Who are users within the user story?
Who are these users, the users? They can be anyone who interacts with the product. Think of external users like the person buying a ticket via your improved purchasing system, internal users like the person within your organization who has to work with the system, or technical and supportive users, such as the people involved in ICT or content production.
What does such a user story look like?
User stories are as simple as:
- Who interacts with this product?
- How does it help that person?
- In what way does it help?
Follow-up question: how do I make it as easy as possible for that person to use?
You formulate this per user. User stories help you think from the perspective of the end-user(s); it is therefore very valuable to think about the most important user stories for your project early on.
What do you include in a user story?
A user story is structured as follows: ‘As [user], I want [functionality] so that I [reason why it is needed].’ An example: ‘As [marketing staff], I want [to see on a postal code level how many people attended a particular performance] so that I [can adjust my marketing strategy accordingly].’
Write down your most important user stories briefly and clearly. You can use the ‘user stories fill-in document’ we provided. During the project's progress, you can further specify user stories or add additional ones to achieve increasingly fitting results for your organization.
Why create a user story?
Technology is a means, not a goal. If you were to base your digital project solely on technology, you might get stuck. After all, you also deal with péople who use your product. That is precisely why using user stories is so important; they focus on the value for your user. You look at the lived experience and not just the ‘theoretical story’.
A set of user stories makes adjustments possible when insights change during the process. This ensures greater effectiveness, more engagement, keeps the focus on what truly matters, and makes the process smoother. This works better than rigidly setting everything in stone in advance.
Frequently asked questions about user stories
How do you write a user story when the end-user is unknown?
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How do you write a user story when the end-user is unknown?
If you write a user story for an end-user, but the end-user is (not yet) fully known, you will need to work with assumptions about personas (these are fictional but realistic users) or assumptions about provisional target groups. You can then create the user story from the perspective of ‘a user with need X’ instead of a very specific role. For example: ‘As a museum visitor looking for digital information, I want to easily find routes so that I can plan my visit well.’
The primary goal is to provide direction, not perfection from the start. You can later validate your assumptions with real users and adjust your user stories accordingly.
How do I gather user needs without extensive research?
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How do I gather user needs without extensive research?
User research does not always have to be extensive. You can also assemble a focus group: a small group of your users that is representative of your audience, to gather needs.
Needs can be collected, for example, through (a) brainstorm(s). If the user group is too large to bring together, you can also work with delegates/representatives from the groups.
TIP: People often find it difficult to openly share their opinions and needs in a larger group. If the group is manageable, it is worth having individual conversations or scheduling video calls with users.
How do I prioritize within user stories?
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How do I prioritize within user stories?
How do you determine what is important within your user stories? Because naturally, you will come up with or hear many ideas and opinions. It is important to distinguish necessity from ‘this has lower priority but is nice to have.’
The most important question is: what do you absolutely need to make this digital project succeed for the most important group? These points múst be on the list. This is how you achieve your MVP: your minimal viable product, the minimum required for the project to succeed.
Conclusion
User stories help you stay focused on what you are creating, for whom, and why. By drafting user stories early in your project (and adjusting them along the way), you prevent technology from becoming more important than the user. They provide guidance in decision-making but also allow room to adapt to new insights. In this way, you work towards a digital result that truly adds value for your organization én your users.
Easily create a user story?
Are you working on a digital project? Make sure you clearly visualize what exactly you solve for whom and why with a digital process. Use our handy user story template.
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