Compelling research prototypes can help communicate abstract, elusive big ideas and visions convincingly to everyone regardless of their technical backgrounds and interests, from conference reviewers, potential funders, potential usability subjects, to friends who want to know just what exactly you're working on so that they can share your enthusiasm. Compelling research prototypes can even enlist realworld users and let you test out ideas that are next to impossible to test in lab settings. But building compelling research prototypes is not a skill taught in school, and the general population has not found many Semantic Web research prototypes compelling. In this talk, I will share with you tips and tricks that have helped me build my research prototypes, particularly those that showcase Semantic Web ideas and technologies.