Paper prototype or not?
This method is being promoted among designers, and no doubt - many of us have tried it - but is it something tangible for the end users? Or the project stakeholders? Or is it just good for design-development ideation?
Don’t get me wrong. As designers we create products addressing a specific human need, and the process from an idea to final product typically follows the double diamond process with discovery phase, where we gather information concerning the scope of the problem at hand, followed by define phase - where the scope is narrowed down to specific and well formulated problem which our design should offer a solution for. Preferably written in “How might we?” form. Clearly stating our assumption and goal.
Having a clear HMW statement not only helps us stay focused during the next ideation phase, but also gives a clearance on what metrics we should be on the look for to decide whether or not a design candidate is successful and what can be improved.
The moment we all wait for
Here it is - the moment where we can unleash our creativity, and dive into crafting different ideas offering a solution. The more of them, the merrier :)
Normally, the fidelity of these ideas should be a sketch level. Or at least most of the sources I have read recommend so, with a number of good reasons:
One of them being to prevent ourselves from spending time on needless details crafting a design which may not see the bright daylight.
Another being that non-designers presented with high-fidelity prototypes have difficulties focusing on the user journey if happens that there is a colour usage they dislike, or a button label happens to be not phrased perfectly.
Additionally, keep in mind that when people are presented with designs which “have a final” look, they have the tendency to provide less input or share thoughts. They consider the design as finished and take the meeting more as an informative one than an opened discussion with a flexibility for changes.
All of the above points out that a sketch with a wireframe level of fidelity should be sufficient to invite feedback that will assist us during the next design iteration.
And it does. Well.. at least as long as the feedback is from people within the team working on the same project, fellow designers or engineers used to work with such delivery (mostly for early stages of input to touch base on level of complexity for implementation).
The moment of truth
What about your users though? The people you are crafting a solution for? The ones for whom it matters which of the five ideas (just to have a number) you would pick? Do they actually understand a sketch being presented with one?
Or in other words - how good or reliable is the paper prototype testing which presumably is meant to hold the characteristics of a qualitative research and provide us with enough feedback to work with further on?
Well, if you consider paper prototype testing as “fast”, just because you did not spent time polishing designs - I will have to disappoint you (sorry). It is not saving time - it is just relocating time differently.
A regular person has no idea what a “paper prototype” is, or what your goal using these “drawings” is either. They need to be presented to the method, to understand what is expected by them, and you have to go through this process for each person you request feedback from. Add to this, the time to prepare accurate paper prototypes and set the environment, and tell me - why not creating a clickable prototype to avoid confusion for your users and overwhelming them with explanations?
Yes, you will have to make more than one prototype (assuming you are not collecting feedback on one possible solution, but a few), but the accuracy of the input you will receive is times better. Plus, it will let you learn saying “Farewell” to some of the designs you have spent time on making. Is it worthy? Yes. After all we design for people, and the quality of feedback we receive during our work counts. It counts to improve our work.
The take away
In case you want to reduce the time for getting feedback from potential end users, just be fast with your tools of choice - do not compromise on quality ;) And do let me know if happens you have a different view on the topic!
