Using Personas
Make personas part of your daily workflow and decision-making process
Your Progress
Section 3 of 5Personas Are Useless... Unless You Use Them
Most personas end up in a PDF that nobody opens. They sit in Notion gathering dust.
The problem is not the personas. The problem is that teams create them and then forget they exist.
Here is how to actually use personas in your daily work.
Evaluate Features with Personas
Persona Decision Framework
Evaluate a feature idea against your personas. Which personas benefit? Which do not care?
Feature Prioritization with Personas
When deciding what to build next, ask: Which persona does this feature serve?
✓ Good Feature Proposal
"Add bulk edit for tasks. Marcus (Engineering Manager) manages 15+ tasks per week. This saves him 30 minutes weekly."
Clear persona. Clear benefit. Easy to prioritize.
✗ Bad Feature Proposal
"Add dark mode. Users want it."
Which users? Why do they want it? How does it help them achieve their goals?
Rule: Every feature proposal should name a persona and explain how it helps them.
Map Features to Personas
Feature-Persona Mapper
Map your features to personas and their goals. Spot gaps in your roadmap.
Add features to see your persona map
Design Critiques with Personas
During design reviews, ask: Would [Persona Name] understand this?
Instead of: "I think this button is confusing."
Vague. Based on personal opinion.
Try: "Would Marcus know what 'Sync Status' means? He is trying to see what is blocking his team."
Specific. Grounded in user goals.
Questions to Ask
- →Would Sarah (our persona) understand this label?
- →Does this workflow match how Marcus actually works?
- →Is this feature helping Sarah achieve her goal?
- →Would Marcus open this app when he is stressed?
Getting Your Team to Actually Use Personas
1. Make Them Visible
Print posters. Put them on the wall. Add them to your team wiki homepage. Out of sight = out of mind.
2. Reference in Slack
"This feature is for Marcus (Engineering Manager). Here is why he needs it..." Mention personas by name.
3. Use in Planning
Start planning meetings with: "This sprint, we are focusing on Sarah's pain points."
4. Add to PRD Templates
Require: "Which persona does this feature serve?" in every product spec.
Lead by Example
If you are the PM, use personas in every conversation. Your team will follow. Behavior spreads.
Key Takeaways
- •Every feature proposal should name a persona and explain the benefit.
- •Use "Would [Persona] understand this?" during design reviews.
- •Make personas visible—posters, wiki, Slack—so team actually remembers them.
- •Build personas into workflow—PRD templates, sprint planning, design critiques.