Process of new product design

Recently I was doing a new product design, a whim, summed up my usual process routines.

☆ Preliminary Research

First of all, I have to have a direction, this product the most important scene is what the audience, what to solve problems, and what to solve the idea. Then we will know whether the product is interesting enough to stir up my enthusiasm and whether my genes have the confidence to put it next.

Next research competition, search the App Store for product type keywords, each keyword to see 30-50 app, interested to download down. The same type of well done products, most of the Search list page can enter TOP50.

When the first survey of the major categories of travel, probably under the near hundreds products. This time a little less, 20 or so, quickly run through, one evaluation and murmuring. If the competition is very strong, also need manual statistics content Update volume and interaction number, also see the App Store's ranking curve change.

Product evaluation does not have any template, mainly to see where it can impress you, do poor place a smile, do a good smack raspberry, comment, even open an Excel record down. Special attention is paid to the evaluation:

1, important functions or features of the scene and competitiveness

2. The quality and style of PGC and UGC (including interactive parts)

Novice here often make mistakes, only compared to have a certain function, lack of the actual effect of the experience; only look at the content update quantity, do not pay attention to content browsing feeling. That must be maiduhuanzhu.

In addition to looking at the product itself, for important competing products also have to Google, look at the team gene, from a variety of interview reports to dig some background information. Because I have social intolerance, from the network of gossip about this link is omitted.

This 20 of the competition, from the search to read, but also large half-day time, are not very complex lightweight products. After a few days of reading, the product framework and operational framework have a basic shape in the head.

☆ Start Design

My own design tool is axure, our product younger brother recommend another online design tool called "Ink Knife", also very good, very suitable for prototype display (especially on the mobile phone show).

I have three habits of drawing prototypes.

1, do not do any dynamic effect. Small team running-in skillfully, spread out the prototype, a page face-to-face, the participants are professionals, there is no dynamic effect does not affect understanding. A prototype went through several 10 revisions, add dynamic effect too waste time, as far as possible to the need for dynamic part of the tile in the axure of a page, page-level relationship and naming must be rigorous and clear, product copy with the official version of repeated, rather than just write a few words first fill in later to change, for internal communication, These are more important than action.

2, most of the interactive design, I have to find a sample, it in a certain application of what looks like, feel how to feel. Every time you draw a prototype, for each page details, the head first has a concept, I want how the layout, how to feel, and then by memory to the mobile phone (under the 300 application) east turn west turn, to find similar design points. If the scene is similar, I preset the feeling and the actual feel can catch up, and then think about how to transplant. On the one hand to take hundreds of the long, of course, you say is plagiarism I also do not care, on the other hand is not deep enough, must be in the real scene "seeing for real" only to eat, just look at the prototype, can not restore the brain repair site.

However, the mobile phone can not find samples of the situation, there must be. At this time very painful, eyebrows knot eyes slanting mouth crooked, keep talking to himself, "too disgusting, too disgusting." There is no way, can only hard to suppress a set of precedent-free interaction. Cicada travels on the PC side of the travel notes typesetting, mobile end of the Travel Notes editor, the cicada introduction of the author platform and Raiders Browse, all suppress Lao Tze complexion is hideous. It is not so much an interactive idea, it is a puzzle to understand the scene, the use of the scene to be particularly thorough, and then in accordance with the common interactive specification to layout the page and function.

3, the Cicada swims the product frame and (content) operation framework All by me, the biggest benefit is, I to the content demand understanding thorough, the product and the operation coupling degree is high, but also has the expansibility. I often before drawing a prototype to take the (content) operational framework, such as this new product, pinch point is counted, feel the difficulty is not the interaction, the first to collate content type, level two level three label, nearly hundreds of tags one by one analysis and research. After two weeks on and off, I thought the operational framework was clear, and this was the only prototype. If the product manager and Operation Manager separation, this will be very difficult to do, most products are services in the operation of the tool, Operation plan first, the finer the better, the product design is easy to cooperate in place.

When the operational framework is ready, I will draw the prototype very quickly, 10 pages within the day, the complex large function module only half day. The Cicada travels the app to use 2 days time out the first edition design, the PC end is also 2 days, H5 version 1 days. So see the big company PM together to do a project ... Scratching his head and smiling.

☆ Product Discussion and PRD

After the prototype was finished, I was so excited that I had to give advice everywhere. Of course, if I have enough trust in the Cicada squad. A pull 5678 people, rushes point, certainly can find out the problem, and then I go to change, and then group discussion. Several times, the prototype is finalized and handed over to the UI designer for illustration.

Because the product team is small enough (pm2/research and Development 3/UI1), the seat is close, PRD is also quite humble ... In fact, there is no PRD. Page effects I dictate to the client engineer that a simple algorithm also dictates, such as a page sort rule. If it's a function-point collation, or a complex algorithm for a backend engineer, write a single task on the tower.im. Engineers do not look at the prototype, the tower task to see the UI manuscript, do not know where to roar, I immediately fart run over the past to explain.

So my PRD is mainly tower a long row of tasks, grouped by product module. At this time you will probably ask, no PRD, product testing and handover can do ah. Enemies！ I also have a thin to outrageous mindjet test case, which records every page, every function, every effect of the test item. When bringing new products to the Mindjet document, it's good to go through the details. It's a particularly disgusting thing to update this use case every time you send a new version, but you have to do it, stretched.

I can think of so much experience.