Concept development

A concept is a stage at an early stage of product development, at which meanings take shape to convey the main idea. This stage is also an important starting point and synchronization of the team on the principles of scaling the product and its design

When the team is faced with the task of laying down a design concept that should not only meet the requirements of the IT industry, but also reflect all the meanings that are under the hood of the product, as well as have a margin of safety for further growth, it is easy to get lost in the relationship between the business and the user — and it is difficult to find something to push off from in order to find the points of contact between the different layers of the product.

We have described the main steps in creating a design concept — they will serve as a support for the designer and the team in the conditions of uncertainty at an early stage.

The concept development stage will help the team

- Lay down the principles of scaling the product from version to version in order to avoid rough redesign and errors in the architecture.

- Collect all the meanings into a single picture and emphasize the key values and advantages of the product with the help of UX/UI design.

- Compare product expectations and agree within the team, including with investors.

The process of creating a concept is like putting together a puzzle, where you have to look for the missing elements by researching the behavior and needs of the user and the market. There is no picture on the box with this puzzle, it appears gradually, but the team needs to understand when the picture has formed, and when there are not enough elements in it.

Formulate design principles

In order for the concept to require less explanation (including for the user) and make the product even more valuable, stand out from competitors, formulate the qualities that it should correspond to. In most cases, this is supported by the mission and values of the product. To simplify their broadcast to users, you can use three favorite questions: Why? How? What?

For example, you are developing a home delivery service. The service promises its customers to deliver fresh products, saving time on trips to the store. But from the point of view of the process, you cannot ensure the choice of products by the customer himself, which in turn acts as a digital barrier for him. What kind of tomatoes will they put in me? With what expiration date will yogurt be delivered? — Accordingly, it is possible to form a design principle of “transparency” of the service, according to which the content and functionality should strive to imitate the usual customer experience in choosing products.

Design principles complement each other, forming a concept, a system of meanings. Try to start with a business model — what sells, who uses it and what is the difference from the existing solution (technology), so you will understand the whales on which the product stands. Next, try to form principles that will help close the barriers and problems associated with the solution and the industry. The last step is to find the relationship between the principles and the whales, so that a concept is formed and synergy appears.

Try to exceed expectations

When we face a task, in most cases we have already formed expectations for its solution. If your solution is simpler or better than these expectations, it is of additional value to the user.

Imagine a customer who opened the refrigerator and realized that he needed to buy groceries home. Based on his experience, the client presents standard steps for himself — What to buy? How much? Where? How much money is needed? How long will it take?

If you fantasize, what could be the ideal solution that would save time on buying products? For example, we open the refrigerator, and there are already all the necessary products, you can refuse some, but the bottom line is that you do not have to collect the basket or search again.

Ask yourself the question “How?” as often as possible, it will help you identify the key advantages of the product that you should focus on.

Use the data and personalize

Let’s assume that the idea of a refrigerator is possible — then how can the online environment help us to design the perfect solution?

Comparing the steps that the client takes online and offline, the advantage of online is visible — the business can track the receipt, understand what exactly the client prefers, what his favorite products are, how often he buys them. Offline, there are fewer opportunities to personalize the offer for the client due to a lack of data and tools for collecting them.

Online allows us to get to know the user better, and therefore helps to bring the solution closer to the ideal one — by making the product more personalized, we will generate additional value by simplifying interaction with the product.

Based on the customer’s receipt, we can focus on products from his diet, as well as sort them based on data on the frequency of their purchase. Thus, we can exceed the client’s expectations by making the first screen as useful as possible — when entering the application, the client will see familiar products sorted in order from the most necessary, for example, toilet paper and dishwashing detergent, which they often forget to buy, to rare ones.

Requirements for the UX/UI concept

Composition

In order for the UX/UI concept to become a guideline, it should not raise questions related to the architecture and mood of the product, therefore, as a concept, you can prepare a High-Level Wireframe of the main scenario and use the example of the main screens to show the interface as close as possible to how users will see it. This way you will lay a springboard for further scaling of the product. If you know the product development plan, then the concept stage is great for thinking about how the architecture will expand as functionality increases.

Realizability

In order for the UX/UI concept not to become just another amazing shot on Dribbble, it is important to test it on real users and start connecting a technical lead to verify their ideas for implementation already at early stages (almost on “napkins”). If there are no technologies in the world yet that allow you to implement your plans, then this can serve as a definition of vision — if there is technology, but the development says that it is long and difficult — do not rush to abandon the idea, most likely it will be possible to implement it later. It’s the same with testing — once people didn’t understand how to use a phone without buttons, and now the iPhone doesn’t even have a Home button.

Uniqueness

The concept stage implies that you allocate extra time and money for the sake of a “unique” product that will not only earn more, but also save time and money in the future. This means that you do not need to copy your competitors and connect people who have not been engaged in product launches before to solve the problem. Do not immediately rush to draw patterns in Figma without confirmed insights and preparatory work — the same principles and values. Look for, come up with and test ideas, take time for preparatory work.

An example from the life of the Mercedes Vision AVR concept

Useful materials

Several articles on Medium can be found about the importance and complexity of the stage, among the authors of which are Julie Zhuo, ex. Product Design VP at Facebook and Fabricio Teixeira, founder of UX Collective. In search of relevant information, you come across the concept of Conceptual Model, which is closely related to the terms Generalization and Mental Model. The term was proposed in a field close to UX — engineering psychology by the English psychologist A. T. Welford in 1961 .