early concept prototyping for ux teams

EARLY CONCEPT PROTOTYPING

Marti Gold Managing Director of

User Experience

November 14, 2014

What isEARLY CONCEPT PROTOTYPING?

Low-fidelity representations to more clearly define a product’s features and function

early in the design process.

Commonly Known Benefits

• Static images cannot communicate interactions. Only prototypes can bring an early concept “to life.”

• Changes to prototypes are FAR less costly, in both time and resources, than even the smallest changes after development is underway.

More Benefits…

• Clickable prototypes are an invaluable reference for developers, particularly offsite teams.

• Prototypes ensure “a common vision” of the product across the entire organization.

Two Other “Not So Commonly Known”

Benefits…

Prototypes create

EXCITEMENTwithin any organization

“A prototype will save 1,000 emails”

Removing The Myths

• Testing early prototypes does NOT require expensive labs. Company cafeterias or local coffee shops work fine.

• Tests do NOT require weeks to set up. Clickable prototypes can now be built, and tests completed, in a single day.

More Myths….

It does NOT require a lot of test subjects.3-4 participants are usually sufficient

to find the biggest issues.

Even More Myths…

Developers are not required. There are many easy-to-use, inexpensive tools – both desktop and

cloud-based – that non-Developers can use.

How Prototyping Changes Traditional Development Workflows

Without prototyping…

• The Business team identifies a need

• They prepare executive presentations

• The app or site moves forward only after funding is approved.

Tick tock, tick tock…..

• The application may be in “late alpha” stage, before it finally goes to user testing.

• Depending on the results of those user tests, the app is either …

• Sent back up the funnel for revisions, OR

• Released “as is” with the intention of fixing minor issues via future updates.

This process is unavoidably

Company-Centric

The company builds products the company wants, and then hopes the User will like them.

With Prototyping, the Flow is Different

• An unfilled/underfilled market need is identified.

• A small proof-of-concept team is assembled to gather core requirements and define the product’s goals.

• Early concept prototyping and testing starts almost immediately.

Features and interactions are rapidly refined by user feedback.

Each iteration’s prototypes increase in fidelity.

The “Go” or “NO Go” Decision

• When prototype confidence (negative or positive) reaches a certain level either…

• The idea is submitted for executive funding OR

• The idea is abandoned.

Funding Decisions: Powerpoints vs Prototypes

Which do you think will give your executivesmore confidence in product funding decisions?

Once funded…

• The larger cross-departmental product team is assembled

• Iterations and testing continue with increasing prototype fidelity.

• Back-end/services development work which is not dependent upon the UI can be started, further reducing time to market.

• Eventually, we arrive at a “launch-approved” prototype which simulates final interactions, visuals and features as closely as possible.

• Prototype and documentation go to final coding.

Tonic3’s Prototyping Workflow

Prototyping processes are inherently

User-Centric

The company builds products the User wants, and can be confident the User will like them.

Tips to successfully adopt early concept prototyping

Making perceived hurdles disappear

3 people. 3 weeks. 1 room.

1 Business1 UX 1 Developer

Give them free-rein…

• Uninterrupted blocks of time

• A project room to work together

• Prototyping tools/software

• Easy access to users (usertesting.com, etc.)

Encourage Free Exploration

• ENCOURAGE your product teams to embrace early concept prototyping to explore many ideas.

• ASK for even more iterations when something looks promising. Ideas trigger more ideas.

• FUND the truly brilliant and game-changing

Don’t “marry” early visions

• Early concept prototypes WILL uncover many unexpected things

• Logic flaws

• Critical features that were overlooked

• Remind everyone NOT to become emotionally attached to an early vision. They could overlook large gaps.

Stay focused on the basics

• Early concept prototypes are meant to confirm the product’s viability and overall direction.

• Secondary features can incorporated, debated, and tested after funding

Build all early prototypes as white labels

• Eliminates brand bias.

• Minimizes the need for legal and security reviews

• Ensures early ideas are not accidentally divulged to competitors during feedback phases.

About now, the Product Managers in the

audience will look like this…

But here are thePROJECT Managers…

Talking Project Managers “Off the Ledge”

• Effectively implementing early-concept prototyping may (read “will”) require adjustments to existing workflow processes and process tracking tools.

• It will be messy at the beginning.

• But you MUST keep telling the project managers… “THIS IS OKAY.”

So, what is the best way foryour organization to implement

early concept prototyping?

In the truespirit ofprototyping,

just START. And get feedback… And then refine… And get feedback again….

Thank you.