When writing software requirements it is important to write them in a way that is easy for the team to understand. When writing requirements you want to focus on complete sentences and short sentences, otherwise it can be hard to understand what your user is trying to say. There are some rules to follow when writing user stories so you don’t get the same answer every time they are asked.
Here, I will be sharing with you how to write the best user stories.
Banking app user story example
This banking app user story example is a great way of explaining a required feature and why the user needs it in a succinct way.
It gets straight to the point about who the user is and what they need to accomplish. In fact, one of the things that’s great about it is that it even hints at one of the pains the user of a banking app (in this case the credit card holder) might typically feel, such as worrying about their outstanding credit card balance, keeping a good credit score and staying out of the red.
The user in this user story example wants to pay their balance, so the first thing the design team might do is start working on a solution that gives them more or less instant access to their credit card balance. Either it should be the first thing they see when they open the app or there should be a clear option to see the balance of that card that’s just a tap away.
Agile user story writing template
Our next user story example from Whizible is also a template you can download to give you and your team a head start.
This template lets you write a list of multiple user stories on the same card. The horizontal columns at the top display the formulaic sentence of the typical user story, meaning the blanks just need to be filled in.
This can definitely save time when writing out multiple user stories and can help you get straight to the point. For example, at a glance we can glean from this user story example that the content manager has the following story:
“As a content manager, I want to get a weekly report of content analytics so I can monitor the effectiveness of the content writer.”
Product Plan user story example
This user story example Product Plan has five important sections. The first is the Title of the story. For this you might want to give the name of the feature that the story is going to be about, such as “book reviews”.
In the Priority section, you can assign a priority from low to medium or high. It’s important to assign priorities to your backlog items as some features will be in more demand, according to your requirements traceability matrix. Next to Priority is the Estimate section. Here you can state the time you think it will take the team to deliver on this feature. Here, you might assign the relevant number of scrum points.
Next in this user story example, you have the user story section itself, and finally, the acceptance criteria. The acceptance criteria is often written on the back of the index copy, but as this is a two dimensional digital copy, the acceptance criteria is clearly written just beneath as a sort of conclusion. Some may find it extra helpful to have everything included on the same page.
Word Doc user story example
This downloadable user story example comes as a Word document that you can edit. In our opinion, the instructions that come after each clause in the user story, along with those for the acceptance criteria are pretty straightforward to follow.
Why is it important to have these instructions in your user story template? Because if your team has gone a while without writing user stories, or you have to work on many stories, it is good to have these kinds of instructions to act as a prompt. They serve as a useful reminder of the quality of information that should go into each clause.
Excel user story example
What better way to group information in tables than excel? This excel user story example is also a little different in that, in addition to the usual fields, it also gives you the opportunity to fill in other important information.
The extra fields you can find in this user story example include the user business value, risk calculation, cost of delay and weighted shortest job first. This extra information could also be useful, depending on the type of product features you are working on, or the types of clients or company that you work for.
Thematic user story example
This excel-based, thematic story example, you get a column for priority estimate, acceptance criteria, and also a “Release” column for a release date.
The columns in this user story example are well-ordered, with the themes laid out vertically and the column types horizontally. This would be a great template for an epic story that is composed of multiple sub-stories.
Epic user story example
Speaking of epic user story examples, you might want to take a look at this epic user story template. It provides a great way of grouping substories by their epic stories.
Each epic story feature is listed vertically, with the columns being for the user, the action or want and the benefit. The last column then consists of a vertical arrangement of user stories in subrows wrapped into each cell.
The way this epic user story is laid out, it manages to show a clear hierarchy between the epics and their multiple, detailed user stories. This makes it very easy to scan and to get a quick overview of all of the features that need to be applied or developed in order to satisfy the user.
PowerPoint user story example
This downloadable user story example from Powerslides shows us another neat way that we can organize our user stories. These cards can be shown in a powerpoint presentation, as well as printed out and distributed.
We also like the clear division of the most important sections: the user story and the user ID, as well as a few sections that differentiates it from other examples.
In the story section we can see the user story and the acceptance criteria. However, under the user ID section is an area where you can attach a picture of your user persona, along with some checkboxes for the type of feature it focuses on and fields for priority and time estimation.
Index card user story example
What we like about this good old-fashioned index card user story is the simplicity and the way it brings things back to basics. Sometimes you might need to draft up a story quickly for a product feature or a quick overview of features like an epic.
This simple and traditional user story example shows us exactly how easy it can be. The great thing about index cards is that you can also write the acceptance criteria on the back and then the user story card can be passed around the team.
User story front-and-back example
Here we have a traditional front-and-back user story example that reflects how one might go about writing up a user story on an index card. The story shows clearly what the user wants to achieve and why they want to achieve it.
In this case they want to cancel their reservations so as not to lose all of their money should a situation arise.
On the back of the card, the acceptance criteria are all listed out. It shows all of the functions of the app that need to be taken care of in order for the user’s benefits and the benefits of the business goals to be satisfactorily met.
Writing User Stories
A user story is only as effective as the discussions on them, and they are only as effective as the participation. Having ceremonies such as Refinement sessions or Amigo sessions is the what makes user stories effective. A user-story written in the correct format is the biggest step, and the next step is getting the acceptance criteria clearly documented.
Characteristics of user stories
- A good user story is written in one to three lines
- A good story should always be in the active voice
- User stories are used to communicate. So make them visible and accessible
Tips for writing good user stories
- Keep your user stories clear and concise
- Write user stories collaboratively
- Start with Epics
- Refine the stories until they are ready
User stories acceptance criteria:
There are many formats for documenting acceptance criteria –
Just simple sentences or
As scenarios or
As scenarios in Gherkin format (Given.. When.. Then..)
Gherkin format is especially popular in teams where Testing is automated since the Acceptance criteria can be reused, and this reduces any instance of requirement ambiguity or misinterpretation.
Conclusion
A user story is a simple document designed to capture the feature conversations about the feature in the agile development process. You should include all of your stakeholders at one point in time. The document highlights who needs what, who is responsible for what, and, importantly, why it’s important that users have access to this new functionality.