How To Go from an App Idea to a Prototype
You have an app idea and you want to start developing it, but where do you start? You need to start fully understanding what your application is about, what it’s expected to do, who its users will be, how potential customers will interact with it, and much more. To figure it all out, we dive deep into a customer’s ideas and possible solutions to create the best possible prototype of the future app. Discover how we get from an app idea to a prototype.
- Explore Customer Thinking
One of the most important steps is to take the time to understand what kind of app and purpose a customer has so that we can implement necessary features and keep the details out of it until there is a concept on the table.
- Competitor Research
Looking out for apps with a similar purpose or who incorporate similar features allows us to find a direction for the app.
- Draft Wireframes
Next, we start building. We draft wireframes and formulate requirements for each of the key features to have an idea of what steps users will have to go through to perform their goals.
- Design Flows
Mockups come into play next. We design each possible screen into flows and add arrows or comments to understand what each functionality or next screen will be.
- Incorporate Error Pages
At times, users may open false pages or perform an error and when this happens, an error or 404 page/pop-up should allow the user to know of the issue. These are also incorporated into the wireframes.
- Test the App and Fine-Tune
If there’s one crucial test before demonstrating a mockup or publishing an app, it’s to test all aspects to fix any kinks and perform any adjustments needed.
- Conduct Demo
The last step, perhaps the most exciting, is to combine all screens worked on to demonstrate to the customer how the app will work. It’s likely after this step customers will require modifications and change their minds on certain aspects. This is when we return to step 6 then perform another demo and cycle through these steps until everyone is proud of the creation.