A client requested a redesign and reorganization of their existing site. We went through the usual steps up front to pick their brain - content analysis, audience definition, creative discovery sessions, etc. Before we sat down with our trusty friend Visio, we thought it would be beneficial (and fun) to lay out the site with our trusty friends Pen, Paper, and Scissors.

Based on our initial gathering of content ideas and audience definitions, Nam-ho and I organized the initial homepage design using an over-sized piece of paper and smaller pieces of paper that would represent the sections on the homepage (header, global nav, sub nav, blog, featured items, etc). This allowed us to quickly arrange the sections and throw out what we didn't think was a good fit. No coding time wasted!

Here is an example of the paper prototype we designed:

We actually sent this image to our client. Use your own discretion if you consider doing this - depending on your relationship with the client and your understanding of how they will react to a paper prototype. We were comfortable with providing our client this kind of feedback and thought it would be a good way to help them understand the process we went through.

After some initial back and forth regarding positioning and layout issues, we moved into the digital wire framing process. All in all, it has been a very smooth process. The decision to go with a low-tech paper prototype model up front turned out to be a good one. One of the biggest advantages I noticed throughout the process was that it encourages experimentation. Using pen & paper as opposed to a software application gives you a great advantage of increased flexibility when laying out a page.

If nothing else, it gave us an excuse to get away from our computers and play with scissors!

I would be interested to hear if any of you have had similar experiences using this method of prototyping.