In short: A storyboard with three service moments that each include a title, short description and a doodle is super fast to create. It takes 15 minutes and you have already something you can test. As it's fast to create, it makes it easy to test several different ideas.

First, title, then sketch, then description

I like to start my service storyboards in this way. First I give the whole storyboard a title. That already sets a sense of direction. Then I draw three frames where I'll later draw tiny shitty doodles. Then I add a title below each of these frames.

Only then comes the actual drawing. And I really like to draw before I describe. Because usually it's through the drawing that I figure many things out.

Finally I add a little description below the title of each frame.

Three frames for many different things

You can use three frames to describe many levels of a service concept. You can describe:

• The three key moments or features of the service: not showing all the things that are expected (like forms) but focusing on what makes this service truely unique.

• The three stages within a specific moment: like describing the onboarding moment in more details.

• The before, during and after: which describes well how people discover the service, use it, and how it changes their lives. Just in three frames, not bad, right?!

Quick means you can do many

Because this type of prototyping is so fast, in one hour you can easily have three to five different prototypes that are very different out, And then pick three to test out with people. Not bad for an hour of work!

When you don't know or a blocked make a storyboard

When the people I coach or mentor are blocked in their head, I like to push them to do a storyboard. For two main reasons:

• The structure kills the white sheet syndrome: a storyboard like this has a structure: main title, three frames with sketch, title and description. You just have to fill the boxes. It doesn't feel like starting from a white sheet of paper. It's a less anxious process.

• Making it by hand gets people out of their head: especially when people do these storyboards by hand, they get out of all their thoughts, and they get out of their computer (which is a often a sucker of attention, and where too much time is spent collecting and fiddeling on details). Focusing on one A4 sheet of paper for a few minutes does people well. And they have a result that they can directly take and show others.

Backstage of this article

This article was illustrated on a refurbished Remarkable II tablet and written on it using a type folio keyboard. You can download the original note below.