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What Is Conceptual Design?

Conceptual design is the explicit construction of the ideas or concepts that a user needs to learn about what a product is, what it can do, and how it is intended to be used. It may also address what a product is not, what it can't do, and how it is not intended to be used. Conceptual design is done from the user's point of view.

Conceptual design is very different from the engineering design of a product, which specifies architectural and programming details of how a product is implemented in code. That is, engineering design is done from a software engineering point of view.

The process of conceptual design involves a set of steps for translating requirements into a user interface design. The process begins by getting at the core of an application--the central concept--and proceeds by organizing the functionality from the users' point of view. Along the way, a deeper understanding of users and their requirements is developed. The result is an outline or model of the user interface that may be further developed during the detailed user interface design phase.

The conceptual design process involves the following steps:

Define a central concept.
A concise statement of what the application is and what it is not. It clearly defines the boundaries of the application and characterizes the overall users' view of the application.

Describe user roles and their requirements.
A list of who the target users are, what their roles are in their use of the application, and what is important to them--such as getting work done quickly, being in charge, and feeling successful.

Define and prioritize measurable objectives and constraints.
Objectives for the user interface are the designers' intentions such as:

to reduce repetitive tasks,
to have users feel in control, and
to provide satisfactory feedback on results.

Design the user's object model.
A table of all objects the user needs along with their attributes, actions, contents, and relationships among objects.

Design the user's task model.
A list of all tasks the user needs to perform with procedures on how to perform each task using the application.

Synthesize a user interface model.
The user interface model organizes the functionality according to the object and task models. This is a rough outline of the user interface that guides the detailed design phase.

Evaluate results against the objectives.
Various evaluation methods, such as heuristic evaluation and usability testing are selected to measure how well the objectives have been achieved..

Why Is Conceptual Design Important?

Conceptual design is important for creating a solid, user-centered foundation on which to build a successful user interface. A simple, well-defined conceptual design that is clearly and accurately represented in the user interface makes it easier for people to learn and use a product.

There are two ways of creating conceptual designs: implicitly and explicitly. Implicit conceptual design happens when everyone believes there is an understanding of and agreement on the concepts underlying a design but no one writes them down or discusses them openly. Each person working on the product independently develops his or her own ideas about what the product is, what it can do, and how it is intended to be used. If you do not explicitly create a conceptual design, one or more will be created for you by default. The result is likely to be an application that is difficult to learn and cumbersome to use. Explicit conceptual design, on the other hand, involves adopting the user's point of view and defining in a systematic way the concepts users will need to learn to use the product effectively.

Interface Concepts uses a simple framework to help clients develop conceptual designs for their products. For more information or send email or call Interface Concepts at (360) 297-2500.