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Design Sprints: How to Turn a Business Idea into a Product in Five Days
Businesses today are under constant pressure to launch new products quickly, break through creative dead ends and find fresh ideas. A design sprint helps teams move forward fast, achieve results within tight deadlines and do so with minimal resources.
My name is Liza Prisyazhnyuk, and I’m the co-founder of The Spot design agency. We create design systems of any complexity and cover the full development cycle — UX research, market analysis, CJM, hypothesis testing and consulting for digital services and brands. In this article, I’ll explain what a design sprint is and how it can benefit your business.
My name is Liza Prisyazhnyuk, and I’m the co-founder of The Spot design agency. We create design systems of any complexity and cover the full development cycle — UX research, market analysis, CJM, hypothesis testing and consulting for digital services and brands. In this article, I’ll explain what a design sprint is and how it can benefit your business.
What is a design sprint?
A design sprint is a framework for quickly validating whether an idea is viable. In one focused working session, you move from a hypothesis to user testing and create a functioning product prototype.
The method became widely known after Jake Knapp’s book Sprint, which introduced a way to validate ideas in just five days.
The method became widely known after Jake Knapp’s book Sprint, which introduced a way to validate ideas in just five days.
How sprints are structured
A design sprint is a step-by-step process broken into five working days. Each day you solve specific tasks and get intermediate results. Here’s how the process works:
Monday — Problem immersion:
Define the idea and map the user journey.
Tuesday — Research and inspiration:
Look for references, analyse competitors and generate all possible solutions.
Wednesday — Decision-making:
Discuss ideas and vote for the best direction.
Thursday — Prototyping:
Create a prototype and prepare for testing.
Friday — User testing:
Conduct interviews and observe users completing tasks.
By the end of the sprint, you’ll have insights that determine the next steps. It’s not enough to simply run the sprint — the goal is to reach conclusions and achieve a business outcome. Here’s what the results might look like:
Monday — Problem immersion:
Define the idea and map the user journey.
Tuesday — Research and inspiration:
Look for references, analyse competitors and generate all possible solutions.
Wednesday — Decision-making:
Discuss ideas and vote for the best direction.
Thursday — Prototyping:
Create a prototype and prepare for testing.
Friday — User testing:
Conduct interviews and observe users completing tasks.
By the end of the sprint, you’ll have insights that determine the next steps. It’s not enough to simply run the sprint — the goal is to reach conclusions and achieve a business outcome. Here’s what the results might look like:
- The solution works. Move to building an MVP — the first minimal version of the product.
- Some hypotheses worked, others didn’t. Discard the weak ones and refine the promising ideas.
- The hypothesis failed completely. Start a new sprint and build a different prototype.
Adapted design sprints
One strength of the design sprint is that it can be adjusted to your business needs.
Earlier, I worked in the Growth Lab design-sprint team at SberMarketing. We built a wide range of products — from children’s apps to complex B2B tools — using an adapted methodology for the Russian market. Instead of five days, we worked in two-week sprint sessions.
In week one we followed the classic sprint method; week two was dedicated to perfecting the prototype. This extra week provided four days for corrections if week one had led us in the wrong direction.
One of our projects was an app for preschoolers. During the first week we explored different mechanics to help children play and learn independently. In the second week we polished these mechanics and developed a subscription model for parents.
Earlier, I worked in the Growth Lab design-sprint team at SberMarketing. We built a wide range of products — from children’s apps to complex B2B tools — using an adapted methodology for the Russian market. Instead of five days, we worked in two-week sprint sessions.
In week one we followed the classic sprint method; week two was dedicated to perfecting the prototype. This extra week provided four days for corrections if week one had led us in the wrong direction.
One of our projects was an app for preschoolers. During the first week we explored different mechanics to help children play and learn independently. In the second week we polished these mechanics and developed a subscription model for parents.
What skills design sprints help develop
Multitasking.
Sprints teach you to switch focus quickly and manage time precisely — each stage has strict time limits and a clear objective.
Visual literacy.
You learn to find references fast and build a broad picture of the project. After several sprints, your ability to spot patterns and generate new ideas increases dramatically.
Teamwork.
Design sprints involve diverse specialists: designers, marketers, developers, managers, analysts and more. A cross-functional team produces stronger ideas, but collaboration requires communication skills and the ability to listen.
Sprints teach you to switch focus quickly and manage time precisely — each stage has strict time limits and a clear objective.
Visual literacy.
You learn to find references fast and build a broad picture of the project. After several sprints, your ability to spot patterns and generate new ideas increases dramatically.
Teamwork.
Design sprints involve diverse specialists: designers, marketers, developers, managers, analysts and more. A cross-functional team produces stronger ideas, but collaboration requires communication skills and the ability to listen.
Who design sprints are best for
This methodology isn’t for everyone.
Design sprints work best when you want to validate hypotheses and ideas at the early stage of a project — for example, when launching a new product or entering a market with an unfamiliar audience.
However, for complex projects the sprint format may not be sufficient. Five days might not provide enough depth or research time, so other methodologies may be more suitable.
Design sprints work best when you want to validate hypotheses and ideas at the early stage of a project — for example, when launching a new product or entering a market with an unfamiliar audience.
However, for complex projects the sprint format may not be sufficient. Five days might not provide enough depth or research time, so other methodologies may be more suitable.
Conclusions
A design sprint is an experimental method that helps validate a hypothesis quickly. The most valuable outcome is saving money and time. A fast test of your business idea reduces the risk of spending months — or even years — building a product that fails to compete.