Tell Me About That

Using stories in interviews &

personas

Whitney Quesenbery

STC New York Metro

Octobr 27, 2011

Hi! Whitney

User researcher

Theatre designer

Storytelling as a way to understand users,

their culture, and context in UX design

Kevin

UX designer

Performance storyteller

Storytelling as a pivotal part of creation,

performance, and the design process

How do we use stories in UX?

3

A human-centred design process

4 ISO 9241-210(formerly ISO 13407)

Stories are embedded in user experience

Collecting stories tell

us about context,

goals, people

Themes and patterns help

us understand world views

Design tells a new story

that changes something

about the world

Usability evaluation is a

way of trying the story out

Success?

We just don‟t call them stories

User research

Ethnography

Contextual inquiry

Site visits Personas

Affinity analysis

Scenarios

Storyboards

Wireframes

Prototypes

Usability Testing

Walk-throughs

Analytics

Stories add depth to the big picture

Showing activities in context help you understand more clearly when, where and how a product will be used.

Stories are an efficient way to communicate non-functional requirements or user characteristics

Thinking in stories connects similar activities, attitudes, or goals across functions.

Why stories?

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Stories add connection and empathy

A richer understanding of people and context

Innovation from real needs

More persuasive ideas

People in the center of the process

Changing a story can change the way we think

―Our experience of the world is

shaped by our interpretations of it,

the stories we tell ourselves.... so

the key to personal transformation

is story transformation.‖

Timothy Wilson, author of “Redirect”

Maria Popova, „Redirect‟: A New Way to Think about Psychological Change. The Atlantic, September 9, 2011 www.theatlantic.com

Stories create relationships

Stories create connections

Stories create connections

Stories create connections

What kind of connections do you want to make?

A story is created by everyone who hears it

A story is created by everyone who hears it

A story is created by everyone who hears it

Is this a good UX story?

Scenarios become stories when we add emotion

As a [role] I can [do something] so that [benefit]

+

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Imagery + Emotion + Context + Motivation

Stories help us explore complex interactions

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Stories are efficient

What can we learn about Tanner from this short story?

Tanner was deep into a Skatepunkz game—

all the way up to level 12—when he got a

buddy message from his friend, Steve, with

a question about his homework.

He looked up with a start. Almost bedtime

and his homework was still not done. Mom or

Dad would be in any minute.

Stories can be visual

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Stories turn a profile into a persona

Aged 30-45

45% married with children

65% college educated

Use the web 3-5 times a week

Elizabeth, 32 years old

Married to Joe, has a 5-year old son, Justin

Attended State College, and manages her class alumni site

Uses Google as her home page, and reads CNN online

Used the web to find the name of a local official

Stories start with listening

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Listening Exercise

Find a partner – maybe someone you don’t know

You will each tell the other about something. You’ll have 1 minutes

If you are the listener - just listen. Don’t have to talk, interrupt or fill silences.

I’ll call time, and then we’ll switch.

Tell the other person about a holiday tradition you share with your friends or family.

Feedback

What was that like?

As the storyteller?

As the listener?

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Listening is not a competitive sport

In many cultures, we are chronically ―under-listened-to‖

Be an appreciative listener

Give them your full attention

Acknoweldge what you hear, non-verbally

Give the person time to think as well as talk

Don’t rush the end – sometimes people have one last thought

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On your own

Practice really listening:

• Find a partner

• Ask them to tell you about

something…perhaps something that

they are proud of, or a difficult event.

• Let them talk for 2 minutes

• Just listen. Give them your attention.

Don‟t interrupt them. Just let them

talk.

• Then switch.

• Share what you learned about the

experience of being really listened to.

Listen (and watch) for juicy tidbits

Stories you hear from more than one source

Strong detail and action

Details that illuminate other user data or analytics

Stories that contradict common beliefs

Simple, clear, and compelling

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Stories and UX starts with listening (& observing)

In all of your user research, make time for stories

Go beyond basic questions

Ask about context: when, where, why (not just how)

Find out what they want to tell you

Just say ―tell me about that‖

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Who can you hear the best stories from

People with no connection to your

company who work in the context your

product supports

People who match the demographics of

the target users, and who have similar

domain experience

People who recently worked in the domain

and are still close to the job

People in your company who work with

your product in the field

Trainers, technical support personnel, and

others who support users in the field

Subject matter experts who do not work in

the domain

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Best

Worst

Ask the questions that encourage stories

“When was the last time you [did that thing]?”

“Have you ever [done something]?” “How often do you [do that thing]?” “What makes you decide to [do that thing]?” “Where do you [do that thing]?”

+

“Tell me about that.”

(and really listen)

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Interviewing exercise

You work for an e-commerce site that specializes in business gifts. You are looking for ideas for your holiday promotion that aren’t the ―same old things.‖

First, write down 2-3 questions you want to ask.

Make them open-ended, not just yes-no questions.

Are you looking for problems you can fix?

Or ways you can make the experience more delightful?

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Interviewing exercise (2)

Find a partner. You’ll each have about 5 minutes each to interview each other.

Think about ways to encourage them to share their experiences

Don’t be afraid to follow their lead

But don’t forget your goal

I’ll call time, so we all stay together

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Personas and stories

3

Personas let you explore situations and ideas

The persona as a character provides perspective

The relationships create the context

The imagery suggests emotional connections

The language can suggest the voice of the persona

Personas represent groups of stories

Similar goals, beliefs, attitudes

Similar ways of engaging in the activity

Similar personal characteristics

Shared stories

Navigates easily

The web saves me time

Visits a lot of different sites

Uses e-commerce

Mistrustful of info online

Leaves a site quickly

No-nonsense. Doesn‟t like cute

Very deliberate approach to web

Takes notes as she works

Uses search

Likes to print long pages to read and save

Healthcare example

Melissa InfoSeeker

Laura Caregiver

Elizabeth Expert

“I don‟t like to go backwards to go forwards”

Goals:

Looking for new information

Typical Questions:

What is <condition>?

Am I at risk?

Top Usability Need:

Engaging - I can tell I‟m in

the right place by the

amount and level of

information

Risks

Curious - needs to be

drawn in. Little sense of site

loyalty

“I want to know how to help my husband”

Goals:

Looking for helpful

information

Typical Questions:

What do I need to know

about it? What are the next

steps I should take?

Top Usability Needs:

Effective - I need resources,

and the right information

Risks

Needs information she can

act on

Goals:

Information I can use

Answers to specific questions

Typical Questions:

Tell me something new

I want the latest!

I need <this> information.

Top Usability Needs:

Efficient: Give me a search

box and I‟ll tell you exactly

what I want

Risks

Already knows the basics

“I don‟t stay on a site long if nothing jumps out at me”

Stories organize data in memorable ways

Personas not only organize data and facts, but help us recognize the persona as someone we can empathize with

Stories organize facts in recognizable ways.

Just LIke Me - Determining Eligibility Online with Personalized Narratives - Thea van der Geest and Lex van Velsen, UPA 2010

Crafting stories

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UX stories have a purpose

Meeting the users

Illustrating user needs

Points of pain

Brainstorming

Success stories

Design exploration

Evaluation task

Points of pain – show a problem

Ten minutes is not enough. That‟s

Tanner‟s opinion about the time limits

on using the computer at school.

Last Friday, he started working on a

geography assignment and look up some

information about the animals in Africa.

He had just gotten started when his turn

on the computer was up. He‟d like to

work on it over the weekend, but can’t

access the school library. He prints out a

few things, and figures he will retype

what he‟s done when he gets home.

What a bore.

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These stories create a vivid view of the problem from the point of view of the persona.

Springboard or brainstorming stories

When Tanner comes home

from school, he logs on to the

web site and collects the essay

he began during study period

in school. He usually isn‟t

allowed to play games on the

computer until he finishes his

homework, but he tells his

mother, “this is my

homework.”

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A short and compelling story, both illustrating a dilemma and hinting at the way out. They may be the spark of a new innovation, or based on an anecdote from user research.

Stories are not a detailed task analysis

Focus on the story

Establish the scene with imagery

What’s the time-frame?

What’s the emotional context

Think about the persona’s perspective

How do they see the events or interaction?

What words do they use? Style of language?

What are the boundaries of the story from their point of view? (Hint: it might not be your product!)

Don’t use the story to describe all of the details in the user interface.

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Story structures help you shape the meaning

Journeys show obstacles overcome

A hero’s journey

Framing structures create contrast

Us- Them - Us

Here - There - Here

Now - Then - Now

Stories can communicate mood or context

Layered images

Contextual interlude

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Who is the hero of the story?

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Choose your perspective

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Third Person Second Person First Person

Story is told about someone, looking at them from the outside

Story is a conversation between the storyteller and another person

Story is told from the point of view of the main character

For example: A UX person telling stories about how several different people responded to a prototype. Persona stories, especially if there is more than one

For example: Feedback to a participant or other stakeholder, ―Interviewing a persona‖ Talking directly to users of a product

For example: A UX person telling the story of their own reactions. Retelling a story from the point of view of the original experience.

Maintains a distance between ―us‖ and ―them‖

Creates a direct connection and invites the other person to respond.

Invites the audience to look at the story through the eyes of

Become the persona

First person

You represent the persona and tell the story from their point of view.

Lets you ―get into the head‖ of the story

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Informance

Representing an idea by

acting in order to tell,

explain and share it.

(Brenda Laurel’s book on

metods

3rd person allows you to explain and interpret

Whose words and thoughts are these?

Are these things that Mary would say or are they our interpretation of all the data and stories that went into the Mary persona?

How can we show when we are using her own words?

Mary works as a nurse in a hectic women’s health center for a low-income neighborhood. … Her questions about cancer mostly come from her patients, or from wanting to be sure that she catches any early signs. … She has learned conversational Spanish, so she can talk to her patients for whom this is a first language. … When she looks things up on the Web, she tends to go back to familiar sites

Creating a conversation invites identification

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Whose words and thoughts are these?

Who is included in ―we‖?

How does creating a sense of identity motivate action?

Ways to share stories

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There are many ways to tell a story

Elevator pitch

Stories you tell around a table

Written stories

Presenting a report

Comic or storyboard

Visual collage

In a formal presentation

Weave stories into your reports

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Create a narrative to show patterns

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Even if you don’t have one clip that shows the whole pattern, you can combine events into a story

Have a design expo with stories from research

56 Engaging Teams with Rich Reporting: Recipe for a Research Findings Expo By

John Webb and Tomer Sharon. UPA User Experience 3Q 2010

Make a video

The NCI Cancer Bulletin: http://www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/101910/page6

Immersive environments encourage stories

58 http://www.core77.com/blog/business/core77_toyota_calty_studio_visit_round_2_how_theyre_winning_11167.asp

Ad agencies create rooms that represent the target market for a brand.

Map the stories into the design

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Create the stories you want other people to tell

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What connections do you want to make?

Storytelling can make your work richer and more effective

UX Story Cards

A guide t o

craft ing stories

for UX

Storytelling for User Experience

www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/storytelling

www.wqusability.com/storycards.html

Coming soon… A look at global UX through interviews with over 65 practitioners