How to Build Fast and Test Proof of Concept Effectively
Got a promising business idea or a concept for a new feature in an existing product but uncertain about investing your money? The key to making confident decisions lies in swiftly validating your ideas.
In this article, I’ll guide you through the process of transforming your concepts into tangible prototypes using Powerpoint or Keynote, making it accessible to anyone with basic presentation software skills. Moreover, for those familiar with Figma, you can take it a step further by creating an interactive prototype and conducting tests on platforms like maze.co or useberry.com.
My goal is to eliminate barriers for individuals at every skill level, empowering you to bring your ideas to life and validate them effectively before committing additional resources based solely on assumptions.
Articulate your ideas, define objectives, and specify your intended user base
This journey begins with a clear understanding of your ideas and objectives. Who are you aiming to help, and what issues do you want to solve? It’s crucial to figure out your target audience, setting the stage for effective validation.
Take a cue from startup guru Steve Blank to kickstart your innovation journey by really getting to know your ideas and goals. Blank’s advice is clear: put your focus on customers rather than guessing their problems. Have a friendly chat with potential users, keenly listening to what they need. If you prefer online research, keep it concise by asking only the crucial questions that validate your objectives and ideas. Now, when it comes to creating user profiles, go beyond the basics. Dive into what motivates and challenges your typical users.
After analysing the gathered data, it’s time to spot common patterns and themes. Look for shared characteristics, challenges, and goals among your target audience. Group together similar data points to create clear categories, laying the groundwork for your personas. Using these identified patterns, establish different categories for your personas, each representing a unique set of traits relevant to your product or service. These categories will be the starting point for building detailed and authentic personas. With a clear understanding of your target audience, it’s time to construct your proof of concept!
Building first proof of concept or POC with Keynote or PowerPoint Slide Presentation
Building a simple and interactive prototype of your website or mobile app using Keynote or PowerPoint doesn’t require advanced UI/UX design skills — it’s about effectively conveying your findings from research. Begin by organising your content in a logical flow, translating insights from user research into actionable design elements. Use the slide layout features to represent different screens or pages, ensuring a seamless user journey. Leverage basic shapes, icons, and text to mimic key features and interactions. You could also incorporate clickable elements to simulate user engagement, allowing your test target audience to envision the functionality.
Remember, the goal is not pixel-perfect design but a visual representation that effectively communicates your concept. By keeping it simple and focused on presenting your idea accurately, you can create an impactful prototype that resonates with your audience.
Before Ailuna figured out the best way to involve their B2B customers in sustainable practices, we tried out different ideas using simple prototypes. We crafted these concepts in Figma, converted them into PDFs, and shared them with our clients. After a few weeks of use, we conducted a survey to pinpoint the most successful idea and collect insights for enhancements. It was only after this trial phase that we assigned resources and integrated the chosen concept into the Ailuna app.
An additional advantage was that we didn’t need to allocate extra development resources to refine the app feature after its initial release. This was possible because the testing with PDFs provided valuable insights upfront, allowing us to make informed decisions and streamline the implementation process.
Here’s an example of one of the PDF ideas we successfully tested with our clients — a sustainability program rooted in the Objective Key Results (OKR) principle, a concept commonly employed in business but tailored specifically for tracking sustainability objectives, termed as ‘Sustainability Objective Key Results’ (SOKR).
Taking a step further with a Figma rapid prototyping
To wrap up our journey, let’s discuss Figma’s role in bringing your design vision to life. If you’re familiar with Figma, you have a versatile tool at your disposal. It goes beyond just visualising; it lets you turn your app or website idea into an interactive prototype. The real beauty unfolds when you test it with your audience aligned with the personas you’ve carefully created. Take the link to your prototype to a local coffee shop or share it with users in social media groups. Or take it a step further and invest in more advanced user testing services offered by platforms like maze.co or useberry.com.
In my opinion, Figma is a powerful tool that helps turn ideas into reality by letting you test and improve them before investing more. But remember, using Keynote or PowerPoint for prototypes is also a quick way to check your ideas and gain confidence to invest further sooner.
