The Power of Story slides, from the O'Reilly webcast on April 19, 2013. Webcast video archives at O'Reilly http://oreillynet.com/pub/e/2665

1. The Power of Story
Creating empathy & connection
for user experience
A Rosenfeld Media – O’Reilly Webinar
Webcast: http://oreillynet.com/pub/e/2665
April 19, 2013
Whitney Quesenbery
WQusability

2. Hi!
 User research, usability, accessibility
 Former theatre designer
 Storytelling as a way to understand users,
culture, and context in UX design
 Two-and-an-almost books

3. Couriemail.com.au
Stories connect us

4. Stories create relationships
Who is telling
the story? Who is the audience
for the story?
What do they share?
What do they share?

5. Stories create bridges
This is the one
that matters

6. The story is created by everyone
“Tomorrow and Tomorrow” by Timothy Sullivan Center for Contemporary Opera, 1987
Directed by Stephen Jarrett, Scenery by Robert Edmonds, Lighting by Whitney
Quesenbery. With Suzan Hanson

7. The story is created by everyone
“Tomorrow and Tomorrow” by Timothy Sullivan Center for Contemporary Opera, 1987
Directed by Stephen Jarrett, Scenery by Robert Edmonds, Lighting by Whitney
Quesenbery. With Suzan Hanson

8. Stories change us

9. Stories change how 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, Redirect
Screen from Tripit

10. Stories make data memorable
and bring personas to life

11. We can’t empathize until we know
someone’s story.
Screen: Globalgiving.com
For more::http://succeedwithsuccessstories.com/dr-spocks-guide-to-improving-your-charitable-appeals/

12. Narrative weaves the user journey
into the structure of a site.

13. How will you tell the story?
Mary and Leonard Trujillo – The Mudhead Gallery

14. Each voice is a perspective
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
14

15. 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?
 Does this story invoke research
authority- a “realist tale”?
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
John van Mannen – Tales from the Field

16. 2nd person creates conversation
How can you show the conversation?
 Interviews maintain a separation
 Conversations can also happen
between two personas
Persona by Caroline Jarrett for the Open University

17. 1st person invites identity
 You represent the persona and
tell the story from their point of
view.
 Lets you “get into the head” of the
story (an “impressionist tale”)
OR
 First person can tell your story of
your experience with the person
(a “confessional tale”)
17

18. Stories are building blocks
Kindersandi.moonfruit.com

19. Tell a story to explain patterns

20. Explain
patterns
in the data

21. 21
Bring stories into your meetings
Tell quick stories in design sessions

22. Specify
Understand
Design
Evaluate
User research:
Collecting stories about
context, goals, needs,
emotions Analysis:
Stories explain patterns
Design
Stories explore current
problems and new ideas
Evaluation:
Try out the stories and
see if they work
Make stories part of your work

23. Stories give us...
A richer understanding of context
Innovation from real needs
More persuasive ideas
People in the center of the process

24. Create stories that get repeated
 Based on real data
 The stories you want told
 Generate insights and empathy
& that lead to action!

25. Storytelling for User
Experience:
Crafting stories
for better design
with Kevin Brooks
www.rosenfeldmedia.com
Global UX:
Design and research in
a connected world
with Daniel Szuc
@gobalux
A Web for Everyone:
Designing accessible
user experiences
with Sarah Horton
www.rosenfeldmedia.com
Summer 2013
Next up: See you at....
31 Awesomely Practical Tips – May 29
http://rosenfeldmedia.com/events/practical-ux-tips/