Following the model we saw, below I present some product vision examples so you can see different ways to show what your product will look like in the future.

Vision as a sentence

This was the vision for Locaweb’s Email product in 2016:

Locaweb’s Email solution will be the most complete and flexible of the Brazilian market.

Example of an internet banking product vision

This is a product vision that could be created for an internet banking product that a bank decides to develop to provide its customers:

XPTO Bank decided to have internet banking to reduce the costs of operating bank branches. This software is used by bank account holders who, when using this software, hope to solve their banking needs (check balance, pay bills, make investments, etc.) a better way than when they visit agencies.

Fun Retrospectives Product Vision

Fun Retrospectives is a website with several examples of activities for team retrospectives and an application that helps run retrospectives. I have been working together with the team to help evolve the product. See the product vision we created:

For groups of people who work together and who seek contin- uous improvement, Fun Retrospectives is a tool with content that helps this group learn from the past, to prepare for the future, to connect and power up.

Unlike infinite, generic online boards and remote retrospective tools with little content, the Fun Retrospectives is the best place for activities and ideas to improve your team and that works both stand alone and how to complement other excellent tools such as Mural, Miro, Trello and Jira.

Value exchange map

The representation model that we saw in the chapter Business Models is a way of presenting the product vision, making it clear who the customers are and what is the exchange of value is between them and the company. You can use text next to the image to make the product vision even clearer.

Conta Azul connects small business owners to their accoun- tants and everything they need to manage their business.

Conta Azul vision

Gympass is a three-sided marketplace that helps users become and stay active by providing them hundreds of activities to explore and love.

Gympass vision

Lopes helps people to conquer their place, connecting them to the most appropriate property through the best broker.

It’s TRI-MATCH, the perfect match between people, property and broker.

Lopes vision

I have also been using these tools on my journey as a “solopreneur” (individual entrepreneur) at Gyaco. Even for companies that have only one type of customer, the value exchange map can be useful.

Gyaco connects businesses and technology through training and consultancy in product management and digital transformation.

Visiontype, another tool for communicating vision

For some time now, I have seen a growing use of another tool to showcase the product vision. This tool is called “visiontype”. It is a kind of video prototype that demonstrates how the user’s daily life will be improved because of the product.

There is a video titled “The Future of Real Estate AR (LNG STU- DIOS, 2021)” that illustrates what the life of a person searching for a new apartment will be like in the future and introduces some interesting tools to aid in this search. You can watch this video below:

This video served as inspiration for some things we did at Lopes. For example, at 17 seconds, a 3D floor plan of the apartment is shown, allowing the person to navigate through it.

Scene from the video “The Future of Real Estate AR” that shows a 3D floor plan of an apartment

This option of seeing the property plan and walking through it was implemented on the Lopes website:

And the possibility of searching for properties through augmented reality:

Scene from the video “The Future of Real Estate AR” that shows searching for properties in augmented reality

It was something we were evaluating together with the people at Mira App (https://www.mira.app.br):

Mira App screen shows real estate searches through augmented reality.

A visiontype video can be highly inspiring for both the product development team and the entire company, as it helps concretize how our user’s life will be in the future thanks to our product. Here are some other interesting examples:

• Microsoft Productivity Future
• HP Safe City
• Asana’s vision for the future of the work
• SpaceX to Mars: Awe-Inspiring Video Shows Vision for Red Planet Exploration

Despite being a fun process, creating a video like this can also be quite labor-intensive. An interesting option is to make a storyboard:

Storyboard of the vision for an app to help people with depression. Source: Babich, 2017.

Both the sentence, diagram, and video or storyboard vision types are tools with a clear objective: to help us communicate how we envision our product in the future. Choose the one that makes the most sense in your context and according to your needs.

Suggested process for creating product vision

Here’s a suggested process for creating the product vision. I’ve used this process with good results in the companies I’ve helped:

• Obtain strategic goals from the company: Talk to company leaders, the CEO, the founders, and the board. While every company wants to grow and have more revenue and customers, how do they plan to achieve it?
• Understand customer problems and needs: Empathy maps and personas are useful tools for gathering this information, but several others are also useful, such as observation, interviews, research, job-to-be-done, etc.
• Draft the first version of the vision: With this information, you can create the initial version of the product vision. Tip: This is a creative task and is more productive if done alone, especially if you opt for the sentence version and the value exchange map. If you’re creating a visiontype, it’s a collaborative effort, and involving design professionals can be beneficial.
• Iterate and refine: After creating the first version of the product vision, it’s time to iterate and refine. Start with the product development team: PMs, GPMs, designers, engineers. Then, leaders from other areas, such as managers, directors, C-level, founders, advisors, etc., will be involved. Tip: If possible, opt for 1:1 sessions to allow individuals to provide more feedback. In larger groups, some people might not feel comfortable sharing comments.
• Communicate: Share the vision with the entire company and even outside the company. This should be done repeatedly. Remind everyone of the product vision on every relevant occasion. Tip: Consistent communication of the product vision helps manage the expectations that everyone in the company has regarding the product under development.
• Review: It’s recommended that the vision be reviewed annually or when something new arises, such as a new competitor or market change.

Recommendation

“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.” — Lewis Carroll in Alice in Wonderland

That was the response the Cheshire Cat gave to Alice when she stood in front of a fork in the road and asked where those paths would lead. The Cat asked: “Where do you want to go?” She replied: “I don’t know; I’m lost,” and then he uttered this famous phrase.

It’s of no use to embark on your digital transformation journey if you don’t know where you want to go and where you want to take your company. This is the first step you need to take: define what your future vision will be. It will likely change as you progress on this journey, but you need to have your first version.

The techniques and tools I shared in this chapter are suggestions that have worked for me throughout my career in the companies I’ve worked with, but they’re certainly not the only ones. New techniques and tools are created and may be more useful for you in your context. Regardless of the technique you use, don’t forget to create your first version of your product vision. After all, if you don’t know where you’re going, not only does any path serve, but you might not even need to leave where you are.

Summing up

• Product vision is a tool that helps us see how the product will be in the future.
• Defining, communicating, and revising the product vision is the most important responsibility of someone leading a digital transformation. Without the product vision, it is very difficult to work on any other topic.
• Clarity about the company’s objectives for the product and the customers’ problems and needs is necessary to build the product vision.
• A product vision can be a sentence or a sentence accompanied by a diagram or a video that shows how the product will improve the user’s daily life.
• Both the sentence, the diagram, and the visiontype in video or storyboard are tools with a clear objective: to help us communicate how we imagine our product in the future. Choose the one that makes the most sense in your context and according to your needs.

Digital transformation and product culture

This article is another excerpt from my newest book “Digital transformation and product culture: How to put technology at the center of your company’s strategy“, which I will also make available here on the blog. So far, I have already published here:

• About the book
• Part 1: Concepts
  • Chapter 1: The so-called digital transformation – Project and Product
  • Chapter 2: Uncertainty and digital transformation
  • Chapter 3: Types of company
  • Chapter 4: Type of company vs digital maturity
  • Chapter 5: Business models
  • Chapter 6: Agile, digital and product culture
• Part 2: Principles
  • Chapter 7: Deliver early and often – Measuring and managing the productivity – Case study: Dasa Group – Case study: Itaú Unibanco
  • Chapter 8: Focus on the problem – O Famoso Discovery de Produto – Why the “business demands => IT implements” model does not work – Case study: Magazine Luiza
  • Chapter 9: Result delivery – Outsource or internal team? – Case study: Centauro
  • Chapter 10: Ecosystem mindset
• Part 3: Tools
  • Chapter 11: Product Vision – Product vision examples
  • Chapter 12: Product Strategy

Workshops, coaching, and advisory services

I’ve been helping companies and their leaders (CPOs, heads of product, CTOs, CEOs, tech founders, and heads of digital transformation) bridge the gap between business and technology through workshops, coaching, and advisory services on product management and digital transformation.

Digital Product Management Books

Do you work with digital products? Do you want to know more about managing a digital product to increase its chances of success, solve its user’s problems, and achieve the company objectives? Check out my Digital Product Management books, where I share what I learned during my 30+ years of experience in creating and managing digital products:

• Digital transformation and product culture: How to put technology at the center of your company’s strategy
• Leading Product Development: The art and science of managing product teams
• Product Management: How to increase the chances of success of your digital product
• Startup Guide: How startups and established companies can create profitable digital products