Final answer:
Product screening is the evaluation of a product's potential success, which includes interviewing customers, studying the market, and iterating the design through prototypes.
Step-by-step explanation:
Evaluating a product idea to determine its likelihood of success is known as product screening. This important step involves various techniques like interviewing customers, looking at existing products, examining technical databases, and consulting with experts in the field. The use of a concept combination table helps explore design ideas systematically, and a concept screening matrix is pivotal for selecting appropriate designs. A prototype, which is an initial model of the product, plays a crucial role in the testing and development phase.
During the design process, the 'Explore Possibilities' step is instrumental for understanding design characteristics and potentially improving the design. It is essential for producers, such as those in the commercial theatre mentioned by Hal Luftig, to assess economic risks and rewards to gauge a product's potential success.
When developing a product for markets with significant barriers to entry, like a web browser, strategies may include differentiating the product, forming strategic partnerships, and leveraging unique selling propositions to navigate through and overcome these challenges.