Turning the seed of an idea into a fully-fledged consumer-ready product is a daunting task. Think of all the potential gems lost to the inexperience of novice product designers. The last thing you want is to end up the same way.
A worrisome statistic is that 70-90% of new products fail. Those are the ones that managed to make it to completion!
Staying on the path that gives you a successful finished product can be difficult. They might not be the cure to all of the potential hurdles, but these product design tips could help make the difference. One of them is especially useful if you will be making prototypes!
- Set Realistic Expectations
Too many ideas for a product get sentenced to early death in the very beginning stages. That early killer is overdevelopment of the idea, adding unnecessary features and complications.
If you’re wondering how to design a product most efficiently, there’s one thing to remember: Keep things simple to start with.
Your product doesn’t need to cure all of life’s ailments, it just needs to have a clear sense of identity. No need to spread yourself or your product too thin, stay focused on the original idea.
- Do Extensive Planning
Designing a product is an endeavor that can face some serious financial issues.
Consider the costs of the product you’ll be making. Think about where you’re going to source all of the materials and production power. Even the smallest of missed details here can derail the budget.
By the time you are ready to consider prototyping the idea, you should have an exact idea of what the development timeline will look like.
- Know Your Market Inside and Out
Make sure that you have thought long and hard about the identity of your product. What purpose does it fulfill, and what is the target market?
This has much of the same sentiment as not overstuffing the product with features. It should do whatever it is designed to do, and it should do it well.
By deeply familiarising yourself with your intended market, you’ll better understand exactly what that purpose is. You might even glean some insights on how to improve the product.
- Prototyping for Product Designers
For many products, prototyping will be close to the final stages of the product development lifecycle. Inversely, it’s also the stage that may require the biggest changes.
Sometimes a product just isn’t working the way you thought it would. Instead of running the expense of creating prototype after prototype, there’s a better way.
Look at this rapid prototyping guide here. It will show you all you need to know about prototyping in a faster, cost-effective manner.
Stay Up to Date with Technology
Perhaps the simplest of all the tips, and also the easiest to follow, is to stay up to date with technological developments.
Technology ever advances, and you never know when some game-changing news will break. News that might transform how product designers operate. Keep at the forefront by continuing to read the Technology section of our blog!