What is a mockup? Explain the merits of production and how to use it efficiently

When designing and creating websites and apps, it is important to share the completed image with the client.

If the completed image is not shared well, it may lead to complaints from clients such as “It is different from what you expected” or “It is different from what you asked for” after it is actually formed.
In the worst case, it can develop into a remake from the initial stage.

“Mockups” play an important role in avoiding such complaints and troubles. This time, let’s check the intention of production and how to make it about mockups in system development.

What is a mockup?

A mockup that plays an effective role in matching the image with the client.
Originally, ” mock-up ” is a word that has the meaning of “model”.

A mop-up is an industrial product, etc., and although the system is not implemented, it refers to a sample that looks exactly like the real thing.

Many people may have seen mockups of smartphones and feature phones on display at mobile phone stores. The color and shape are the same as the finished product, but you can’t actually use it.

Also, in the construction industry, a scale model may be created as a mockup before actually building a building. “Mockup” when creating a website or application is also used interchangeably.

A completed sample on the visual side

Visual design is an important factor in creating websites and apps. It is necessary to reproduce the world view and atmosphere that the client envisions as much as possible.

For example, when creating a website, the visual impression changes greatly depending on the colors actually displayed on the site and the shape and arrangement of the buttons. The atmosphere of the photos and images used is also important.

Visual design is carried out by collaborating with the client and collaborating with the image, but there are many aspects in which the image cannot be conveyed only by words and sentences. Sample creation is indispensable for visual confirmation and sharing of images.

Therefore, even if the function is not implemented, we will create a “mockup” that is a sample that is visually close to the completed form, and share the image with the client.

One of the processes of designing websites and apps

You don’t start making mockups all at once.

It would be desirable to create a mockup when the visual ideas are almost fixed. The first step is to create sketches and wireframes and solidify the overall outline.

As a rough process, “sketch”-> “wire”-“frame”-> “mockup”-> “prototype”

The general process is to proceed with the production and step by step to get closer to completion.

Differences from wireframes and prototypes

The wireframe is an overview, and the prototype is a functional sample.

Wireframes are primarily blueprints for deciding the layout. Many of them do not have color or shape instructions, and line art and letters often indicate where and what functions are laid out. They come in a variety of formats, from handwritten sketches to those created with creation tools.

A prototype is a sample that implements a system that is close to the finished product in terms of functionality. If it is a website, you can click it, and the behavior of transitioning to the linked content will be implemented.

In that regard, the mockup is a visual sample with no features implemented. For the purpose of sharing visual images, it is a check to see if the visual images match.

What are the benefits of creating a mockup?

So what are the specific benefits of creating a mockup? Here are three benefits.

You can check the image of the completed form.

In the process of creating websites and apps, we often proceed with the production by comparing color samples and display samples, but it is not uncommon for the image to deviate from the image we envisioned when it is nearing completion.

Especially in color design, the image of the color seen in a small area of ​​the sample may be different from the image of the color seen in a large area actually used.

By creating a mockup, you can modify parts that are different from the image at the time of the sample.

You can share and match images with clients

Sharing images with clients is indispensable in the process of creating websites and apps. However, no matter how polite the specifications are, it is often difficult to match the images in both minds with just the sentences and words.

By showing the visual design in a way that is actually visible, you can efficiently approach the ideal image of the client.

The risk of additional corrections after completion can be reduced

The most important thing to avoid when creating a design is that after it is completed, the client will return an additional correction saying “I want you to correct this part after all”.

In some cases, functional modifications may be required to modify the appearance.
If revisions are made after completion, the time and effort that was not originally expected will increase, and it will not be profitable without charging additional wages.

By presenting a mockup as a prototype before completion, you will be able to visually share the image with the client and recognize the parts that may be modified later. The image shift can be minimized, and as a result, work efficiency can be improved.