The thought of creating a new product can be exciting, but there is a lot that goes into designing, developing, and manufacturing new products. Thousands of product prototypes fail every year, and if you want to avoid the same fate, here are three tips to help you avoid product design mistakes.

THREE Tips for Avoiding Common Product design mistakes

1. Narrow down your goal. First, you need to narrow down your goal. Many people have a hard time separating the product’s design from its functionality. A good-looking product may create sales in the beginning, but a well-functioning product is what will keep customers coming back.
2. Understand your market trends and customer. Next, many people make the mistake of designing something that they want instead of looking at the market trends and their customers’ responses. If you listen to your audience, they will tell you what kind of products they desire. If you neglect to listen to them, you can create a wonderful product, but it may not ever leave the shelf.
3. Learn from other people’s mistakes. Finally, you do not have to make a mistake yourself to learn from it. Whether you are trying to decide on the best material for a product or you are addressing a functionality problem, there is a good chance someone else has encountered a similar issue as you. It is okay for you to take a look at their solution and try it for yourself.

When it comes to developing a product, mistakes are inevitable, but it’s not all about avoiding mistakes, it’s about knowing how to fix them early in the process before they become a larger problem. When thinking about your product design, it’s important to narrow down your goal, understand your market trends and your customer, and learn from other people’s mistakes. If you’re ready to turn a design idea into a product, you can contact Alfred Manufacturing and our team of experts can help you.