How to Run a User Interview, With a Guide You Can Copy
A user interview is a structured conversation about what someone has actually done. Here is how to run one, with a guide you can copy this week.
The short answer
A user interview is a 30 to 45 minute conversation in which you ask someone to describe what they actually did, not what they would do. Recruit five people who recently faced the problem, ask about specific past events, listen more than you talk, and write up what you heard the same day.
Most user interviews fail before they begin. The questions ask people to predict their own behaviour, and people are poor at that. The fix is small: ask about the last time something happened, and let the answer lead you.
Who this is for: designers, product managers and founders who need customer evidence this month and have no research team.
Who should you talk to?
Five people who faced the problem in the last few weeks. Recent matters more than representative, because memory fades fast. Find them in your own customer list, your support inbox or a short note to your email list. Offer a small thank you, and say plainly that you are not selling anything.
How do you open the conversation?
Start with two minutes of plain talk. Say who you are, why you are asking, and that there are no wrong answers. Ask permission to take notes or record. Then begin with something easy: "Tell me about your role and what a normal week looks like."
Which questions get you real evidence?
Ask about specific events in the past, not opinions about the future.
- "Tell me about the last time you [did the thing]."
- "What were you trying to get done?"
- "What happened next?"
- "What did you try before that?"
- "How did that feel at the time?"
Avoid "Would you use it?", "Do you like it?" and anything with the answer built in. A question that starts with "Would" gets a polite guess.
How do you follow up?
Silence is a tool. After an answer, wait three seconds before you speak. Then follow the thread with the smallest possible prompt: "Say more about that." "What did you do then?" "Why was that hard?"
What do you do straight after?
Write up the interview the same day, while it is fresh. Capture three things: what the person did, what got in their way, and a quote you can reuse. After five interviews, look for the same obstacle appearing at least three times. That is your evidence.
A script you can copy
- Introduce yourself and the purpose (two minutes).
- Context: role, team, a normal week (five minutes).
- The last time: walk through one recent event step by step (fifteen minutes).
- What they tried before, and what happened (ten minutes).
- A wrap up: "What should I have asked that I did not?" (three minutes).
Common mistakes
Pitching your idea while you are meant to be listening. Asking two questions at once. Filling silences. Interviewing only people who already like you. Skipping the write up.
Anton Stout
Author of the UXDesigned books and skills, with sixteen years in product design and research. About Anton
