The importance of real numbers in design prototyping.
In event that the title of this post is misleading, I should clarify that I’m not out to bash irrational numbers (I have nothing against Pi). What I‘m referring to when I say “real numbers” is using numerical values to communicate a message in a design prototype, where the numbers used actually calculate to return a true value.
It’s common practice to use dummy content when fleshing out design prototypes; after all, content usually comes at the end of the process (even though it shouldn’t, but that’s for another day). My real gripe comes when early stage-prototypes use “dummy numbers”. This can be particularly painful within design teams where many people are trying to understand the finer details of a project and grasp concepts they are not familiar with.
This recently came to the front of my mind when working on a collaborative project. I was finishing the work from previous iterations and I was struggling to understand the business tax rules of what I was looking at. The primary cause of this struggle: those darn dummy numbers. If only I were a registered accountant… but alas I am not.
Numbers are an intriguing thing. I like maths because it spits out absolute truths. There is no questioning that 1+1=2. Using a logic board, electrons and buttons, we can test an equation to find a true value (or prove something to be false).
Words, on the other hand, are more vague. Context, hidden meaning and the accidental incorrect use of language muddies the water and can be the cause of debate over what is true. All of this makes communicating a message a bit harder, compared to finding truths in numbers.
I see a design prototype as having two primary purposes:
Communicate ideas to stakeholders / key decision makers
Explore options to best construct a product
The value of using real numbers in a product’s lifecycle is important for both purposes, but let’s focus on the first point.
Communicate ideas to stakeholders / key decision makers
“Communicate” is the key word. As designers, we’re communicating ideas in a visual format to help others understand the function and purpose of a product. Dummy content comes into play when the finer details are yet to be determined and someone decided content isn’t useful yet. But this comes at a risk. A stakeholder might see a jumbled mess of lorem ipsum (or bacon ipsum) on a screen, but where is it coming from? What emotion is it meant to portray? What idea is it meant to be communicated? Next they see numbers on a screen, but the values are seemingly random. Or are they? They aren’t quite sure.
It is one thing to use dummy copy to dilute meaning in the interest of saving time, but when dummy numbers are also used, all one is really really looking at is the user interface. What about the experience? This is important and need to be communicated too.
If this prototype is being showcased in a live event, a simple question to the presenter may alleviate any concerns. But what if the key stake holder is exploring the work on their own time, without additional side notes or cues? They are left with more questions and potentially very few answers.
Almost every phone, laptop and now even smart watches have calculators so there is no excuse to show incorrectly calculated values. While the numbers in a prototype can be masked to anonymise data (like using a pseudonym name), it is important to still have their values actually calculate to a true value.
So what should you do?
If your prototype says 1+1=3, whip out a calculator and show the proper value. It is one less thing for someone to think about when they are interpreting your work.