Pretotyping is a method of validating a new product idea by creating extremely simplified versions, or "pretypes", of the product to test core features, user experience, and gather early feedback with minimal time and investment. This helps determine if the product addresses a real market need before fully developing it. Pretotypes can take many forms from paper mockups to basic digital prototypes to test aspects like usability, desirability, and whether users will actually use and continue using the product. The goal is to avoid spending large sums on products that ultimately fail due to lack of market fit or appeal.

1. Pretotyping
Jeremy Clark, Alberto Sevoia
Make Sure you are building the right IT
before you build it Right
an important, but often neglected, step in innovation

2. Pretotyping (as in Pretendotyping)
 A pretotype is a mock-up of the intended product or service that can be
built in minutes, hours or days instead of weeks, months or years. The art
and science of pretotyping is aimed to help innovators:
 Identify the core feature and core experience of the new potential
product.
 Decide what core features can – and should – be mocked-up (or
dramatically simplified).
 Use mock-ups to systematically test and collect feedback and usage data.
 Analyze usage data to determine the next step.

3. Most New Products Fail
 Nielsen: 1st year success vs. pre launch expectations
 24,543 new products
 80% failure (failed, disappointed, cancelled)
 41% : Lack of data to validate that product addresses a real market need

4. False Positive
 Webvan, late 90s
 raised $122+M, Goldman Sachs, Sequoia Capital
 Raised $375M in IPO, 1999
 In total, raised over $1B
 Bankruptcy July 2001
 Motorola’s Iridium satellite phone system ($6B for 66 satellites)
 Segway (~$180M in funding)
 Google Wave real time messaging platform (~$20-30M)
 “John Carter” by Disney (Cost $275M + $100M in marketing)
 New Coke, Pepsi Clear (est. $50M).

5. False Positive
 Gilat to Home
 Modu
 Queen’s
 Better Place

6. False Negative
SMS
Twitter
Google
Xerox PARC

7. Do they want it?
 Will they use it where they are? (Environment, context)
 Will they adapt in order to use it? (Behavior, switching)
 Will they use it if it looks like this? (Appearance)
 Will they use it if it does/does not do X? (Functionality)
 Will they buy it this way? (Channel)
 Will they buy it if it costs more than X? (Price)

8. Pretotype:
Validate market appeal and actual usage of potential new product by
simulating its core experience with the smallest possible investment of time
and money

9. Close in spirit and practice to Eric Ries' Lean Startup Movement
and the practice of building the Minimum Viable Product (MVP),
pretotyping is
a way to test a product idea quickly and inexpensively
by
creating extremely simplified versions of that product
to
help validate the premise that "If we build it, they will use it.“

10. Pretotyping differs from prototyping
prototyping pretotyping
 answer questions related to  answer questions about the
building the product: product's appeal and usage:
 Can we build it?  Would people be interested in it?
 Will it work as expected?  Will they use it as expected?
 How cheaply can we build it?  Will they continue to use it? ..
 How fast can we make it?

11. The Mechanical Turk (1770 - 1854 )
 Automaton Chess Player
 By courtier Wolfgang von Kempelen (1734–1804)
to Empress Maria Theresa
 Sapphire laser blade –
Ed Mlasvky, Milk and Honey and High-Tech

12. IBM Speech to Text “Pretendotyping”

13. Palm Pilot
 GRiDPad,… too big
 Jeff Hawkins: Pinocchio prototype - wood and paper Palm Pilot
 Would I actually carry and use one?
 Pocket size
 …simulate core experience with minimal investment
 Insight to most useful functions (calendar, address book, to-
do list, and note taker)

14. Fake Door
 Testing customers’ responses to different phrases or words (using online ads
tied to specific search words)
 Links placed on websites (the clicks on which can be counted)
 Simple response forms (such as asking customers for an email address)
Examples:
 Buy word (e.g. pretotype) and c if people click it
 “Register 4 our medical device workshop”

15. Pretotyping

16. Pretotype:
 Make sure you are building the right it before you build it right