Prototyping from A to Z: best practices for successful prototypes

Gather all your notes. It could be notes from clients, collaborators, or even a random sticky note you once taped to your fridge. Gather as much intel as possible on plans and expectations for your prototype before starting.

Start sketching out the stages of your prototype. What’s the first thing you want your users to see? Start sketching out ideas as you map out the user journey.

Polish your draft. Even if you get it just right in the first try, you’ll still benefit from having a clear blueprint, which will boost both your confidence and your motivation.

Fidelity refers to how close a prototype will be to the real deal. If you’re simply preparing a quick visual aid for a presentation, a low-fidelity prototype — like a wireframe with placeholder images and some basic text — would be more than enough. But if you’re going for more intricate usability testing, a high-fidelity prototype — with on-brand colors, fonts and imagery — could help get more pointed results.

To create an intuitive user flow, try to think as your user would when interacting with your product. While you can fine-tune this during beta testing, considering your user’s needs and habits early on will save you time by setting you on the right path.

A nice way to both organize your tasks and create more user-friendly prototypes is by building your prototypes ‘inside out’. Start by focusing on what will be important to your user, like a Buy now button or an image gallery, and list each element by order of priority. This way, you’ll be able to create a prototype that puts your users’ needs at the heart of your design.

Being able to test a design before production is one of the biggest benefits of prototyping. But to truly get the most out of your usability tests, it’s important to be clear on what you want to achieve. Before sharing running tests on your prototype, ask yourself the following questions:

• What is the test’s objective?
• What will the beta tester need to complete this objective?
• How much context should you give the beta tester?