What are mockups?
If you've ever wondered what mockups actually are, why everyone is talking about them, and why there are so many different sites that provide them, then you can read all the answers to your questions below.
Not so long ago, when a designer wanted to see what the project he was working on looks like, he had to create a faithful model of it using office methods. For example, if he wanted to see what his box design looks like in reality, he would print it, cut it, and glue it together. Of course, he could have outsourced such work to a printing house or a company that produces such models.
A model made in this way is called a mock-up. Thanks to it, the designer was able to check how the individual elements of the design look like on a real scale. What are the proportions of the elements. What colors look like and how they work. All of these are extremely important matters, there is only one small snag in it.
It could take a long time to make such a mockup.
Until someone came up with the idea that all or most of that work could be done digitally. On the computer screen.
This is how the idea of digital mockups was born. Of course today, nobody uses the „digital” word. For a simple reason. Analog mock-ups are in use all the time and designers can’t imagine life without them. Nevertheless, it is digital or computer mockups that designers use most often. Especially when we are talking about slightly simpler materials, such as flyers, business cards, simpler packaging or letterheads.
You no longer have to laboriously print and cut them (or wait for the appropriate company to take care of it). It is enough to paste your project into a properly prepared mockup to get its photo realistic visualization in a few seconds.
Due to the fact that it takes a few moments to preview your project on a mockup, the designer can check his project on an ongoing basis, while working on the design. And after finishing work, he can present his project to the client or a wider audience. He does’nt need to take photos, 3D graphics, etc. Pasting the design takes literally a second and at this time you can get an accurate and aesthetically made visualization of your project.
A mockup can be an absolutely indispensable tool in the workflow of any design or marketing team. The ability to shorten the time needed to preview the project or present the finished product can save a lot of time and money.
Despite the fact that mockups have become a part of the dictionary of every graphic designer, it is worth bearing in mind that they are quite a fresh tool in the hands of graphic designers. Not everyone is fully aware of the full potential of their use yet.