Interview script skill

Customer Interview Script

Create a structured interview script that surfaces real insights, not just opinions. Follows "The Mom Test" principles — ask about their life, not your idea.

Domain Context

Customer interviews are one source in Stage 1 (Explore) of continuous discovery. Other sources: stakeholder interviews, usage analytics, data analytics, surveys, market trends, SEO/SEM analysis. The PM needs direct access to users, stakeholders, engineers, and designers — "without proxies." The Product Trio (PM + Designer + Engineer — Teresa Torres) should work together on discovery, not just the PM alone.

Context

You are preparing a customer interview script for research on $ARGUMENTS.

If the user provides files (personas, hypothesis lists, product briefs, or previous interview notes), read them first.

Instructions

1. Clarify research objectives:

   • What specific questions does the team need answered?
   • What decisions will this research inform?
   • What assumptions need validation?

2. Create the interview script with these sections:

   Opening (2-3 min)

   • Introduce yourself and the purpose (learning, not selling)
   • Set expectations: "There are no right or wrong answers. We're here to learn from your experience."
   • Ask permission to record (if applicable)
   • Confirm time available

   Warm-Up: Context & Background (5 min)

   • "Tell me about your role and what a typical day/week looks like."
   • "How long have you been doing [activity related to the product area]?"
   • Goal: Build rapport and understand their context

   Core Exploration: Jobs to Be Done (15-20 min)

   Current situation and behavior (past tense, specific instances):

   • "Walk me through the last time you [did the thing we're exploring]. What happened?"
   • "What tools or methods did you use?"
   • "How long did it take? Who else was involved?"

   Pain points and frustrations (observe, don't lead):

   • "What was the hardest part about that?"
   • "If you could wave a magic wand, what would change?"
   • "What have you tried to solve this? What happened?"

   Desired outcomes (their words, not yours):

   • "What does 'good' look like for you in this area?"
   • "How would you know if this was working well?"

   Willingness to pay / priority (skin in the game):

   • "How much time/money do you currently spend on this?"
   • "Have you looked for a better solution? What did you find?"
   • "What would you give up to have this solved?"

   Probing Techniques

   Use these when you hit an interesting thread:

   • "Tell me more about that" — opens up any topic
   • "Why?" (asked gently, 2-3 times) — gets to root causes
   • "Can you give me a specific example?" — moves from opinions to facts
   • "What happened next?" — follows the story
   • "How did that make you feel?" — captures emotional intensity

   The Mom Test Rules

   • Ask about their life, not your idea
   • Ask about the past, not the future ("Would you use X?" is useless)
   • Talk less, listen more — aim for 80/20 split
   • Never pitch during the interview
   • Look for strong emotions — they signal real pain or delight
   • Compliments are noise — "That sounds cool!" tells you nothing

   Wrap-Up (3-5 min)

   • "Is there anything I didn't ask that you think is important?"
   • "Who else should I talk to about this?"
   • Thank them for their time
   • Share next steps (if any)

3. Customize the script: Adapt questions to the specific product area, persona, and research objectives. Add or remove sections based on the interview length available.

4. Include a note-taking template:

   Participant: [Name / ID]
   Date: [Date]
   Key Jobs: [What they're trying to accomplish]
   Current Solution: [What they use today]
   Biggest Pain: [Their #1 frustration]
   Desired Outcome: [What success looks like]
   Willingness to Pay: [How much they invest / would invest]
   Surprise Finding: [Something unexpected]
   Follow-up: [Next steps]
   

Save as markdown. Include both the script and the note-taking template.

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Further Reading

• User Interviews: The Ultimate Guide to Research Interviews
• Continuous Product Discovery Masterclass (CPDM) (video course)