- 31 Oct 2008
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Over the past couple of years, I have had the opportunity to work on several different projects where personas have been used to help inform the process and development of websites. It has been fascinating to see how these personas go on to be used by the different teams involved.
What is a persona?
A persona usually consists of a list of characteristics a user of a service or product has, combined with a picture to create a profile. Normally, a product will have several different user groups that need representing, so there will be a different persona for each of these.
Imagining users
It is possible to create quick and dirty personas just by writing down a few characteristics you think your typical user will have and then give them a name. This is not very scientific to say the least, but even this can help a team to start thinking in a more user centered way. By all working together to create content and a structure for this persona, your team is taking a positive step towards making your site more usable.
Creating informed personas
When we design personas for our clients we use a variety of techniques to create the most accurate and engaging profiles. We have found that teams react differently to personas depending on lots of factors. Its important to consider the way team members will use the persona before it gets made, so that these needs can be accommodated.
We recently worked with a client who had spent a long time working on their site’s personas. They had them printed in to a book, allowing easy access for the people in charge of the site’s content. They kept the book on their desks and used it frequently, whenever they were making decisions about new content. The production values made the book compelling to use, and ensured that the time spent on the production of the personas was well spent as they are continually being put to good use.
Personas in action
The most important thing to do with a persona is get to know it! It sounds obvious, but it’s surprising how many people out there have access to quality personas but do nothing with them. If you know your sites personas you are better able to make decisions about your website and will be more in tune with your users.
You can print them out and stick them in your work space, or put them in to a book and leave them on your desk. Refer back to them when you are working on your site and you’ll find it easier to remember that you are creating something for other people to use and not just a part of a website.
Personas can also be used to unite teams together, through a mutual understanding of the users of their product, be it a website or other interactive device. New team members can use personas to get an understanding of the audience a site has without having to do extensive research.
Get in touch
We have developed personas for a wide variety of sites, from public sector through to e-commerce and travel sites. If you would like to talk to us about how a new set of personas could help you and your web team, you can call us on 01179 463930.
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