User Story Mapping
Label: Product Management
Use User story mapping (also know as story map or story mapping) to drive product discussion and align everyone’s efforts at any stage of the process. Story maps can be used for new products after discovery work, or for existing products after usability testing. The user story map helps teams illustrate how the solutions can solve the problems research activities have uncovered.
When should you use this tool?
- If you want to define the user journey and the product functionalities for one or multiple users.
- You want to discuss functionalities and priorities with all stakeholders.
- You want to discuss user needs and functionalities before you start creating a product roadmap.
- You want to illustrate how the solution can solve a problem for one or multiple users and want to use this resource to discuss priorities and requirements with the team.
Don’t use user story maps when:
- You want to illustrate how the user goes from point A to point B and the emotions and needs that are connected to each phase. Use a ‘User/Buyer Journey’ instead.
- Do not use user story maps to define your ‘personas’ and their needs. Use a ‘User persona’ instead.
- Do not use the user story map to define deliverables and due dates. Create a Roadmap or Gantt Chart instead.
Steps:
STEP 1
Activities
Describe the high-level tasks that users aim to accomplish using the digital product, such as ‘checking the account balance’ or ‘depositing a check’. (Usage process)
These will potentially be transformed into “initiatives or epics”.
STEP 2:
Steps
Steps appear under activities and are arranged sequentially. To complete the activity above, users will go through specific subtasks in the product. In the activity, Deposit a check, the steps are: Enter mobile deposit details, Sign the check, Photograph the check, Submit the deposit, and Confirm the deposit. (user tasks)
If you are a product manager, often steps can represent some of the user stories.
STEP 3
Define the details
You can use details to describe the lowest-granularity interactions the team anticipates users will experience. These are often similar to product requirements like ‘Enter email’ ‘ Enter password’
STEP 4
Define the MVP or your next release
Identifying the minimum viable product (or next release) and prioritizing it based on well-informed judgment by analyzing the User story map.
Team members can use story maps to visualize what their minimum-viable-product release could or should include, along with how and when to release end-to-end product increments with specific goals and outcomes.
Get access to this tool for free inside @Nova.
Nova is a collaboration and productivity platform that leverages intelligent technology to help teams work together while coordinating the work for you – so teams can share their knowledge and get things done efficiently. Unlike other platforms – Nova helps organize work by goals, people and deadlines and includes tools like whiteboards, tasks and documents to get things done in the same space.
Nova was Co-founded by Ro Fernandez so includes all our tools.
Here is an overview. Nova includes a collaborative space, a template, a video/voice call, a trackable step-by-step process, an intelligent report, and more.