From product concept to user experience: Exploring UX potentials at early product stages

The focus on users' needs and emotions while interacting with products is a key factor for product success. As the field of User Experience (UX) explores these needs and their fulfilment, it gains in importance against the background of the wish for human-oriented products and services. In order to avoid product failure, the UX of a product should be considered in very early stages of development when there is only a first concept or product idea. However, an empirical UX evaluation seems to be quite difficult at a time when only abstract product concepts are available. This paper presents a new method for transferring concepts into "fictitious product experiences". The method has been tried out in two studies focusing on the potential UX of new products. The results show that this new approach enables users to evaluate the potential UX of products in their daily routines. Moreover, the method is promising for identifying new product attributes and even new product idea s based on a positive UX