Introduction

This was the start of a new semester and therefore a new module IXD 304 Narrative and Storytelling, with most of this week’s lecture being dedicated to introducing the module and its deliverables. We were also advised to watch a video from an IxD conference by Cindy Chastain called “Thinking Like a Storyteller” and it is this talk I would like to reflect on in this blog post.

Thinking Like a Storyteller

I was very interested to check out this talk by Cindy Chastain as if I’m totally honest I do not fully understand the role of storytelling and the use of storytelling techniques in interaction design. I understand the power of storytelling and connecting with people on an emotional level, however I have struggled to make the link and I hoped this talk would help me to bridge the gap and allow me to bring more stories and narrative to my designs.

One of the first things discussed that I found interesting was how we narrate our own lives and talk ourselves (internally) through the tasks we are undertaking. Whilst like everyone else I do this I had never considered it as a story just as a natural way of me completing tasks. However, looking at it now I can see how this could be considered as a story and how the design of a any product used in a task could influence that story and therefore an user’s emotions towards a product. For example, if a product is easy to use and provides a good user experience this internal self-narrative will also be positive, and the user will link positive emotions to the product. While we cannot control someone’s self-narrative, by ensuring we design products that meet users needs we can greatly increase the likelihood of our product being viewed positively.

Cindy also discussed other techniques used in storytelling using examples from the movies to illustrate the technique. One was slow disclosure where in films the stream of information given to the viewer is given at a set pace to build emotion or deliver a surprise. While this is not necessarily the aim in the design of a digital product, I believe slow disclosure as a technique could be considered when deciding how much information to give to users and when in a particular user flow. It can be very easy to overwhelm a user with too much information which they may not need at that point in a user flow, by using the technique of slow disclosure however, and revealing information to users when they need it, we can significantly improve the user experience.

The main core of this talk was around the four cues used in storytelling to set the plot and how these can be used within an interaction design. These cues are:

• To infer potential – while in a story these cues may be used to set the scene in interaction design, we need to show users what they can do within a digital product this could be as simple as clear call to action buttons or a progress bar to show where a user is in the user flow.

Source: https://img.freepik.com/free-vector/flat-design-cta-button-collection_23-2148947704.jpg (Last Accessed 07/02/23)

• To express causality – we as people want to know why something happened and what caused it to happen, so in stories there will often be cues given to set up a particular event where you might see a prop that is a precursor to an event. In interaction design we have a similar need to show users what their actions have done, again this can be achieved simply by changing the state of a button to show it has been pressed or clearly indicating what the previous interaction has changed using a highlight colour.

Source: https://assets.justinmind.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/button-state-design-ui.png (Last Accessed 07/02/23)

• To reinforce probability – in stories these cues are used to help us build up ideas and expectations in our heads that can then be proven or in a twist of the story disproven. We don’t aim to include twists in interaction design but if we can use cues successfully, we can help our users develop mental models of how to use our product. If we can make these cues clear, we can help users have a frictionless path through our product to achieve their goals.
• To facilitate completion – All stories need an ending a clear point that shows the story has come to an end, in interaction design this is also true. We need to let users know when they have reached the end of a user flow, what they have done and what they might like to do next. Often this will take the form of a confirmation screen with information about the task completed.

Source: https://cdn.dribbble.com/users/89977/screenshots/3364476/tch-checkout.png?resize=400x0 (Last Accessed 07/02/23)

Conclusion

In conclusion I found this talk very insightful and interesting it really helped me bridge the gap between storytelling and interaction design that I have been struggling with. I now have a much clearer idea of how I can use storytelling techniques within my designs.