Going back to basics: Importance of Personas, Use Cases and Storyboards in Software Development?

Often, I am asked about the most important elements of software development. There are many; obviously great team, shared vision; technical intensity, investment are all key to any successful project. But in this article, I tried to explain more elemental 3 key aspects of software development projects. Personas, Use Cases and Story Boards. These 3 key elements help any development teams to stay true to their target customers, understand/prioritise key customer needs to be addressed and help to imagine user flows even before writing a single piece of actual code.

Successful development teams put great deal of importance on these 3 elements. Obviously just like everything else in any software development projects, personas/use cases and storyboards can also evolve and change in time, as teams discovers new data driven insights, pivot from their idea, reflect customer feedback.

What is a Persona?

Personas are detailed fictional characters based on real data-insights. They represent different user types or customer segments. Personas are important in startup development and app creation. They help to understand user's needs, behaviours, and motivations. They guide product design and ensure solution align with user expectations. Teams who have realistic personas that represent their target user profiles increases likelihood of success in the market.

With the power of AI, you can create AI driven personas, like virtual profiles powered by AI to simulate user behaviour. They can help in creating user-centric software by predicting, understanding, and adapting to user needs and behaviours.

Example Persona:

What is a Use Case?

A use case is a concept used in software development and product design. Describes how a system can be used to achieve specific goals or tasks. Each use case outlines the interactions between personas and the system to achieve a specific outcome. Use cases provide a clear understanding of the goals and requirements of the system. They help to identify potential issues and improve the user experience. By defining use cases, software development teams also simplify prioritization of the work they want to implement. Since ideally each use case should be associated with combination of futures/and work items to be implemented and tested.

Example Use Case:

Primary Personas: Customer ordering a meal and restaurant worker

Scenario: The user browses restaurant options. Once the preferred restaurant is selected, they place an order through the application. The user pays online or verifies they will pay in person. The order is sent from the app to the restaurant’s internal system. The restaurant worker receives and processes the electronic order.

• Individuals can use an app to place food orders directly to restaurants
• When the user places an order, they are prompted to pay through the app or pay when the food arrives
• The restaurant will receive a request through their system once the order is confirmed
• The food will be prepared, packaged and delivered to the individual
• The app must be able to receive orders, process payments, and communicate with the restaurant electronically

This use case illustrates how both the customer and restaurant employee interact with the food delivery application and the expected outcome of each interaction.

What is a Storyboard?

Storyboarding is a process of creating a visual illustration of a user's journey with a product or service. It can be used in the development of mobile apps, websites, software etc. They can be created in a variety of formats such as sketches, wireframes, or digital prototypes. It helps teams to visualize the end-to-end use cases they are thinking about enabling.

Example Storyboard:

Personas, use cases and storyboards are crucial tools in software development, acting as practical frameworks that keep developers focused on users' needs. Personas represent typical users, helping teams understand their behaviours and preferences. Use cases outline specific interactions between users and the software, guiding developers in building features that directly address user requirements. Storyboards enables developers to map out and refine the user experience. These tools collectively ensure that software is designed with users in mind, making it more user-friendly, purposeful, and aligned with real-world needs, ultimately leading to better software products.