User Story Mapping Tutorial (How to create, read, and use story maps)

In this practical guide to how to create story maps, expert Mike Cohn offers a user story mapping tutorial, from what a story map is, to why story maps are helpful, to when teams create user stories.

You'll learn
* how to create a story map along two dimensions
* how to read a story map
* how teams can use story maps to understand their product users and requirements
* how to turn a story map into a product roadmap

Don't miss this opportunity to get free training in the essential agile skills of how to use, read, and create story maps.

Free Downloads
Story Map Template and Cheatsheet

More User Story Training from Mountain Goat Software

Inside "User Story Mapping Tutorial (How to create, read, and use story maps)"
00:00 Get essential agile skills: use, read, and create a story map
00:55 What is a story map?
01:30 Example user story map
02:00 Introducing a second dimension to story maps
03:00 How to add priority to story maps
03:18 What is the backbone of a story map?
03:48 How to tame an out-of-control story map
04:24 Defining story mapping terms: step, activity and narrative
06:12 Two times to create a new story map
06:49 Should you create a story map for everything?
07:41 Who should participate in story mapping?
08:57 Turn a story map into a product roadmap
10:04 How to indicate multiple milestones on a roadmap
10:18 Why create story maps - and how to make yours robust
10:55 Why story maps are effective tools

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What Are Job Stories?

Two Times to Use Job Stories vs User Stories

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Playlist: Writing Better User Stories

[thx]

This was a revelation in story mapping and I will use this with my new team. Keep up the good wlork

[ianbabelon]

As UX researcher and domain expert, I find user story maps an interesting type of artefact -- somewhat different from user journey maps in that they are perhaps more product- and dev-centric. I'm learning about Object-Oriented UX concurrently, which focuses on mapping all relevant 'objects' prior to mapping interactions and steps in user flows. OOUX might come in before user story maps or even user journey maps, and seems useful in combining goal-directed design approaches (possibly Jobs to be done as well?) with observational research about what users actually do and really need. This video is really useful in helping me to better understand how my colleagues who are more technical and product operations-focused go about building products, and how I can best feed UX research insights accordingly. Many thanks! ⭐

[michaelwagener]

Thanks Mike - as always a great video. Concise, relevant and intuitive - what's not to like. I shall share it immediately with my team, and the organisation that I work with.

[luisvaz]

Always getting insights from these videos.

[K-Killerzz]

Thanks, Mike, I would like to ask in case we have multiple cases, how do we visualize on story map? And do we treat backbone as Epic? If yes for the incremental it means the epic done when all activities finish or mvp is release? In case mvp release but epic still have activity it means it never end?

[ed]

Hi Mike, if the product has several types of users and they have different experiences, do you recommend to create several story maps?