What is the use of a product whose functionality does not meet any aspiration of its target user? It is useless, with its manufacturer running the risk of bankruptcy for lack of customers.
To meet and exceed customers' expectations, there is nothing better than collecting the end user's product feedback to satisfy their needs.
For this purpose, user stories are the method used.
What is a user story?
In software development and product management, a user story is an informal description, in natural language, of the characteristics of a software system.
It is a simple description of a need or expectation expressed by a user and used in software development and new product design to determine what features to develop.
It is not a matter of chance but a process that obeys precise structuring.
Its structure
It consists in identifying a typical user and detecting his desires to define the purpose that the product to be proposed should reach.
It is presented as follows:
As a [typical user or persona], I want [a feature] to [purpose].
What are the characteristics of a good user story?
It is worth remembering that the characteristics of the user story have evolved, from the 3Cs to INVEST.
The 3Cs
The concept of user stories was born in the late 1990s, but it was in 2001 that Ron Jeffries proposed the "3 Cs" for creating user stories. It refers to :
- Card (i.e., post-it note, Trello card, Jira card, etc.) as a tangible physical support for concepts.
- Conversation - a verbal and documented conversation between the parties involved with the objective of understanding by all.
- Confirmation - guarantees that the objectives of the conversation have been met.
As of 2003
Bill Wake (software development consultant) proposed INVEST in 2003.
- Independence - all user stories you write must be independent.
- Negotiable - A good user story is negotiable. It is not an explicit contract for functionality; the details will be co-created by the client and programmer during the design process.
- Value - each user story you prioritize and work on must provide value to your customers and solve their problems.
- Estimable – An exact estimate is not needed, but just enough to help the client rank and plan the implementation of the story.
- Small - Stories are usually a few weeks/days/people of work.
- Testable - writing a story card carries an implicit promise: "I understand what I want well enough to write a test accordingly.
The concept of user stories has related concepts that can help to achieve the same ends if necessary.
Variants and related concepts
A "job story" is a variant where the needs are more related to the user's business role and objectives than his personality.
The abuser story is a variant used to integrate security from the beginning of development. This type of story presents the intentions of a malicious user that we will try to keep in check.
User journey mapping is a concept similar to user story mapping. Its goal is to better understand the user experience and identify friction points and unmet needs.
FAQ
What is a user story?
In software development and product management, a user story is an informal description, in natural language, of the characteristics of a software system.
What is an example of a user story?
A user story is an informal, general explanation of a software feature written from the end user's or customer's perspective. The purpose of a user story is to articulate how a piece of work will deliver a particular value back to the customer.
As a < type of user >, I want < some goal > so that < some reason >.
What is a user story in Scrum?
A user story or agile/scrum user story is a tool used in agile software development and product management to represent the smallest unit of work in the framework.
What are the 3 C's of user stories?
The 3 C's of User Stories are tools that help keep the purpose of the user story in perspective.
- The first C is the user story in its raw form, the Card.
- The second C is the Conversation.
- The third C is the Confirmation.