This is a presentation that I delivered at a London IA Personas show-and-tell event in spring 2009.

4. Personas help… reduce the effects of the ‘elastic user’ – when team members use their own beliefs and opinions to represent the user

5. Personas help… encourage empathy for the user throughout the project team, helping to inform and validate design solutions and business decisions

6. The context of personas in User-Centred Design Specify the system behaviour Personas Scenarios User journeys Scamps Prototypes & testing Detailed design Specification Model your users Model the ideal experience Model the product/service-to-people interactions Model the interface in detail Test prototypes with real users Specify the interface design Build the product/service

10. Plotting users on axes

11. Identify patterns in respondents

12. Axes Behavioural and attitudinal axes indicate how they differ form other personas

13. Create persona

14. Persona elements Full name Quote Realistic picture

15. Narrative Realistic, evidence-based narrative description helps to bring personas to life

16. Goals Life goals – what they want out of life Experience goals – How they want to feel through using products or services End goals – what they want to achieve

17. Persona collage example

19. Segmentation mapping Segmentation models Sally Nichols Diane Rowe Jerry Ellis Maps somewhat positively Maps positively Maps very positively Strength of mapping Segment 1 Learning first, technology second Diane believes learning is important but also thinks technology is part of the future. She does not have enough time to find out the detail of what goes on in schools. Learning is of high importance to Sally and she will do all she can to push her child and the school to deliver the best education. Jerry, of course, believes learning is important but does not feel he needs to be that involved in the process. Segment 2 Switched on but too busy to stop Whilst Diane feels like she does not have the time, she does not feel ‘switched on’ either. She has too many responsibilities. Sally makes the time and is not driven to find out about the latest technologies. Jerry knows how to find the information he needs, in that sense he is ‘switched on’, however, he tends to help out on fun activities. Segment 3 Middle of the road Diane puts her faith in the system so shares the behaviour of this group in that they are defined by their lack of strong characteristics. Sally has too much drive to map to this segment. In his complacency, Jerry shares characteristics with this segment as his drive is to sustain the ‘normal’ life he has achieved. Segment 4 Well-off supporters Diane does not feel the confidence of this segment. She may be comfortable but she worries she is doing all she should. Sally is engaged with technology. She has values which map to this segment even if her income level does not match. With his aspirations firmly in his past, Jerry is now in this segment. Segment 5 Unplugged and disadvantaged Diane is not very engaged with technology. Leaving school at 16 means she been brought up with more disadvantages than most. She sees herself as very different from this segment in terms of drive for her children’s future. Some members of his family would fall into this segment.