Avoiding Perfectionism in Invention

Ideas alone hold very little value. It's when you take those ideas and start building upon them as a business that you start seeing tangible results. One of the first signs of a product's potential is when you’ve put together a prototype and you’ve shown it to potential customers, where you’ve received positive feedback. Building a sustainable business is primarily about building products that people want. You begin to understand people’s desires when you start gathering feedback from them regarding how they currently tackle problems and their preferences for solutions to those problems. For these reasons, it's important to have a prototype for them to try and give feedback on. All too often though, product developers and inventors get stuck in a never-ending loop of revising the prototype before gathering feedback. Almost as if they are looking for things to be perfect before showing it to the world. If this is you, STOP NOW. This never-ending quest for perfection is hurting your progress. Here is what you need to know about prototypes.

Remember what a Prototype is for

A prototype is a tool for gathering feedback, whether that be from potential customers, investors, or decision-makers. Usually, there are only a few things about a prototype that need to be working to gather the necessary feedback. Depending on the purpose of the prototype, it should either function properly, look like a finished product, or both. Some aspects are more important than others depending on the product; it is not a requirement to have all of the bells and whistles if it isn’t a necessity, especially when investment dollars are limited. For instance, a prototype for a toy that requires minimal moving parts may be more appropriate when it is made to simulate the finished product’s appearance rather than function. Alternatively, if the product is mechanically complex it may be best to focus on getting the function right, rather than focusing on the aesthetics. Whatever the case, you should focus on the elements that are most crucial for gathering the best quality feedback. Usually these elements coincide with your product’s intended selling points and unique benefits.

Perfect is a Myth

Can anyone honestly stop and say that what they have is perfect? Of course not! There is almost always a better way to do something. That being said, perfection shouldn’t be the goal, the goal should be getting the prototype to a point where you can collect information on how it performs and is viewed by the customer. And if you are inventing for a problem that has a questionable market size, you’ll find out quickly how desirable your product is if you open your doors to early feedback. That being said, it is almost always better to start checking the demand for your product solution earlier rather than later.

Making smart changes, not endless ones

All of what is described here is not to say that revisions aren’t valuable. It's actually quite the opposite. Revisions just need to be driven by collected information, rather than vague assumptions or opinions. For instance, if you are seeking capital from investors and want to make the best impression, which is showing them that your product is viable, it's almost always best to improve the prototype until it looks-like and works-like the finished product. This extra work can help convince people that your product is potentially viable and is a worthy investment. However, if there is no reason for developing a prototype with all the bells and whistles, it's best to do the minimum work necessary to get the prototype to a point where quality feedback can be collected. It would be a shame to work on a prototype continuously and FINALLY get to a point where you are seeking feedback, all to find out that your hard work hasn’t been appreciated. I want you to avoid this tragedy altogether and start making changes intelligently, not just on a hunch or whim.

If all of this makes sense to you and you need help with designing a product or putting together a prototype, please reach out and see how VP Design can help you! Our mission is to help inventors create physical prototypes without breaking the bank.