Empathy is a key skill for user experience (UX) designers, as it helps them understand the needs, goals, and pain points of their target users. Empathy maps are a useful tool to visualize and organize the insights gained from user research and interviews. In this article, you will learn how to create and use empathy maps to improve your UX design process.
An empathy map is a diagram that divides a user's experience into four quadrants: what they say, what they do, what they think, and what they feel. Each quadrant represents a different aspect of the user's perspective, based on the data collected from user research and interviews. The purpose of an empathy map is to identify the user's needs, challenges, motivations, and emotions, and to generate empathy among the design team.
Here is an ex. of customer empathy mapping pulled from my time as product designer at DRNXMYTH. What They Say: "I love trying new cocktails and discovering unique flavors at the bar but I can't replicate them at home." What They Do: Search for trending cocktails & follow mixology bloggers on social media. What They Think and Feel: Excited to discover unique cocktails that taste good. Frustrated by the lack of options at mainstream stores. What They Hear: Negative comments about trending cocktails from mixology skeptics. Recommendations from cocktail and alcohol influencers. While these are just a few examples, I was better equipped to understand the customers' needs, preferences, and motivations via empathy mapping @ dbassdesign.com
Creating an empathy map requires a large sheet of paper, a marker, and some sticky notes. Alternatively, you can use a digital tool, such as Miro or Canva, to create an online version. To begin, draw a large square and divide it into four equal parts, labeling each part with one of the four quadrants: say, do, think, and feel. In the center of the square, draw a circle and write the name and role of your user persona. You can also add a photo or a sketch of the user to make it more realistic. Then, fill in each quadrant with sticky notes based on the data you have from your user research and interviews. For example, in the say quadrant, write down the quotes or feedback that the user has given. In the do quadrant, write down the actions or behaviors that the user exhibits. In the think quadrant, write down the beliefs or assumptions that the user has. In the feel quadrant, write down the emotions or feelings that the user experiences. Finally, review and refine your empathy map, looking for patterns, gaps, or contradictions. You can also group or categorize the sticky notes by themes or topics, and use different colors or symbols to highlight them.
Make sure your empathy maps (plural) are based on real-world qualitative and quantitative research, and create several empathy maps for a spectrum of personas during your evaporative work.
Some consumer companies often break down this exercise into two steps: first, creating an initial perception map of users within their team, and second, validating this with actual responses obtained through user research. This approach can foster team collaboration and reveal fundamental user insights, while also addressing any assumption biases. It can be a leapfrog advantage in creating a more appealing product or service on the first attempt.
An empathy map is not a static document, but a dynamic and collaborative tool that can help you throughout your UX design process. It can be used to define a user's problem statement, goals, and needs, create user scenarios, user journeys, and user stories, generate ideas and solutions, and evaluate and test design solutions. For example, the think and feel quadrants can be used to identify the user's pain points and frustrations, while the say and do quadrants can be used to identify the user's expectations and desires. Additionally, the empathy map can be used to imagine how the user would interact with your product or service, and what outcomes they would achieve or avoid. It can also be used to brainstorm features or functions that would help the user overcome their challenges or achieve their aspirations, and to compare your design assumptions with the user's actual responses, and to measure how well your design meets the user's needs and expectations.
Make sure you involve all roles that are customer facing customer support, success team, account management, marketing, sales and basically any role that meets your persona. You'll find real insightful context for your maps.
In my experience, an empathy map has proven to be an indispensable, dynamic tool throughout the entire design process. Its flexibility and collaborative nature make it a constant point of reference that empowers creating exceptional user experiences. Starting with defining the user's problem statements, goals, and needs, the empathy map lays a strong foundation for understanding their perspectives. And when creating user scenarios and journeys, it helps me truly empathize with their journey, fostering more intuitive and user-centric design decisions.
Empathy maps are a simple and effective way to gain a deeper understanding of your user and to create more user-centered design solutions. By synthesizing and visualizing the data from user research and interviews, empathy maps can help identify key insights and themes. Additionally, they can create a shared understanding and empathy among the design team and stakeholders, and help focus on the user's needs and goals. Furthermore, empathy maps can generate more creative and relevant ideas and solutions that solve the user's problem and enhance their experience, while avoiding design decisions based on assumptions or preferences.
Empathy map enabling going into the right customer discovery as it talks about the challenges they express vs the solutions to build. It allows focusing on the problem to solve first and later being able to come up with the right solutions.
To make the most of your empathy maps, it's important to involve your design team and stakeholders in the creation and use of the map. Utilize real data and quotes from user research and interviews, and be specific and detailed in your sticky notes. Use the user's own words and expressions as much as possible. Additionally, update and revise your empathy map as you learn more about your user and as your design evolves. Treat the empathy map as a living document throughout your UX design process.
Being it a living document is key as your users evolve or become more sophisticated with your product. Like the same persona but new vs a super user.