User Persona

A user persona is a semi-fictional character that represents a key segment of your target audience. Based on real user research data, personas help teams understand user needs, goals, behaviors, and pain points.

What Makes a Good Persona

Demographics: Age, location, job title, income Goals: What they want to accomplish Behaviors: How they interact with products Pain Points: Problems they need solved Motivations: What drives their decisions

Why User Personas Matter

Better decisions: Design for real users, not assumptions Team alignment: Everyone understands who you're building for Prioritization: Focus on features that matter most Marketing: Target the right messages to the right people Empathy: Keep users at the center of discussions

Creating User Personas

1. Research your users: Surveys, interviews, analytics
2. Find patterns: Group similar behaviors and needs
3. Create 3-5 personas: Represent major user segments
4. Include details: Make them feel like real people
5. Share widely: Use in all design decisions
6. Update regularly: Personas evolve as users change

Persona Components

Name & Photo: Make them memorable Background: Job, experience level, context Goals & Needs: What success looks like Frustrations: Current pain points Quote: Summarizes their perspective Tech Comfort: How savvy are they?

Common Mistakes

❌ Making too many personas (3-5 is ideal) ❌ Based on assumptions, not research ❌ Too generic ("tech-savvy millennial") ❌ Creating them once and forgetting ❌ Not using them in actual decisions

Personas + Card Sorting

Use card sorting to validate your personas:

• Test if different personas organize content differently
• Discover mental models for each segment
• Create personalized navigation paths
• Validate assumptions about user behavior

Different personas = different information needs

Persona vs Demographic

Demographics: Basic stats (age, location)

• Limited insight into behavior
• Easy to collect
• Not actionable alone

Personas: Rich behavioral profiles

• Include motivations and context
• Based on qualitative + quantitative research
• Guide specific design decisions

Using Personas Effectively

✅ Reference in design reviews ✅ Include in project briefs ✅ Test designs against persona goals ✅ Use to resolve team debates ✅ Update based on new research ✅ Share with entire organization

Sample Persona

Sarah, the Startup UX Lead

• 32 years old, works at a 50-person SaaS startup
• Goal: Validate navigation design before development
• Frustration: Expensive tools, slow traditional research
• Quote: "I need fast insights without breaking the budget"
• Tech: Very comfortable, uses modern UX tools daily

Create card sorts tailored to your personas at freecardsort.com