon launch, conversion rates exceeded expectations and user drop-offs were minimal. The success of the MVP led to additional upgrade paths being added soon after release.

Mobile app confirmation screen where customers review offer details and confirm their credit card upgrade selection.

Next steps

Expand the number of available product upgrade paths
Conduct A/B testing on content and imagery
Revisit design hypotheses using specific behavioral science concepts
Add contextual entry points to increase discoverability
Explore personalized upgrade offers tailored to user profiles

Would you like to learn more? Contact me and we can have a chat.