Wireframing is a prototyping technique to sketch out content types on a screen with minimal or no actual content, giving a sense of layout and element placement for design templating. There are two wireframe types:
- Low Fidelity: These focus on element presence and user flow, with no or little detail. They're easy for non-designers to sketch, even with a pen on paper, to show what elements will be on a page without specifying their exact location or style. This approach helps focus on basic user flow, enabling a much clearer, more objective evaluation.
- High Fidelity: These emphasize exact layout and specific element positioning, still ignoring most of styling. Their goal is to confirm element placement before design starts.
Both types serve different purposes: low fidelity for early feedback on structure and user flow, and high fidelity for layout confirmation before detailed design.
Pros of Low Fidelity Wireframes
A low-fidelity wireframe prototype is an ideal tool for identifying problems in user flows right from the start, saving significant time that would otherwise be lost. Here are the key advantages:
- Easily Made: You don't need design skills to sketch a low-fidelity button or image placeholder.
- Quick to Craft: Ignoring specific forms and layout details saves crucial time. The appearance of an element here has no impact on the final outcome.
- Best Way to Identify User Flow Errors: With zero distractions, it's the most effective method for spotting issues in how users navigate through your website or app.
Low fidelity wireframes application
Low fidelity wireframing only benefit project if done at the very beginning, right after website structure is planned, and definitely before content planning, high-fidelity prototyping, and design phase.
Any website, mobile, web, or desktop application development project benefit from low fidelity wireframing - the effort invested is little, but risks or UX issues are reduced drastically, let alone the lo-fi wireframes serve as basis for the next phases.