Product design services are the key to optimizing your time and money during product development. The reason that so many companies will outsource this work is that it requires a certain level of expertise in order to work successfully. Knowing the process of product development is not the same as knowing how to do it well. There are nuances to design and development that can’t be understood until you try the methods yourself. Fortunately, product design companies are more than happy to guide you through it in order to help you achieve your goals.
When you utilize an external product designing team, you have to decide what level of involvement you would like to have in the process. Initially, you might consider the culture of your business and the usual work-relationship that is established between partnerships, but you should also consider this in terms of the product requirements. Some projects may require more or less collaboration depending on the role they intend to fill in your industry’s market. You are an expert in your field and product design services are an expert in theirs. The best partnership is the one in which experts are delegated to tasks that match their skill level and knowledge base. It’s the same organization that you would enact internally, with different departments handling different aspects of the business.
There are three basic approaches to working with a product design and development company like Designstein Studios, starting with a hands-off approach and working towards a fully-integrated partnership. These are the most common levels of involvement that we see between businesses and their external design team:
- Light Involvement – A business assigns a project with the basic requirements to a design team and then steps back to let the product development service do their work.
- Medium Involvement – A business assigns a project to a design team with the intention of being an equal partner in key decision-making.
- Heavy Involvement – A business assigns a project to a design team with the intention of having regular observation periods, intense collaborative sessions, and high-level advisory meetings.
Naturally, some product design teams will have their own recommendations for the best working relationship between clients, but the best development services will be flexible according to the needs of the project itself. Once you have agreed upon the best level of involvement with your product design team, you will be able to set expectations for the course of the project. The first steps of development may be slightly different depending on whether you are doing a brand new design or redesigning a past product. Make sure that everyone is on the same page by encouraging consistent communication, even for those who choose a “light involvement” level. Just because you want a hands-off approach, doesn’t mean you want your design and development team to guess what you want. Direct communication is key.
Researching, designing, and prototyping phases might look different according to your chosen involvement. However, the same logistics apply–everything must be done with regard to filling a need in the market. As long as your product is focused on the target audience, it will remain competitive in the market.