interview-script Checked

Create a structured customer interview script with JTBD probing questions, warm-up, core exploration, and wrap-up sections. Follows The Mom Test principles — no leading questions, no pitching, focus on past behavior. Use when preparing for user interviews, creating interview guides, or planning discovery research.

Create a structured customer interview script with JTBD probing questions, warm-up, core exploration, and wrap-up sections. Follows The Mom Test principles — no leading questions, no pitching, focus on past behavior. Use when preparing for user interviews, creating interview guides, or planning discovery research.

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?"