Pretotyping Methods 101
10 proven methods for testing ideas fast. Each method gives you a different way to validate demand before building.
The Fake Door Method
Test the Initial Level of Interest (ILI) in a yet-to-be-developed product or service by creating artefacts that suggest that the product exists and it's available to see if people would buy it.
The Mechanical Turk Method
Use human skills to simulate your product or service idea and determine if anyone will use it.
The Pinocchio Method
Create a non-operational version of your product and ask your potential market to use their imagination to pretend that it actually works to see if and/or how they would use it.
Example: Palm Pilot
The Façade Method
Test the Initial Level of Interest (ILI) in an existing but not yet broadly available/scalable product or service by creating artefacts that suggest greater availability or scale.
Example: CarsDirect
The Imposter Method
Test new markets, positioning, or features using products that already exist. Take an existing product or service and relabel, repackage, or reposition it to impersonate your new idea, then measure real behavior.
Example: Tesla
The Infiltrator Method
Take advantage of the customer traffic in an existing store (brick and mortar or online) to stick an artefact of your idea on the shelves to see if people would buy it.
Example: Upwell Labs / IKEA
The One Night Stand Method
Offer a pretotype version of your product or service on a very limited time basis to see if there is any interest before making any long-term commitments.
Example: Airbnb
The Provincial Method
Before committing to launch a new product or service formally and publicly on a large scale, test it in a smaller, more private and informal context to see if people are interested in it.
Example: BestBuy
The YouTube Method
Through the 'magic of movies' you can make products that don't yet exist come to life and see how people react to them: Are they intrigued? Interested? Will they sign up to learn more or commit to buying?
Example: Google Glass
The MVP Method
Create a first iteration of your product with the absolute minimum set of features that would make it valuable and useful, at least to early adopters.
Example: Apple iPhone
Ready to start testing ideas?
Learn pretotyping with our free online course or talk to us about training.