Questions it can answer
- Who are the people that use our tool?
- What are some of the challenges they encounter during their day to day lives?
- How might our solution make their lives easier?
What is a user persona interview?
User persona Interviews aim to build an understanding of users, what they are trying to achieve and what challenges they encounter. Persona Interviews are best run alongside persona surveys to understand the ‘why’ behind the ‘what’ that’s learned from the survey. Persona interviews are best run at the beginning of the design process to build understanding and empathy for the users.
Related guide: For turning interviews into personas, see our user personas guide.
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 user persona interview template. Replace the text in angle brackets with your own.
First of all, can you tell me a little about yourself? <Include any demographic questions you need to validate here>
Can you talk me through what a typical day for you is like? <Specify anything specific that you're looking to learn about, but try to keep it general to understand how the product fits into their daily life>
How often would you say you <insert product or service category>?
What solutions do you have at the moment to solve the problem of <insert product or service category>?
What are your main goals when trying to <insert product or service category>?
Why are these goals important to you?
Can you explain to me the steps or processes you go through to achieve these goals?
What challenges do you experience when you're <insert product or service category>?
What have you tried in the past to overcome these challenges? Which of these worked, which didn't and why do you think that was?
What do you wish you could change about <insert product or service category>? What impact would those changes have on you?
If you were in charge of making a solution to <insert product or service category>, what would you do to improve it?
If you could wave a magic wand and create the ideal solution for <insert product or service category>, what would that solution be like?
Advantages
- Building a deep understanding of the target audience or user base.
- Identify opportunities to address challenges faced by specific personas
- Insights gathered can support multiple internal efforts: product roadmap, marketing messaging, sales training, etc.
Limitations
- Doesn't collect data from large volumes of people
- Time intensive to collect
- Analysis of data can be difficult especially if many participants had different or contrasting views
Frequently asked questions
What questions should I ask in a persona interview?
Ask what a typical day looks like, how they handle the problem today, their main goals and why they matter, the steps they take, the challenges they hit and what they have tried, and what they would change. Ask for recent examples rather than general opinions.
How many interviews do I need to build a persona?
Interview several people per suspected persona and stop when new interviews confirm patterns rather than add them. Pair with a persona survey if you need to know how common each persona is.
Should I use a persona interview or a persona survey?
Interviews explain why people behave as they do. Surveys tell you how many people share a trait. Most teams start with interviews, then size the personas with a survey.