Customer Interview Guide
Segment:
Stakeholder:
Title:
Key Hypotheses to Test: (What assumptions do we have that if proven wrong would cause us
to fail?)
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Key Questions to Ask
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Back up questions
Hypotheses Examples:
• The problem my customer wants to solve is…..
• My target customer will be……
• My customer can’t solve this today because…….
• The measurable outcome my customer wants……
• The thing(s) my customer values most is…..
• My customer will be willing and is able to pay…….
• I will beat my competitors because…..
• My customer is willing to try new technology……..
Question Examples. (Notes: The following questions are not a ‘check-list’ but suggested
ways to ask questions to test your hypothesis. Best to iterate based upon what the
interviewee said.
1) Ask “Tell me more’ when an ‘outlier ‘that could lead to a pivot is introduced.
2) Try to ask questions that are quantifiable as well as qualitative.
• How long have you been in this position? What are your responsibilities? (This is more a
‘warm-up’ question. Try not to spend too much time on this).
• What are the top 3 challenges you face in your job related to ____ (your area of
interest)? Why are these challenges?
• How much time do you spend on those challenges? How often do they occur? In the
past X weeks/months, how often has that challenge occurred?
• On a scale of 1-10, what number would you give that challenge? (10 – really big pain).
• Can you tell me a about the last time that challenge happened and what you did?
• What, if anything, have you done to solve those challenges?
• On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate that solution(s)? Why did you give it that
number? (No matter what number they give, ask “why did you give it that number.”
Write down everything they say, in their own words, in the order they say. They are
giving you the ‘feature list’, marketing language as well as priority of what features
matter the most) or What don’t you like about the solutions you tried?
• When was the last time a (software, hardware, etc.) product was purchased? What is
the process for buying/subscribing to a new product/service?
• Who has to approve your purchases? Do you need any approval to try them?
• Who else should I talk to?
• What else should I have asked?