Eric Migicovsky - How to Talk to Users

TL;DR

Founders must maintain a direct connection to users at all company stages; the two essential startup activities are building the product and talking to users. The Mom Test framework identifies three common interview mistakes (pitching ideas, discussing hypotheticals, talking too much) and offers five specific questions to extract honest, past-focused data.

Key insights

• The best founders never outsource user research – it is the CEO’s job and engineers must participate too; do not hire a go-between as depicted in Office Space.
• The Mom Test identifies three errors: talking about your idea, asking hypotheticals, and talking too much instead of listening.
• Good user interviews extract specifics about past events, not future possibilities; ask about the user’s life and the context around the problem.