Developing a strong sense of empathy can help you to truly understand the needs, fears, and desires of your users, customers, and clients. And when it comes to designing a great product, you must develop a deep understanding of the people who will use it. In this article, we’ll introduce you to a tool called an empathy map, and share how it can help you as a product designer learn about your end users, figure out what they care about, and help your products succeed. What is an empathy map? Empathy is the human ability to identify and understand another person’s situation, including the emotions that they are experiencing. As the name suggests, an empathy map is a tool that can help you build empathy with your end users by helping you to understand, visualize, and then to articulate what a product team knows about its users. It helps the team find answers to the “Why?” questions (such as, “Why do users do what they do?”). The tool was initially created by Dave Gray, the author of Gamestorming: A Playbook For Innovators, Rulebreakers, And Changemakers, who also created something called an empathy map canvas. The canvas is divided into several sections, and the user (the person who will use your product; the one you want to understand and empathize with) is located at the center of the canvas. Each area explores the user’s mindset, as well as what happens in their environment while interacting with your product. Here are some essential areas of an empathy map: Think and feel. This section contains information about the user’s emotional state. What would the user be thinking and feeling while using your product? All too often, product designers tend to focus only on positive thoughts, but negative thoughts are equally important. Aspects of your product that make the user feel bad can hurt long-term user retention. Hear. What would people around the user say while the user is trying your product? Consider personal connections with other people (like family, friends, and teammates) because they have a tremendous impact on how users think about your product. If the user hears a lot of great things about your product from the people they trust, this will create a positive impression even before they actually start using it. See. What the user sees while using your product. For example, you can describe what people around the user might do while the user experiences a product, or if the user might be seeing something in the environment around them. Say and do. What might the user be saying and/or physically doing while using your product? You should collect the actual phrases that the user says out loud while interacting with a product. These phrases can be collected during usability testing. Pain. What are some of the user’s pain points when using a product? Try to capture challenges and obstacles that stand in the user’s way. Gain. What does the user stand to gain from using your product? Think about what success looks like for the user—what dreams or goals do they have? A simple framework will help you summarize these gains: “The user wants _______ because _______.” Focus on the second blank, because it’s directly related to user motivation. While there are no strict rules about what order to fill in your canvas for your empathy mapping exercise, it’s worth starting with the see, hear, say, and do sections because they are easier to fill out, and will help you create a foundation for your map. It’s also important not to exaggerate the role of your product in the life of users. Build your empathy map around realistic scenarios, and don’t assume that it will be life changing if that’s not the actual case. Grow your business with the Shopify Partner Program Whether you offer web design and development services or want to build apps for the Shopify App Store, the Shopify Partner Program will set you up for success. Join for free and access revenue share opportunities, developer preview environments, and educational resources. Sign up...