Process
How to run your first customer interview in 6 steps
A six-step process for running a first customer interview, written for founders, product managers and designers who have never done one. It starts with a one-sentence objective tied to a decision and ends with a debrief written within 30 minutes and a plan for the next 5 to 8 interviews. If you would rather not moderate live, Koji can run the same guide as an AI-moderated voice or text interview.
Where this appears
What's in this process
- Define one objective: One sentence that ends with the decision the interview will help you make.
- Find one person who fits: Start with recent signups or declined prospects. Ten messages for one interview is a normal ratio.
- Write a 30-minute guide: Use the Mom Test rules: talk about their life, ask about specific past events and talk less.
- Run the interview: Build rapport in the first minute, ask about past behavior and probe without leading.
- Debrief within 30 minutes: Write down surprises, quotes, behaviors and pains before the details fade.
- Decide what you learned: One interview sharpens the hypothesis. Plan 5 to 8 in the same segment before you decide.
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Free to use in your docs, decks and posts under CC BY 4.0, as long as you credit Koji with a link to this page. To embed it, paste this into your page:
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<a href="https://www.koji.so/visuals/first-customer-interview-6-steps"><img src="https://www.koji.so/visuals/first-customer-interview-6-steps/first-customer-interview-6-steps.png" alt="Process showing six steps for a first customer interview: set one objective, find one person, write the guide, run it, debrief and decide." width="1080" height="1080" /></a>
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.koji.so/visuals/first-customer-interview-6-steps">How to run your first customer interview in 6 steps</a>, Koji</p>
