Metacognitive Knowledge Reflection #2

Nicholas Marotta
Sep 6, 2018 · 2 min read

What would you use wireframing and storyboarding for, other than apps and websites?

Wireframing seems like a very appropriate tool for planning anything with a layout and hierarchy. For instance, I remember watching The Founder, a movie about McDonalds which focused mostly on its expansion across the U.S. but featured the original process two brothers used to design the very first McDonalds. They wanted to create the interior most conducive to efficient food assembly and production. Their method was essentially to wireframe a layout with chalk and rulers on a tennis court, have the workers mime as if they were working in that space, assess, and adjust as needed. The wireframe for the layout went through many big changes, and that temporary and simplistic representation allowed for making those fundamental changes quickly. I was very impressed by the method. I would imagine that same method could be used to plan all sorts of environments (even with different goals than efficiency), but also posters and other static elements of communication design. It’s a good way to get a sense of hierarchy and flow before everything else gets added and distracts from big-picture considerations like that. Storyboarding is infinitely useful for planning all kinds of things that involve a narrative. Even chair design could benefit from the preliminary storyboard of someone using the planned chair. If the goal is to have the user sink into the chair and feel bliss, that should be storyboarded. How do they approach the chair? How do they sink into it? What do they do in the chair? It is so helpful to put everything in context of a goal and force the designer to consider many details as they draw them. It’s almost like a test run before you’ve even made anything.

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