For investors, there are a plethora of options to select the best startup ideas. On a daily basis, their inboxes are filled with innovative startups pitches. But do you know what makes them impressed to invest in particular business ideas?
The answer is a prototype of an app idea!
There is a high possibility that your pitch will get accepted if you have provided a prototype of your app. Not only new startups but any enterprise or SMB should also head for prototype version before launching their final business app.
In this article, we are going to shed a light on App prototyping and why it is imperative to build one before finally releasing your app in the market.
Without further ado, let’s find out the importance of prototype.
What is Prototyping?
Most apps go from many iterations and tweaks during the whole mobile app development cycle. If the process is not properly planned and the workflow keeps changing during the development work, the timeline for building an app keeps dragging and ultimately costs more to the person or organization who wants to build that app.
Prototyping comes as an easy solution in these scenarios. The concept is closely identical to the Minimum viable product but the difference is that the prototype doesn’t function as a real app.
It only allows the opportunity to get the overall impression through clicks and navigation from screen to screen. There are multiple UI/UX tools for prototyping that makes the prototyping work seamless and workable. Companies like Twitter, Paypal, Netflix, Uber, and more rely on Prototype testing tools like JustinMind, Invision, Origami studio, Flinto, etc.
How Prototype Can Save Your App’s Future?
User Feedbacks
At the end of the development process, it is the end-users who are going to use your app. And if your idea falls flat among them or they don’t like the UI/UX and functionality of your app, they would uninstall your app without having a second thought.
But, with the prototype, you get a valuable insight into what your users liked or not liked. You can change, redesign, and improve your app as per the reviews of your target audience. That way you will save a lot of your valuable time and most importantly your money.
Promote Brand at Early Stages
Since you are going to release your app in the near future, it is in the best practice to put a word out there in the market about your app.
Prototype allows your brand to be known among the users before its final release. This way you will have your audience base ready once you have completed the development of your fully-featured mobile app. And you will get much-needed traction at the early stage of your app business; which is really imperative for your app to be successful.
Bug Prevention
There are many reasons for app failure. And failing to find the bugs at the development stage is one of them. The app that runs on one platform doesn’t mean it will work on the other platforms perfectly. So, developing a prototype for various devices facilitates developers to find bugs at the early stages.
Save Money
As I have said earlier, users would not use the app again if they find any intricacies in the UX. if you are planning for a successful app in the future, then prototyping at this stage will help you find out any malfunction in the app and avoid any bad result.
If your users don’t like the prototype then you won’t regret it. You can change the features and functionalities as per their reviews and save a considerable amount of money by taking precautions in the final product.
What to Keep In Mind While Creating a Prototype?
There are certain components and elements that should be kept in mind while developing a prototype.
When you start prototyping for your app, you better start from the menu and its appearance. You must Include the informational structure of your app menu. Also, you should decide on which features your menu will have and which you will add in other screens. Make sure your app has the best user experience. It is one of the vital factors you should consider if you want your app to perform extraordinary.
Apart from UX, one component you can’t overlook while developing a prototype is a color combination of your app. Make sure your app’s color resonates with your brand’s identity and conveys a strong message about your brand. Same applies to the logo. Craft your logo so beautifully that anyone who sees it the first time remembers it forever.
Mistakes To Avoid
Mistakes are bound to happen in any development process, but what’s more important is to acknowledge it and fix them.
Don’t give too much attention to the designing process. Yes! As contradictory as it may sound, but at an early stage of design prototyping, you should work on the most important matters. You can always complete the details when all the rest is completed. Your app design must be flexible to any changes so don’t finalize any design at these changes.
Conclusion
Every successful app passes through carefully planned development stages. Prototyping is one of them. It is advisable for startups and enterprises to build a prototype version of the app to make sure their idea is viable in the market. Once your idea gets the validation, you can start the development procedure and initiate the testing by deciding the testing strategy for your mobile app.
