Introduction
I unpack our “story methodology”. This is a unique way to document discovery that is engaging, logical and easy to understand. You do not need to use our methodology, however this module will equip you with some great ideas on how can capture, document and structure the information you require from your clients for their project.
Workshop video
The story methodology
We believe every discovery document tells a story. Since we were children, we’ve been exposed to story telling and can naturally create our own narratives when explaining ideas to others. Our story methodology uses the structure of a series of books with characters, chapters and detailed narrative to help create an engaging, easy to create and easy to understand document.
Traditional discovery documentation be too formal, complex, detailed and hard to understand. This makes both the process of reading and creating such documents both boring and difficult. Here is a breakdown of the story methodology:
Characters
A story has a set of characters who will go on a range of journeys. We use characters as our key users. These would be those using the finished product, and those engaged in its design and creation. For each “character” or “user” we would create a short avatar/backstory to help us understand them better.
Chapters
These are the journeys / outcomes that each character will be engaging with. We structure these as chapter titles to ensure we’ve covered all activities we believe will be required across all users.
Narrative
Each chapter will need a narrative. You will flesh out what happens for each chapter in an easy to read narrative approach.
The end result
A structured document outlining what needs to happen in a fun and easy way to create and consume.
Resources
Transcript
Click here to download the transcript
Audio
Supporting content
Here is some “vintage” Agency Trailblazer content that give insight into the story methodology we’ve utilised for many years.
