In Art or UX: Storytelling as the Missing Puzzle Piece

The past year, I’ve learnt what’s common between marketing, art and UX research, and it all had to do with communication and the art of storytelling

A few months into my shiny new shoes as a UX researcher, I’ve learnt quite a bit about myself as much as about the field of UX research – and, is it vast!

Coming from a design college, UX was always the buzzword floating around on campus. As internship season rolled around, it turned into the most sought-after career path. For me, I found the research part more interesting than the design part. Talking to people, brainstorming with my teammates for ideas,and endless discussions that made us question why we started (sometimes making us wonder what we were even doing!) – all of it fueled my passion for research.

Midway, I decided to explore the art world. I got to work behind-the-scenes in a museum, and spent my days thinking, observing, writing, and rewriting the best possible way to engage people in an exhibition. I realized, unknowingly, I had yet again pursued research, though in a smaller and more of an explorative way. 

My work revolved around understanding visitor behavior and using communication to influence their actions. My mind was filled with questions, curious about why people behaved the way they did in a museum space – and tried finding patterns and reasons for it. That’s when I recognised my inclination towards behaviour design.

After realizing that my interest for research was indeed longterm, and not a fleeting subject I favoured over others in college, I decided to pursue UX research fulltime. I was curious to know how teams big or small, for organizations global or local, lead research that answer important questions for global products.

Fast forward to January 2025, when I was thinking of what I should write for my first blog here, I looked back on what my biggest learning these past few months has been. Of course, the technicalities of UX research for a real-world project were some of my biggest learnings. The research methodology, logistics, various stakeholders involved even before a study takes place – all of it was new and a great learning. 

Though what I recognised as highly influential for all future projects was something I had encountered before. It was the art of storytelling. Be it in decks, or client presentations, research artefacts, or even engaging people to come into a museum. Working on research projects with clear business goals made me realize the importance of aligning research objectives with the business front. 

I realized all the work came down to how it was communicated to the stakeholders at each stage of the project. From the way the field ops team was briefed so they can recruit the right participants, to how an interview was conducted ensuring participant comfort, to getting all the right data for the study, extracting insights and communicating them – all of it required storytelling.

From a museum perspective, my goal was clear: engage visitors and show them what awaits in an exhibition or installation for them. In UX, storytelling serves a similar purpose—it highlights user needs and, most importantly, conveys them with empathy to decision-makers.

I’ve realized the ability to tell a story that resonates with stakeholders is crucial for driving informed decision-making and helping teams achieve their desired outcomes through UX research. What sets an engaging copy or a compelling UX deck apart in a sea of noise is its ability to build a connection with its audience. Storytelling is the missing puzzle piece that makes this connection possible.