Personas & Empathy
1. What is a Persona?
Section titled “1. What is a Persona?”A persona is a semi-fictional profile representing a segment of target users, based on real qualitative and quantitative data.
It helps keep the user at the center of the design process throughout the project.
2. Origins & Purpose
Section titled “2. Origins & Purpose”- Invented by Alan Cooper in 1999 to design user-centered interfaces
- Used in UX as a User Persona to improve user experience
- Used in marketing as a Buyer Persona to target a commercial audience
It’s an empathy tool used to:
- Understand motivations, frustrations, and goals
- Guide UX decisions: “Would this feature help [persona] achieve their goal?”
3. Characterizing a UX Persona
Section titled “3. Characterizing a UX Persona”| 📊 Category | 💡 Examples |
|---|---|
| Demographic | Age, gender, family status |
| Psycho-cognitive | Language, personality, beliefs, physical/mental abilities |
| Organizational | Industry, work environment |
| Task-related | Goals, usage type, experience, frequency |
✅ Source: Karine Lallemand – Méthodes de design UX
4. Types of Personas
Section titled “4. Types of Personas”Proto-persona
Section titled “Proto-persona”- Based on internal assumptions
- Created quickly at the start of a project
- Less precise but useful to get started
Research-based UX Persona
Section titled “Research-based UX Persona”- Based on interviews, observations, and analysis
- Offers a more realistic and in-depth view
5. Recommended Persona Content
Section titled “5. Recommended Persona Content”- First name, age, stock photo
- Short biography
- Goals and motivations
- Key frustrations
- Memorable quote or verbatim
- Preferred brands/lifestyle
- Devices and tools used
- Level of digital expertise
- Context of product use
Tip
Use Figma templates for clean formatting
6. Empathy & the Empathy Map
Section titled “6. Empathy & the Empathy Map”What is an Empathy Map?
Section titled “What is an Empathy Map?”An Empathy Map is a visual tool used to synthesize what we know about a user.
It helps go beyond raw data to understand:
- What they say 🗣
- What they think 💭
- What they do 👣
- What they feel ❤️
✅ Often created after user interviews.
Use in Collaborative Workshops
Section titled “Use in Collaborative Workshops”- In teams (design, marketing, product, support…)
- With sticky notes or on a Figma board
- Each section of the template is filled out together
- May also include: fears, frustrations, expected benefits
Each empathy map is tied to a specific persona
7. Empathy Map: Common Structure
Section titled “7. Empathy Map: Common Structure”| 🟪 Block | 🎯 Content |
|---|---|
| SAYS | What the user says in interviews |
| THINKS | What they think (not said, inferred) |
| DOES | What they actually do |
| FEELS | What they feel (positive/negative) |
| Optional | Frustrations, expectations, benefits |
8. Synthesis & Deliverables
Section titled “8. Synthesis & Deliverables”- 1 complete UX persona per user type
- 1 empathy map per persona
- Visual assets ready for stakeholders
These deliverables are used to:
Section titled “These deliverables are used to:”- Feed into the Customer Journey Map
- Define a problem to solve (next step in Design Thinking)
Conclusion
Section titled “Conclusion”Personas and empathy maps are the foundations of any UX process:
They turn user data into human-centered design tools.
Without them, we design for “imaginary users”;
with them, we design for real humans.