Prototyping: Considerations for Practice

Considerations for Practice

I would like to suggest and anyone can, and should, try prototyping as a way to test new ideas. Let me review a handful of key considerations for practice that can quickly get you up to speed. To start, prototyping can be used on its own or as a stage in the full model. A designer friend share with me, “You can make a beautiful piece of art out of a block of wood or rock if you iterative enough!” So even alone, if you start with basic materials and improve the design based on feedback along the way, you can a useful solution – sometimes to a problem you weren’t sure you even had. I like to be more intentional when prototyping, however, and tend to use a more robust design approach. I will revisit the design model at the end of this article.

There are countless options for taking an idea from the early stages of formation to one that is ready to be put into play. Regardless of which path you take, by the end of the prototyping process, a single clear strategy for addressing the problem should emerge and have enough detail developed that implementation can proceed. I often follow six steps in the process: 1) visualize possible solutions from the best choices, 2) use stories to bring ideas to life, 3) determine what elements or functions the prototypes will test, 4) build models, develop experiments, and get feedback from stakeholders, 5) refine the prototypes, and 6) determine what works and plan to launch.

Anatomy of a prototype. The whole point of investing energy in building a prototype is to bring an idea to life so that it can be tested and refined. The initial, or early stage, prototypes typically are of low fidelity or detail. They can be rough-hewn and have less focus. Final, or late stage, prototypes have increased fidelity, enhanced detail, and may focus on specific features for testing at any one time. Prototypes are dynamic, change, and can be uneven. The most important components may shift and change over the life of the prototype to give it definition and allow for testing and interaction. Here are several elements or components to consider to feature in the anatomy of your prototype:

drawings: simple visual representation of an idea or feature of a prototype

animations: putting drawings into motion by subsequent changes in shape or form, animations appear to move through time

models: whether to scale (the same size) or at scale (proportionally smaller), models are more complicated than simple drawings and are often built in 3-dimensions

video: recording live action or mixing action with animation to explore how a prototype does or could work over time or during interactions

storyboards: developing a narrative storyline along with drawings to represent or demonstrate features of a prototype that may be difficult or costly to build

diagrams: conceptual drawing that shows how parts of a prototype do or could work together

3D virtual models: rendering a prototype in a computer generated format, interactions could happen using simulations, augmented, or virtual reality

business models: expressing the cost and revenue generating functions of an idea (I like Osterwalder’s components: value propositions, customer segments, channels, customer relationships, revenue streams, key resources, key activities, key partnerships, and cost structure)

stories: oral or written narratives about experiences or uses of a prototype, they could be true or fictional

ads: possible advertisements for products or services that can demonstrate key features or marketing potential for a prototypes

mock ups: a quickly built model or replica of a more complicated object, machine, or device used for testing, demonstration, experimentation, or role play

role play: acting out or performing a particular role to match perceived expectations in a certain situation, there is a focus on individuals’ behaviors, interactions, communication, and related outcomes

scenarios: hypothetical, complex, and layered frameworks often set in the future that attempt to explain or demonstrate how potential forces could interact, scenarios are frequently written and enriched with data, graphics, or more rich media

complex simulations: one of the most difficult and costly prototyping situations, complex simulations are a very close to life enactment of a potential event such as military maneuvers, disaster simulation exercises, or business games

One last comment about the anatomy of a prototype, from the user experience perspective, prototypes are experience at various stages of engagement. A few years ago, I came across a framework for unpacking the use experience into distinct stages. This 5E Framework was developed by Ben Jacobsen of Conifer Research and the stages are: entice – entry – engage – exit – extend. I have found it useful for prototypes of all kinds but it’s especially useful for 3rd and 4th order experiences. It can be helpful think about prototypes from these five vantage points. Sometimes different features should be highlighted at different stages.

For handy reference, I’ve associated potential prototyping components with Buchanan’s orders:

Component	1st Order	2nd Order	3rd Order	4th Order
Drawings	X	X
Video	X	X
Storyboard/Stories	X	X	X
Animation	X	X	X
Scale Models		X	X
Physical Objects		X	X
3D Models		X	X
Computer Simulation		X	X	X
Experience Journeys			X	X
Role Play			X	X
Scenarios				X
Complex dynamics				X

Road mapping the expedition. I like to think about the prototyping process like as expedition and be ready for anything. Last year I shared an article on expeditionary strategy and prototyping surely falls into that category in a sense. My prototyping work starts with intentional design. During the design phase, it is most important to spend time identifying the problem, understanding who are the clients and stakeholders, and scoping out the project. I like to use a design brief to summarize and communicate the work here and eventually establish criteria for success. The brief is a useful guiding document that helps plan the project, establish timeframes for meetings and events, and generate an initial cost proposal. The design brief is like a project road map, but one that changes as you map new territory. For the initial map I try to include helpful information for prototyping like the design criteria and resources available. Some testing can be expensive, so planning ahead is helpful. As much as I like road mapping the expedition, taking time to journey map the results can be helpful. Here, find ways to capture insights, tell stories, and use data.

Data collection, feedback, and interaction. These are critical to successfully evolve the prototype. When getting ready to start the prototyping process, be sure data collection, feedback, and testing mechanisms are all in place. I like to also isolate very specifically what to test and when to test it. Prototype design may feature elements for testing and explore uses, impacts, perceptions, and feelings. Iteration is the key to success. The slow (or rapid) shaping of the idea or design moves the prototype increasingly toward usability. Along the way there should be failures, failures of less than optimal designs. It’s helpful to have an encouraging attitude toward failure, learn from it, yet equally to understand or describe success so you know when to stop when the prototype is good enough for the next step. Perfect can be the enemy of the good, or so thought Voltaire.

Prototyping environments. One last consideration I will offer up for prototyping has to do with the environment and approach one would take.

In the lab. Quite a bit of prototype testing is done under controlled conditions of some kind, a meeting room, in the lab, at a test site, or other “safe” environment. There many advantages to this that include lower risk, better controlled conditions, lower cost, and enhanced freedom to continue to ideate. Along with these come disadvantages as well such as a detachment from real-world conditions, lack of broad user input, and the ability to test unexpected factors. Often, early prototypes move from a safe to live environments later in the design.

Live prototyping. In the live environment, we look for ways to experience and test the prototype in real world conditions. While this may begin with partial control, the goal is to move on to as much reality as possible. Prototyping sessions may focus on one characteristic or feature at a time or full expose the prototype to holistic testing. The benefit of live prototyping is that we can immerse in the organizations and communities that will use the design. Beta testing is nearly synonymous with live prototyping and may be considered a special case where the prototype is put into limited practice with users beyond the design team.

Piloting. Beyond live prototyping, pilot testing is a sustained engagement in the marketplace, community, or organization where the design will finally be implemented. These are only partial implementations and may be done in small markets or parts of an organization at first. Here, we are testing more than the idea itself but looking at more complex interactions, relationships, and how the prototype interacts within the multiple, nested systems in which it is embedded.

Rapid prototyping. A final approach is rapid prototyping, which may transcend environment completely, moving wherever is necessary to move quickly. The goal here is a high degree of iteration by staying lean in the design and moving fast. Each iteration of the prototype includes only the components necessary to be able to test specific features. Here, we move almost ridiculously fast, make a lot of changes, and test and retest often. Designs may include optional alternatives, move back to earlier designs, or pivot completely based on what we learn along the way. To be fair, rapid prototyping deserves a more complete treatment in a later article.