Customer Discovery Interview Template
What problem should we solve?
Questions it can answer
- What product should we build?
- What problems can we solve for people?
- What are the opportunities?
What is a customer discovery interview?
Customer discovery interviews are used to build a deep understanding of a problem space and identify potential opportunities. They are broad and technology agnostic. Typically they explore the behaviors, attitudes and experiences of people within the context of a problem space. They do not explore solutions to problems or evaluate hypotheses, instead focus on generating open-ended insight on the context of the problem.
Related guide: For the full process, see our guide to customer discovery for product managers.
Do it faster with a Claude skill: Interview study builder. Builds a first draft of this study in Claude that you can edit before you send it.
The questions in this template
These are the questions in the Great Question customer discovery interview template. Replace the text in angle brackets with your own.
Setting the scene
First of all, can you tell me a little about yourself? <Include any demographic questions you need to validate here>
Tell me about the last time that you <insert topic of interview>?
What did you find most difficult about <insert topic of interview>?
Can you tell me whether and how you tried to solve any of these difficulties?
What did you find easy about <insert topic of interview>? Was anything enjoyable or something you'd like to do again?
Problem space
How often does <insert topic of interview> come up for you?
What's the impact when this problem happens? Who else is affected besides you?
Have you tried any tools, products, or workarounds to deal with this? What worked, what didn't?
If you had a magic wand, how would you solve this problem?
What would need to be true for this to no longer be a problem for you?
Is there anything about this that surprised you, or that you've never been asked about before?
Who else do you think experiences this problem in a similar way?
Is there anything else you would like to tell a team of people that are currently working on this problem space?
Advantages
- Understand the problem to be solved and potential opportunities
- Gather evidence that the problem space exists and is worth solving
- Enables shared vision on what the problem is and why it’s important to be solved
Limitations
- Will not evaluate specific solutions to problems, instead consider using an evaluative interview.
- Sample size will be small due to the qualitative nature of interviews. Consider pairing interviews with a survey to backup your findings with quantitative data.
- Interview participants will be recalling from their memory of the problem space. Consider an observational method such as field studies to witness the problem first-hand.
Frequently asked questions
What questions should I ask in a customer discovery interview?
Ask about specific past events, starting with "Tell me about the last time that you…", then what was difficult, what they tried, how often it comes up, what it costs them and who else is affected. Avoid asking whether they would use a product you describe.
How many customer discovery interviews should I run?
Keep going until new interviews stop adding new themes for the group you are studying. For a single, well-defined group, that often happens within a small number of conversations.
What is the difference between discovery and validation interviews?
Discovery interviews explore the problem without a solution in mind. Validation interviews test a specific concept against a problem you already understand. See the validation interview template.