Mar 05 2024
Turning concepts into reality.
The design phase of product development is where your product concepts become a reality. In this part of the process, you get to finally see your idea come to life. In the design phase, your team pulls together all of your ideas and the information you collected during the research phase and turns it into something tangible; something people can react to.
Some teams can finalize a design in no time at all. But others – especially when the product you are creating is new and innovative – will take time. Product teams will also require feedback from outside sources. In this case, the best feedback will come from your core customers playing the role of product testers. Their knowledge of your brand and familiarity with the product you are creating will ensure that their feedback is both authentic and valuable.
Internal Workshopping
Workshopping your design concepts internally is an opportunity to look at a few different iterations of your future product. At this point, you want to determine if these concepts represent your brand and fit into your product lineup. You also want to make sure that they:
- Fill the need in the marketplace
- Consider trends that you observed
- Meet the standards of the end user
- Represent what your customers really want
All four of those points are important goals to meet. However, the last one is the one that will determine if your product will be truly successful or not. After all, you can meet those other three points, but if your customers won’t accept your new product, it runs a higher risk of failure in the market.
Through workshopping your team can create concepts that can be shared with your core customers through concept testing.
Environmental Responsibility
A lot of attention has been focused on environmental responsibility in product design. This has led to innovations in materials, processes, and manufacturing. These advancements have been adopted to have minimal impact on the planet but could have a large and positive impact on your brand.
Though these concepts will relate more to the product planning phase, being conscious of key topics like sustainability and choosing to use renewable materials can have a positive impact on the success of your new product and your brand as a whole.
Patagonia has been at the forefront of sustainability for some time now. They have made conscious efforts to make sure the materials they use have the lowest impact on the environment. This includes recycling, investing in new and sustainable materials, and where they are sourced. These efforts have also provided opportunities to utilize new, efficient methods for manufacturing goods that include these materials.
Speaking from experience, we understand that these concepts cannot be adopted by a company overnight. But we believe it’s worth considering their benefits. After all, they are an investment in our planet for our future. A brand that recognizes its responsibility to the environment can also be appealing to consumers. Furthermore, adopting practices like this during the design phase will allow you to approach the planning phase from a well-informed standpoint.
Concept Testing
Concept testing is one of the most effective ways of enhancing your product development process. Not only can it keep the project on track to meet your deadlines, but it can help your team distinguish between a product idea and a product idea that your customers will love.
At this stage, it’s more than likely that you won’t have a working prototype to share with your customers. By embracing technology, you can provide them with 3D renderings. These concept renderings can be presented on their own, or in multiples. They can also be changed on the fly as feedback comes in. What once was a task that could affect your overall timeline can now be done online in a few hours through digital product creation.
Your customers are a direct line to your success. Involving them during this critical step of the product development process can benefit you during this project as well as future projects.
Communicate
At MESH01, you can leverage our concept testing platform to communicate directly with your key customers while still in the product development stage. This opportunity allows you to both identify the needs of your product’s design and construction as well as validate your market opportunity. Through tester feedback, you can easily ensure that you’re bringing the right product to the market at the right place and time.
Once you decide on your well-informed final design, you’re ready to take on the planning phase.
For the first half of 2024, we’re going to be releasing informed content related to the Product Development process. We feel that there’s never been a better time than right now to share the tenets of this process, as well as our experience with it and how we’re prepared to help your brand take it on, head-on.
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