Thursday is a bit different from other parts of the sprint. Every prototype is different, so there’s no exact step-by-step process we can share. But after making hundreds of our own prototypes, we’ve come up with four exercises that always set us on the right path:
1. Pick the right tools
2. Divide and conquer
3. Stitch it together
4. Do a trial run
We’ll explain why each exercise is important, and show you how we do each one.
First, we need to talk about your tools—the objects and devices your team uses every day, the software and processes and methods they use to create high-quality experiences for your customers. Here’s the challenge: You probably can’t use them for your prototype.
Sorry. It doesn’t matter whether you work with designers, engineers, architects, marketers, or other creative professionals—or whether you run a store, provide client services, or build physical products. There’s a good chance that your team’s regular tools are not the right tools for prototyping.
The trouble with your team’s regular tools is that they’re too perfect—and too slow. Remember: Your prototype isn’t a real product, it just needs to appear real. You don’t need to worry about supply chains, brand guidelines, or sales training. You don’t need to make every pixel perfect.
The good news is that we were in this same situation not long ago. As designers of software such as apps and websites, we were comfortable with tools like Photoshop and programming languages like HTML and JavaScript. And then we discovered Keynote. Originally intended for making presentation slides, Keynote is a perfect prototyping tool. It has easy-to-use layout tools, so you can quickly make things look pretty nice. It’s organized around “slides,” which are a lot like frames in a storyboard. You can put in text, lines, and shapes; paste in photos and other images; then add clickable hotspots, animation, and other interactivity. You can even drop video and audio into Keynote when necessary.
We know it sounds crazy, but we’re 90 percent sure you should use Keynote to make your prototype. How can we suggest that when we don’t even know what you’re prototyping? Good question. Of course we can’t be completely sure—but in our 100+ sprints, Keynote has only come up short a handful of times.
(And yes, if you’re on Windows, PowerPoint also makes a fine prototyping tool. It’s not quite as nice as Keynote, but a quick web search will yield a number of template libraries you can use to make realistic prototypes in PowerPoint.)
Granted, most of the time, we’re prototyping software products such as apps or websites. For these prototypes, we use Keynote to create the individual screens. Sometimes, we run those slide shows full screen, and that’s good enough. Sometimes, we use specialized prototyping softwareI (yes, there is such a thing!) to string the screens together and load them in a web browser or on a mobile phone.
But it’s not all software. You read on page 176 about Foundation Medicine, a cancer diagnostics company whose product is a paper medical report. We designed their report in Keynote, then printed it out and showed it to oncologists. (Again, this kind of paper prototype actually makes sense.)
For physical products, Keynote will be less useful. You may need to use 3D printing or make modifications to your existing product. But then again, many hardware devices have a software interface. Recall the story of Savioke, where part of our prototype involved attaching an iPad to their robot. And what, you may ask, was on that iPad? Keynote. The hits continue.
Plus, for many physical-product sprints, you may not need to prototype the product at all. One of our favorite shortcuts is the Brochure Façade: Instead of prototyping the device, prototype the website, video, brochure, or slide deck that will be used to sell the device. After all, many purchase decisions are made (or at least heavily informed) online or in a sales call. This marketing material will give you a great start on understanding how customers will react to the promise of your product—which features are important, whether the price is right, and so on. And guess what: Keynote is the perfect tool for prototyping that kind of marketing.
We’ll admit we’re not experts on how to prototype everything. And Keynote is not always the perfect tool, especially if you’re working on industrial products or in-person services such as One Medical’s family clinic. But we have picked up some shortcuts over the years. Here’s a quick guide you can use to pick the right tools.
If you’re not sure how to build your prototype, start here:
• If it’s on a screen (website, app, software, etc.)—use Keynote, PowerPoint, or a website-building tool like Squarespace.
• If it’s on paper (report, brochure, flyer, etc.)—use Keynote, PowerPoint, or word processing software like Microsoft Word.
• If it’s a service (customer support, client service, medical care, etc.)—write a script and use your sprint team as actors.
• If it’s a physical space (store, office lobby, etc.)—modify an existing space.
• If it’s an object (physical product, machinery, etc.)—modify an existing object, 3D print a prototype, or prototype the marketing using Keynote or PowerPoint and photos or renderings of the object.
Building a prototype in one day sounds daunting, but when you put together a diverse sprint team you’ll have all the right expertise in the room. Chances are, a few people in your sprint will do most of the work, but we’ve found time and again that there’s a role for everyone. Once you’ve selected your tools, it’ll be time to assign some jobs.
The Facilitator should help the sprint team divvy up these jobs:
• Makers (2 or more)
• Stitcher (1)
• Writer (1)
• Asset Collector (1 or more)
• Interviewer (1)
Makers create the individual components (screens, pages, pieces, and so on) of your prototype. These are typically designers or engineers, but they could include anyone on your sprint team who likes to feel the force of creation flow through his or her fingers.
You’ll want at least two Makers on Thursday. We’ve told you some wild stories about robots and medical reports and videos, but just remember—the people on your team probably already have the skills to make prototypes for your business.
The Stitcher is responsible for collecting components from the Makers and combining them in a seamless fashion. This person is usually a designer or engineer, but can be almost anyone, depending on the format of your prototype. The best Stitcher is detail-oriented. He or she will probably give everyone some style guides to follow in the morning, then start stitching after lunch as the Makers complete their components.
Every sprint team needs a Writer, and it’s one of the most important roles. In Chapter 9 on page 103, we talked about the importance of words in your sketches. And earlier in this chapter we told you that your prototype must appear real. It’s impossible to make a realistic prototype with unrealistic text.
A dedicated Writer becomes extra important if you work in a scientific, technical, or other specialized industry. Think back to Foundation Medicine’s prototype of a cancer genomics report: It would have been tough for just anyone to write medically realistic text, so we relied on a product manager with domain expertise to act as Writer during the sprint.
You’ll want at least one Asset Collector on Thursday. It’s not a glamorous role (although “asset collector” does sound glamorous), but it’s one of the keys to rapid prototyping. Your prototype will likely include photos, icons, or sample content that you don’t need to make from scratch. Your Asset Collectors will scour the web, image libraries, your own products, and any other conceivable place to find these elements. This speeds up the work of your Makers, who don’t have to pause and go collect every bit and piece they need for the prototype.
Finally, there’s the Interviewer, who will use the finished prototype to conduct Friday’s customer interviews. On Thursday, he should write an interview script. (We’ll go into detail about the structure of this script in Chapter 16 on page 201.) It’s best if the Interviewer doesn’t work on the prototype. This way, he won’t be emotionally invested in Friday’s test, and won’t betray any hurt feelings or glee to the customer.
After assigning roles, you should also divide up the storyboard. Let’s say your storyboard calls for a customer to see an ad, visit your website, and download your app. You can assign one Maker to create the ad, one to mock up the fake website, and a third to handle the app download screens.
Don’t forget the opening scene—the realistic moment that happens before the central experience begins. Be sure to assign a Maker and a Writer to your opening scene, just as with every other part of the prototype. For Blue Bottle Coffee, the opening scene was an article in the New York Times, and we needed someone to write a plausible article. (We’re not up for any Pulitzers, but faking one short article isn’t so hard.)
It’s important to give your opening scene enough time to be credible and set the stage. Don’t spend half your day working on it, but do make it believable.
As individual sections of the prototype near completion, the Stitcher moves in. It’s the Stitcher’s job to make the prototype consistent from beginning to end—and ensure that every step is as realistic as possible.
In FitStar’s sprint, John was the Stitcher. To ensure consistency, he pasted everyone’s Keynote slides into the same file, and then tweaked the fonts and colors so that the slides appeared to be one seamless app. To turn up the realism, he added detail to the sign-up screen, adding a slide with a screenshot of the iPad’s on-screen keyboard, to make it look as though the user was really typing.
Your Stitcher will make sure dates, times, names, and other fake content are consistent throughout the prototype. Don’t mention Jane Smith in one place and Jane Smoot in the other. Look for typos and fix any obvious errors. Small mistakes can remind customers that they are looking at a fake product.
The Stitcher’s job can take many forms, but no matter what you’re prototyping, it’s a critical role. When you divide work, it’s easy to lose track of the whole. The Stitcher will be on the hook to keep everything tight. He may want to check on progress throughout the day, to see if the various parts of the prototype look coherent. And at the end, the Stitcher shouldn’t hesitate to ask the rest of the team to help out if more work is needed.
We like to do our trial run around 3 p.m., so that we still have enough time to fix mistakes and patch any holes we find in the prototype. Have everyone pause work and gather around, and then ask the Stitcher to walk through the entire prototype, narrating as he goes.
As you go, you should double-check against the storyboard to make sure everything made it into the prototype. The trial run is also a great time to revisit your sprint questions. It’s one last check to make sure your prototype will help you get answers.
The primary audience for the trial run is the Interviewer, who will be talking with customers on Friday. The Interviewer needs to be familiar with the prototype and the sprint questions so he can get the most out of the interviews. (We’ll explain how to run these interviews in the next chapter.) But the whole team will benefit from watching the trial run. If the Decider isn’t a full-time participant in the sprint, now is another good time for a cameo appearance. The Decider can make sure everything matches what she was expecting.
• • •
In our normal work routines, there are few days where we begin with a big task, follow a precise plan of action, and end the day finished. Thursday is that kind of day, and it’s pretty darn satisfying. When you’re finished with your prototype, don’t be surprised if you start to wonder when you can do it again.
I. Software changes fast, so check out thesprintbook.com for links to the latest and greatest prototyping tools.