When your business creates a new product, it usually goes through a concept and planning phase before a working version is created. This is usually known as the prototyping stage and is vital if you want to create a successful product. If you fail to put time into your prototyping stage, then you could end up investing in a product that was doomed to fail. This results in a huge waste of time, money and effort, and could spell disaster for your business.
So here are a couple of reasons why you should always make use of prototyping before you decide to heavily invest in a new product.
Get the product in your hands before you scale up your production
One of the biggest reasons why you need to prototype is because it leads to a physical representation of your product. With companies like Rapid PSI, you can get the product in your hand to test a variety of things such as the size, the shape, and the comfort of it. Even if it’s not a working prototype and just the shape of the product, it gives you a better understanding of what the product could be.
Modifying features as your design process evolves
It’s also important to realize that the design process is constantly evolving. If you invest in the very first design that you have, then it’s possible that future design changes will be incompatible because you’ve already locked the product into its first iteration. By using rapid prototypes, you can modify features and make changes as you go. This is also a great way to ensure that internal conflicts regarding the features and design of the product are settled before your company reaches a conclusion and decides to mass-produce it.
Testing it thoroughly with real users
The key to making a quality product is actually letting your intended users try it out. This testing process is a great way to get feedback on the item and to see how practical the item is. If you’re only testing the product yourself or internally, then you often get a skewed perspective of what the product is actually like to use for the first time. Make absolutely sure that you test the product thoroughly with real users and you’ll find that it’s much easier to create something outstanding.
Understanding the real cost of mass production
When it comes to shaping the future of your business, you’re likely going to switch from outsourcing your manufacturing to doing it in-house or with your own production line. Scaling up like this is a massive investment and on the surface, it won’t feel like a productive change. The costs of mass production are extremely high and it only makes sense if you have the right audience for it. By using rapid prototypes, you can get a better understanding of how much it’ll cost to mass produce the item which could drastically lower the cost per item, resulting in much higher profits.
Add Comment