A Scientific Method for Impactful UX Prototyping
And why ‘rapid prototyping’ isn’t enough to critically impact product design
Published in
9 min readAug 27, 2019
UX prototypes can be powerful tools to explore new design concepts, challenge preconceptions, validate assumptions, and bring designs to life. Their ultimate purpose is to facilitate learnings that help effect a better product. In my experience, prototypes that have had a critical impact on a product’s design were those that:
- Were conceived to address specific questions that were fundamental to the success of the design.
- Were executed quickly and early in the design process.
- And, provided clear direction on what to do next.
Why rapid prototyping isn’t enough
Over the past decade, the terms “rapid prototyping” and “iterative prototyping” have become synonymous in the UX and product design communities as a way of refining a design through prototyping. They both articulate a three-step flywheel composed of the following:
