Prototyping Award Designs: Benefits, Best Practices
Imagine you order 300 trophies for an awards event. During preparations, the pieces arrive, and you open the packages to find awards like nothing you imagined. Your vision got lost in translation. However, this miscommunication could have been avoided if you could’ve sampled or prototyped your design before your awards were produced.
The Cristaux International team prioritizes client visions during every step of our awards creation process. We offer rapid prototyping to ensure customer satisfaction before the final production starts. Not only is this a crucial part of creating awards and gifts, but it helps guarantee satisfaction for you and your recipients.
What Is Prototyping?
Prototyping is used in different fields and industries, from architecture to medical device development. It is similar to making a sample of an idea. In the world of recognition, we use rapid prototyping to create a cost-effective recreation of your design concept.
What Are the Benefits of Prototyping Award Designs?
This simple solution is very rewarding, offering many perks including the following.
- Ability to touch and interact with the creation
- Chance to test your design
- Added assurance and confidence
- Opportunity to notice faults and make final changes
The Process of Prototyping
Within the broader awards creation process, prototyping comes after you approve of your award’s design. It gives you a chance to touch and feel your piece before you commit to full-fledged production. The steps of prototyping award designs are as follows.
- You approve the initial design concept and ask your vendor to make a corresponding prototype.
- The vendor creates a sample. At Cristaux, we may use materials different from what you ordered because we want our prototypes to be cost-effective.
- You review the completed sample. At this time, you can ask questions, raise concerns, and request changes.
- Once satisfied, you approve of the design and give the all-clear for production.
Best Practices When Prototyping
To develop an excellent and visionary recognition program, it’s important to get the most out of every stage of the creation process. We’ve outlined a few tips for prototyping award designs.
- Be aware of the difference in material. You can communicate with the vendor to ensure they get as close to the original concept as the prototyping materials allow. It’s important to consider how dimensions like weight may be affected. Most prototypes are made from lightweight materials and may vary from the material you choose for your design.
- Ask how your personalization will fit into the design. How will the finished customization appear in the final pieces?
- Be open-minded to vendor suggestions. While producing the sample, their expert eye may discover how to elevate the design. Things may change or become known once the piece is in their hands.
- Be vocal. It’s important to address everything you need to before it is too late. This is your last chance to alter your design before your pieces are produced.
Find Confidence with Prototyping
We like to think of prototyping as a design’s second chance. Either it’ll prove itself excellent or illuminate improvements. Fabricating and evaluating prototypes allow us and our clients to be cautious in our creation process. You’re investing a lot into your recognition program, so we want to do everything we can to ensure it’s everything you imagined.
Contact Cristaux to start your creative design today.
