User Persona

Define your users personas, user stories and visualize their journey. (Product teams)

Steps
6
Last edited
Jul 30, 2026
Created by
Nova

About this process

This method is ideal to understand user needs on a deep level. You will create a useful persona that will help you to develop products and solutions tailored to a specific audience. This tool was created for product teams. You will create your persona, add user stories, define the success criteria related to each story and visualize their journey. Ideal for human-centered-design teams and other similar systems.

The process in detail

6 steps
  1. 1

    User/Buyer persona.

  2. 2

    Review findings on the board

  3. 3

    Scenario (When)

  4. 4

    User story (What?) and definition of done.

  5. 5

    Where and How?

  6. 6

    Discuss findings

Read the full text
1. User/Buyer persona.

Start by finding information online, which is the easiest way to gather data quickly.

Write down a number of places where your customers may hang out online, and make sure your team searches for recent data.

Excellent places to search are online forums, Facebook groups, comments sections of popular blog posts, Google reviews, and Amazon reviews. Comments on these sites are excellent places to observe the way your customers really feel.

Place special emphasis on posts where 👉customers define their fears, needs, habits, and personal dreams.

👈 Add all the information to the whiteboard.

🔥Tips:

•Too often, personas are based on guesses instead of research. Actionable, accurate, useful personas are discovered, not created.
•Personas should be short and focused. All the information should have a purpose.
Work on the whiteboardPersona Board
2. Review findings on the board

After everybody is done in the previous step, review and discuss all findings. Takedown individual customer ‘attributes’ onto sticky notes. Add one attribute per sticky note.

You will know when you have enough information when you feel like you know this person. You should be able to imagine their beliefs, passions, aspirations, fears, hobbies, etc. Continue finding information until you feel like the personality of your persona is fully-formed and feels as real as a close friend.

Write down a name for this "Persona" or use the most common name that comes up in your customer files. This will help your team to have empathy for the customer as if it were a real person.

You may also choose to have more in-depth interviews to flesh out your Persona.

To finalize this board, choose a stock photo for your Persona.

Work on the whiteboardPersona Board
3. Scenario (When)

When do they need a solution? When do they feel the pain? When could discover your solution?

Additional questions:

•Explore the touch points where stakeholders engaged with the user scenario or journey mapping.
•Explore the touch point where they could discover or/and use your solution.
Work on the whiteboardPersona Board
4. User story (What?) and definition of done.

You want to know what they want to achieve both: Emotionally and functionally.

Turn it into a Jobs To Be Done Statement. Use this template by to create your statement: When I [Context] but [barrier] help me [goal] so I [outcome]

You can also follow create a user story.

User story:

•As a [user type] I can [do "action" X] so that [something I want happens].
•As a [user type] I can [functionality] so that [outcome of the action/benefit].
•When I [act] I want [goal] so that [gain/benefit]

Definition of done (acceptance criteria)

... and I know I am done when [Y]

These insights will help you create better messaging, marketing and product.

5. Where and How?

Visual map of any place where users act and interact with the solution.

6. Discuss findings

By now the board should be complete. You and your team should know how your customer looks, what they say, what they think, how they feel.

If the picture is not yet clear, go back and add more details to complete the board. In this step, discuss the completed board with all participants and highlight important points.

🔥Tips:

•Keep your board clean. Every piece of information should have a purpose for being included and should help you understand your user or buyer. If adding information about their favourite Brands is not relevant to your company, you should remove it.
•Involve everyone: Everyone should be involved making a persona. This build a feeling of ownership and approval.
Write a note
Persona Board
  • Segment or Archetype**: eg. student Human name:** Name Role:** Buyer
  • Pain killer or reliever? Are they looking for a pain killer or a reliever? Are they aware they have a problem?
  • Demographics: Location: Toronto, CA Age: 23 Sex: F Family/Status: Single Income: $45000
  • Inspiration & Influencers: start typing...
  • User story (or Job story) As a [user type or segment] I can [do X] so that [Y] (or because).Add one per sticky note.
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Capabilities
Fully editableAdapts as work changesAdd more sessions anytimeAI can be assigned
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Created byNova·Official process
Last edited Jul 30, 2026·6 steps