Design a product that your target market falls in love with so that you don’t have to convince them over again!
Most people misunderstand that a product design process aims to create something appealing and refreshing. However, this comprises just the tip of the iceberg. The core idea behind a product design and development company is to create a product that will solve the pain points of the target customer.
Designing a new product is a complete step by step procedure which helps you understand some basic concepts before starting your business. A large number of companies that do not dig deeper into the whole design process eventually decline.
The product design and development company’s process comprises some essential steps from the birth of an idea in mind to launch the final product that fulfills customer satisfaction. It defines why you are creating a new product and how you will satisfy the customers’ needs more than your competitors do. A proper and deep understanding of this process can result in the success of the business. In short, there are four steps involved in product design services:
- Product discovery
- Sharing the finding with team
- Brainstorming on solutions
- Prototypes and iterations
In this article, I will uncover four necessary steps of product design to help you understand why you should pay closer attention to the product design process.
Step 1: Product discovery
It’s an essential part of the process which defines the core idea of your product. Before designing the product, you have to understand the problem of your target audience. Finding the right solution to the problems of your target market guarantees the success of your product. Study pain points of your customer, so it will help you to understand their needs and present a solution that is viable in the long run.
You can conduct surveys and interviews with a group of the target audience to study their problem. Do not ask direct queries while interacting with the customers? For example, questions like “Would, you buy the product?” “Would you consume it?” are difficult to answer with a conscious mind. Customers even get scared to answer such type of questions. Focus on asking open-ending queries, and it will allow them to present more pain points which you didn’t even imagine. Realize the fact that there is a considerable difference between what people really want and what people say they want.
Do four to five interviews at a time. If you have gathered enough data from the first round, then evaluate results and questions for the information that still lacks. Do follow-up interviews and dig deeper into specific topics.
Step 2: Team Discussion
After discovering the customer’s problem, and getting to know their pain points, take time to do an initial competitor analysis. It is when you can sum up all the lessons.
In large organizations, this step ranks higher in its importance. It is critical to spread the word about the initial finding and to bring everyone on to the same page. Proper communication on every small step within the communication team is critical while building processes. Each of your product design and development company’s team members must be on the same page while proposing the solution to the market. Share the results with everyone in the team and ask for more options and solutions.
Share your research results in several workshops with your team members and then allow them to come up with the conclusions. Make your team members feel that their ideas matter and they will feel encouraged and will give you the best output.
The same practice is used by teams in large companies and institutions around the world to ensure a single clear goal of the team. The current Google CEO Sundar Pichai says that his ability to make good teamwork is the only thing that helps him to be the CEO of this company.
Step 3: Brainstorming on Solutions
Now, this step may seem the repeat of step 2, but it’s different. In this step, every team member is asked to propose a solution after finding the core problem of the customer. Regular sessions for the discussion about the problem can result in creating a better shape of the product. The more people involved in the discussion, the more exchange of ideas and eventually, the best solution will be discovered.
Discuss everything in the team. From the basic problem solving to final product features make a timeline and have a chat with each and every step. Discuss your competitors and how you will come up with even a better solution. Team discussion is always important to find a variety of solutions and eventually, the best solution.
Step 4: Prototypes and Iterations
After a successful team discussion and discovering the proposed solutions, try to come up with the possible design ideas for each feature of the product.
You can start by creating some quick hand-drawn paper sketches. Often these sketches only need rough text and line drawings. Then you can build sever prototypes for the app. The goal of prototyping is to make something and test it to people from your target audience. You can now do the user tests and then iterate on the prototype. It will help you get some critical feedback, and you will make sure your target audience understands the product. You can test and modify this prototype until it works in the hands of the users, too.
The product design process is a never-ending process. Even if you have already launched a product, you can research again to see whether it is performing optimally in the market or not, and what else is required to ensure optimal performance.