Prototype against designer

Recently, in Habre, actively discussing the need for prototypes, I will try to bring my own fly in the ointment to this question.

Some shout - the prototype is evil, others, armed with - be silent. Let's get smarter, move away from disputes and see why we need these same prototypes at all?

Not so long ago, the whole process of creating a website was prosaic and simple. The customer was struck by a great idea and he turned headlong to the designer, saying draw this dream to me. The designer, impressed with the scale of the idea, drew beautiful pictures and the customer quickly accepted the work. After that, the programmer “turned the pictures into code” and so the site was born.
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However, time passed and the golden mountains were not all painted in the pockets of the customer. Huge money was spent on website promotion, but there was no sales and there wasn’t. At this point, our businessman usually dawned on the idea that something was probably wrong with the site.

At this time, on the other side of the problem, people appeared, proudly trembling from the rostrum of specialized conferences about the importance of including the needs of users in the development process. This is how a new profession was born - an interaction designer (there are actually a lot of names, I like this very thing).

Day after day, these brave pioneers carried one simple truth into the world - if we make a website for people, why not ask these very people what they really need?

After a while, a slight rustle turned into a real noise, the pioneers founded well-known companies and now every self-respecting businessman considers it necessary to get a prototype of his idea.

What the hell is a prototype?

Of course, many of you know what a prototype is, represent what it looks like, and even believe that they know how to do it. God is with you, maybe it is.

For those who still do not suspect anything, I will answer with words from Wikipedia:

Prototype - a working model, a prototype device or parts in design, engineering, modeling.

In the context of interface design, this is a full-featured html site model that works through a browser and clearly illustrates the entire interaction principle for different usage scenarios.

Stop! Usage scenarios?

And here we come to the most interesting part of our story. It turns out that the prototype does not just illustrate the appearance of the pages, it also responds to the scenarios in some way.

It so happened that day after day we turn to different sites in search of a solution to a particular problem. Do we need to find the definition of the word, buy a vacuum cleaner or movie tickets - every time we fulfill a certain pattern of behavior and assign expectations. And if the navigation pattern and the site content match our habits - this leads us to achieve the desired, and business owners to convert.

One of the important tasks of the interaction designer is to identify such patterns and expectations among the intended or existing audience of the project.

There may be many of them, then they are grouped according to similar signs, and this is how a character is born that is the archetype of a certain group. The theme of the characters is worthy of a separate publication, so I’ll just say that for one project there can be one or several characters.

The task of the interaction designer is to make such a prototype that would meet the needs of all the characters and especially the key one.

What about business, baby?

Naturally, the work of the designer is not limited to the needs of some characters; there are also business needs that need to be properly understood. It so happened that the wise and strong offline is completely powerless in the world of the web.

I have often seen successful “pot-bellied uncles” in silk costumes bearing nonsense on the topic of a new site. For this reason also stands with caution and to the ready TK.

A self-respecting designer will always necessarily conduct several interviews with representatives of the business, trying to get to the bottom of it, after which he will schedule several more interviews with “working hands”, the very people who daily meet our needs with you - sellers, consultants, managers, etc.

Having on hand a complete picture of what the business needs and what the users need, our working people can finally sit down and conjure the very prototype about which there are so many holivars.

Of course, I omitted part of the design process, it doesn’t matter.

What will be next?

Now that the prototype is ready and meets all the tasks assigned to it, it's time to write a detailed specification and transfer this business to the hands of proud design and programmers.

And then a good designer will show himself a good man and check the work of the first and second, and if necessary, insist on the right decision.

The whole problem is that you still need to find good designers. More and more people, having read one, two books begin to imagine themselves as great masters of business and get to work. From this and leave all the crying and groans. Getting into your hands the result of the work of such a "designer" involuntarily think about why he gave birth to light at all and spit on all of your prototypes.

Should a designer make prototypes?

No, because the prototype — the final visual representation — is the tip of a huge iceberg called interaction design.

Should a designer follow prototypes?

Yes, because the prototype is the result of a large and painstaking work, often of a whole team of people who professionally do their work from day to day.

The last phrase is the most important - go about your business, day by day raising your own skill to a new level.