Join Séamus T. Byrne on a journey through the world of storytelling as he explores our innate human predisposition to story, the evolution of narratives with emerging technologies (from cave paintings to twitter) and the efficacy of storytelling as a tool to create better user and customer experiences. As humans we are hardwired to a good story and digital storytelling is no exception to this! Best practices found in other disciplines for constructing a good story form can be applied to an online strategy, a multimedia piece, a user interface design or a brand campaign. Creating the right narrative is a vital step in building lasting, trusting relationships between your company’s offerings and your constituents (customers, users and advocates). Applying best practices of storytelling throughout the customer-to-user lifecycle can increase desirability, discoverability, clarity and usability. With the advent and proliferation of interactive technologies, story has new challenges to face. Storytelling will once again evolve as it strives to maintain its immersive qualities in a world obsessed by user choice, as it adjusts to accommodate the scale of available channels, where narratives can literally be found everywhere and to embrace non-linearity, where a user walks away from an experience with a mosaic of truths.

1. What’s the Story?
Infusing Experiences with the Craft of Storytelling!
Séamus T. Byrne

2. Introduction
• Séamus Byrne
‣ Creative Director at Graphic Mint
‣ My background
‣ The Organic City
‣ Ongoing Narrative

3. Contents
• Why do Stories Matter?
• The Evolution of Storytelling
with Technology
• Storytelling in the UXiverse
‣ Business Narratives
‣ Customer Narratives
‣ User Narratives
• Infusing Experiences with Storytelling

4. Why do Stories Matter?
“We experience life as a series of ongoing narratives, as
conflicts, characters, beginnings, middles and ends.”
– Dr. Walter Fischer

5. Stories and Community
• It is through the sharing of stories that communities:
‣ Build their identities, pass on tradition, construct meaning

6. The Evolution of Storytelling
with Technology
• Allowing storytellers to re-craft compelling tales in
emerging media

7. LascaUX Caves
• Estimated to be 17,000 years old
• First recorded evidence of human storytelling
• Depicting 2,000 figures: animals, humans and abstract signs
Once Upon a Time...

8. Oral Tradition
• Stories passed on from Generation to Generation
• Verbally transmitted folktales, sayings, ballads, song or chants
• Most commonly referenced by the bard

9. Written Alphabet
• Text Replaced the Oral Tradition (partially)
• 850 B.C. Homer the bard writes the oldest work of western
literature: The Iliad

10. The Book of Kells
• Circa 800 A.D. the book depicts the 4 Gospels
• Illuminated manuscript: juxtaposed pictorial art and text

11. The Printing Press
• Brought about by Gutenberg in 1439
• More people had access to new and old knowledge
• Brought about a scientific revolution, rise of the novel

12. The 20th Century
• Film, Radio and Television were born
• Story was re-purposed for the different media

13. Linear Stories

14. The Internet
• In 1969, the Internet was born
• The Digital Age: Digital and Interactive Storytelling

15. The Modern Narrative
• Web 2.0: Blogging, Micro-blogging, Social Networks
• New Media: Mobile, Broadband, Podcasting
• Author-ville: Participation via UGC and feedback
The new bards are here!

16. Non-Linear Stories

17. The Plot Thickens
• Narratives are “literally” everywhere

18. Storytelling in the UXiverse
• Business Narratives
• Customer Narratives
• User Narratives

19. The Setting

20. The Setting
Enterprise

21. The Setting
Ecosystem
Enterprise

22. The Setting
Ecosystem
Enterprise
Brand

23. The Setting
Ecosystem
Enterprise
Product
Brand

24. The Setting
Ecosystem
Enterprise
Product
Brand
Service

25. The Setting
Ecosystem
Enterprise
Touch-points
Product
Brand
Service

26. Business Narratives
Corporate
• Corporate Narrative: Mission,Vision,Values, Name,
Corporate Identity

27. Business Narratives
Corporate PR/Advertising
• Corporate Narrative: Mission,Vision,Values, Name,
Corporate Identity
• PR/Advertising Narrative: Press Releases, News and
Events, Blog Posts, Social Networks, History, Annual Reports,
Advertising

28. Business Narratives
Corporate PR/Advertising Brand
• Corporate Narrative: Mission,Vision,Values, Name,
Corporate Identity
• PR/Advertising Narrative: Press Releases, News and
Events, Blog Posts, Social Networks, History, Annual Reports,
Advertising
• Brand Narrative: Offering (product/service), Tone,
Messaging, Positioning, Copy, Metaphor, Features, Advantages

29. Business Narratives
Corporate
Public Domain
PR/Advertising
Brand

30. Customer and User Narratives
Public Domain
• Public Domain Narrative: Collective Public Opinion,
recommendations, reviews, word of mouth, viral

31. Customer and User Narratives
Public Domain Customer
• Public Domain Narrative: Collective Public Opinion,
recommendations, reviews, word of mouth, viral
• Customer Narrative: The path a customer takes
towards purchasing an offering

32. Customer and User Narratives
Public Domain Customer User
• Public Domain Narrative: Collective Public Opinion,
recommendations, reviews, word of mouth, viral
• Customer Narrative: The path a customer takes
towards purchasing an offering
• User Narrative: The path a user takes when using a
product and/or service

33. Customer and User Narratives
Corporate
Public Domain
PR/Advertising
Brand

34. Customer and User Narratives
Corporate
Public Domain Customer
PR/Advertising
Brand

35. Customer and User Narratives
Corporate
Public Domain Customer User
PR/Advertising
Brand

36. Example: Apple Stories
• Consistent emotional connection with consumer based
Corporate, PR/advertising and Brand narratives.
• Founded in garage, Adam and Eve eating forbidden fruit

37. Customer Narrative
General Public
Brand
PR/Advertising
Public Domain
WWW
Customer Websites
Corporate

38. Customer Narrative
General Public Expectations
Brand
PR/Advertising
Public Domain
WWW
Customer Websites
Corporate

39. Customer Narrative
Customer Journey
When the need arises, the customer has to
successfully discover and find your offering Discover
Examine
Purchase

40. Customer Narrative
Customer Journey
When the need arises, the customer has to
successfully discover and find your offering Discover
Customer must easily
understand the offering is
appropriate for their needs Examine
Purchase

41. Customer Narrative
Customer Journey
When the need arises, the customer has to
successfully discover and find your offering Discover
Customer must easily
understand the offering is
appropriate for their needs Examine
Ease and flow
of purchase
experience Purchase

42. Customer Narrative
Customer Journey
When the need arises, the customer has to
successfully discover and find your offering Discover
Customer must easily
understand the offering is
appropriate for their needs Examine
Ease and flow
of purchase
experience Purchase
Sales and marketing have
ensured a successful customer
experience, the plane has landed but
the journey is not over yet...

43. User Narrative
User Journey begins by
interacting with the Use
offering:
User Journey
User Goal

44. User Narrative
User Journey begins by
interacting with the Use
offering:
Easy to Use
User Journey
User Goal

45. User Narrative
User Journey begins by
interacting with the Use
offering:
Easy to Use
Useful
User Journey
User Goal

46. User Narrative
User Journey begins by
interacting with the Use
offering:
Easy to Use
Useful
User Journey
Meaningful
User Goal

47. User Narrative
User Journey begins by
interacting with the Use
offering:
Easy to Use
Useful
User Journey
Meaningful
User-centred design brings
the user to their goal.
User Goal

48. User Narrative
Expectations
User Journey begins by
interacting with the Use
offering:
Easy to Use
Useful
User Journey
Meaningful
Expectations
User-centred design brings
the user to their goal.
User Goal

49. End-to-End Story Experience

50. End-to-End Story Experience
Customer

51. End-to-End Story Experience
Customer
User

52. End-to-End Story Experience
General Public Customer Advocate
Prospect User
Beginning Middle End

53. The Advocate
• I love product “x”

54. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!

55. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!
G
en
er
al
P
ub
lic

56. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!
G
en
er
al
P
ub
Pr
lic
os
pe
ct

57. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!
G
en
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al
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os
C
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ct
to
m
er

58. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!
r
se
U
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to
us
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ct
pe
os
Pr
lic
Pub
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en
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59. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!
G
en
er
al
P
ub
Pr
lic
os
C
pe
us
ct
to
m
er
U
se
r
Advocate

60. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!
G
en
er
al
P
ub
Pr
lic
os
C
pe
us
ct
to
m
er
U
se
r
Advocate

61. Where Storytelling Goes Wrong!
Poor Advertising
G
en
Lack of Clarity
er
al
Bad Customer Service
P
ub
Pr
lic
os Unusable Product
C
pe
us
ct
to
m
er
U
se
r
Advocate

62. Love Stories
• The “love story” between you and your constituents is the
most important factor in building strong and lasting
relationships.
• Love stories increase the chances of adoption by advocates

63. Unleash the Storyteller
• Crafting better story experiences

64. Unearth the Story
• Unearth the story central to the overall customer and user
experience (story experience)

65. Map Story World
• Map ecosystem and identify touch-points

66. Research the Characters
• What are the customer and user goals and expectations?

67. Outline Basic Plot
• Craft a story designed to provide customers and/or users
with an optimal Beginning, Middle, End: Blue Sky Scenarios
• Remove their obstacles (- to +) (tension, time)

68. Set the Stage
• Every element from language, Choices available, and even UI
arrangement can be used to support main story
• Presentation/visual structure, elements from theatre

69. Share the Script
• Communicate story plan to other departments

70. Why Use Storytelling?
• Deeper Meaning: Enhance UCD with another layer of
relevance
• Automatic Advantage: Humans are hardwired to
storytelling
• Emotional response: Positive reactions increase adoption
• Cohesive Experience: Harmonic, Holistic and end-to-end

71. FIN.
• Have fun telling stories...

72. Image Credits
• http://onedollardietproject.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/img_2666.jpg
• http://www.parkland.lib.sk.ca/SASM%202009.jpeg
• http://designgraphics.ncsu.edu:82/designtech/img/Research2008_NonLinearNarative.jpg
• http://storycharts.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/SchindlersList.jpg
• http://mtcompletecomm.com/images/res_sheets/overviewLG.jpg
• http://yamz.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/bard_1.jpg
• http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_vxEaWyLdV44/SwMNMuan0fI/AAAAAAAAAME/JZ2WzJlgaGM/s1600/
TRUFFLES+-+dog.jpg
• http://media.photobucket.com/image/map%20storyworld/griffinial/MapleStory_world_map.png
• http://wiki.fluidproject.org/download/attachments/3904542/Kivio-personas-overview.png
• http://www.linlindesigns.com/images/exploreChicago_userScenario.jpg
• http://villagetheatre.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/p1050025.jpg
• http://img709.imageshack.us/i/sansspicture.jpg/
• http://hughgrahamcreative.com/images/blog-pilgrimsprogress.jpg
• http://2pass.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/bard.jpg