How to build a user persona
A get-started guide
I am the sole UX-person for a startup. I have never been in a role like this before. But, I tend to figure things out. I taught myself code, after all. Here’s how I learned to build a user persona. Thanks for being interested in my journey!
Understand the value
If you’re working on a team, you will want to share why you have endeavored to create a persona. Otherwise it might look like you are trying to engage in some imaginary play.
Here are some benefits to building a user persona.
- It’s easier to talk about than raw data
- It’s a quick, approachable representation of lots of info
- It grounds your work in something human
- It answers the question “who are we building for?”
- It eliminates the possibility of dev teams building for different, imagined users
You have probably already encountered a user persona in corona-times named Karen. User personas are all around us!
Do some background research
For more information about user personas, their benefits, and examples, check out these YouTube videos.
- UX Personas or user profiles by Bring Your Own Laptop
- How to Create & Use UX Personas by Kyle Soucy
- Intro to Personas in UX Design by Jamal Nichols
Also, I recommend reading NN Group’s article on Personas.
Take some notes
Writing is an act of synthesis. Take what you’ve learned, sketch some examples, look at the data you have to work with. Poke around in a notebook.
Try it
Now, you should have an idea (1) why you’d want to build a user persona, (2) how to explain the added-value to your team, and (3) what to include in a user persona.
Good luck! ✌🏽
