Traditionally, webs developers didn't have as many tools as they do now. Working with illustrator and Photoshop was an arduous process. However, web designing has become much more methodical nowadays. Making the best user experience requires a well-planned research process. Therefore, designers spend their time making a prototype, which provides a rough idea before they can create the final project.
The Prototyping Process
1. User Research
Every customer-oriented website understands its audience. With a little research, you can find valuable information about the users you can utilize to enhance the design and increase conversions. You don't require every little detail about your audience. You just need to know:
- Who is your audience (such as their gender, location, and interest, etc.)
- Why they are visiting your website.
With this knowledge, you can make suitable efforts and provide a better user experience. You can find such information from analytical tools such as Google Analytics.
2. Top Task Analysis
When prototyping, use your research and create a list of top tasks related to that section or page. Organizing tasks keeps your focused on important users. For instance, your user might purchase a product, gather information, view content, or download a PDF. Considering small tasks such as downloading and sharing the page also requires your attention. You can improve your user interface and create a logical sequence for the navigation after organizing these tasks according to your customers' needs.
3. Create the Prototypes
After understanding your users and what actions they will perform on your website, you should start creating a prototype:
You can also refer to this technique as scamping. This step only requires scribbling the ideas on the paper. You may not get the best ideas first, but you will come up with incredible ideas by giving more thought.
Wireframes help the designer place the layout and functions pages together. These are the basic boxes that are useful for UX designers. The designer can divide the sections into small groups and generate early feedback from users and clients. They can test ideas on a smaller scale and identify problems at an early stage.
These are advanced versions of the wireframe process. These prototypes are similar to the final project. You can make an interactive prototype without any broad experience in developing a website. You can use various tools to create this type of prototype.
4. User Testing
After creating multiple prototypes, you can test them on your users and discover the design's potential problems. You should test your prototype on actual users for a better outcome of the testing process. When your users share feedback on = prototypes, you can identify flaws and make improvements.
5. Iteration
If you find success with the prototype, you can implement that on the final project. However, when you identify any problems, you can repeat the process with the second step. Once you complete the modification process, test the prototype. It is okay to repeat the process multiple times as you are gradually improving the design. It’s impossible to design a perfect website at the first try. Rather, your end target is to get higher conversions and greater user satisfaction.
Conclusion
Skipping a prototype process while developing will decrease your website's conversion rates.You will encounter various problems after releasing the product. So it is important to create and test your prototype to enhance the user experience and conversions.
