Persona Development

Personas play a vital role in the user-centered design process. They capture user expectations, concerns, and motivations, enabling design teams to create products that meet user needs and achieve success. In this example, a health care organization was acquiring a new hospital and needed to answer patients' anticipated questions about how the procurement will affect the user’s care. I developed personas and important questions users will ask about the change.

The Opportunity

Discover more about our patients' needs and concerns regarding the hospital's change in ownership. Developing personas allowed us to empathize with patients and understand their goals, health profiles, key interests, frustrations, challenges, and specific concerns related to the ownership transition.

Value it produced

Creating personas enabled our team to deeply empathize with user expectations, concerns, and motivations. This valuable insight guides design teams in crafting products that meet user needs, ensuring overall success.

Your role

Lead Researcher

Constraints

Incorrect or Misidentified Personas: Creating personas that are not validated or iterated poses a significant risk. Building a website or app based on outdated, incomplete, or inaccurate data can lead to ineffective design and user experience. To avoid this, it is essential to conduct thorough research, steer clear of stereotypes, and interview customers or patients whenever possible.

Team Buy-In: Often, once personas are created, they are not utilized, particularly when time is limited. Ensuring that the team fully buys into the importance of personas is crucial for their effective implementation and integration into the design process.

How did research inform the design

These personas guided our content team in developing the Frequently Asked Questions section of the new hospital website.