4 Common Myths About Prototyping and Product Design

Companies making decisions about investing in prototyping and product design commonly see an increase in sales. This is because the prototype industry can help to improve your products before they hit the shelves to give you the best possible chance at product success. However, there are many myths and misconceptions that can keep business owners from investing in prototyping.

To help clear the air, here are some of the most common myths about prototyping and the real truth behind product design:

1. Myth #1: Prototypes are only a design tool. Prototypes are design tools, but they’re also much more than that. Prototypes are models that provide value to the entire product development team. With prototypes, your business can conduct better brainstorming sessions, get better buy-ins from the stakeholders, and create better final designs.
2. Myth #2: Prototypes are time-consuming and expensive. Time is essential to any organization’s budget of resources. This makes many organizations avoid the prototyping process. Questions arise on why money is spent on a discarded project. The reality is that prototypes protect organizations from losing too much money. When an organization decides to save money by skipping the prototype phase, they risk losing money in poor user engagement, poor sales, and bad reviews.
3. Myth #3: Prototypes are supposed to be lifelike. The only time your prototype ought to look like the final product is when you’re on the final prototype. Prototypes come in all shapes and sizes. You can even order prototypes during the early stages of a project to gauge just how your team might go forward with the project. The different types of prototypes include low fidelity prototypes, which display some properties of a future product, and high fidelity prototypes, which function just like the final product.
4. Myth #4: Prototyping doesn’t require any technical skills. Prototyping is an important part of product design and development, and it’s a good idea to hire a product development team that has technical skills to deliver a prototype that’s accurate. Accurate prototypes give your business an inside look into how your product design can improve before it hits the market.

Prototyping serves an important role in product design and development. Whether you’re investing in low fidelity prototypes, high fidelity prototypes, or both, your business can benefit from seeing your developing products at different stages. For more information on prototyping, engineering design, and product development, contact Core Design today.