9 Rules for Good CustDev: How and Why to Ask Questions to Potential Customers
Customer Development (CustDev) is a methodology for creating products or startups based on validating the idea or prototype of the future product through potential consumers. This process involves gaining insights from users to create, validate, and optimize product development ideas through structured interviews and experiments.
For a customer to want to buy something from you, you must solve a problem or meet a need. The product itself, no matter how great and innovative, will not sell on its own. In essence, this is a customer-oriented approach to business where the product solves the customer's problem. First, the problem is identified, and then the product is developed, not the other way around.
Vanya Zamesin, a product manager at Yandex, drew a picture that explains why product management is needed and its individual parts, including customer development.
9 rules for good CustDev
- Discuss their lives, not your idea.
- Thank them, don't interrupt, argue, or judge.
- Ask open-ended questions.
- Talk less, listen more.
- Use the 5 Whys technique.
- Ask about specific past events, not future viewpoints or opinions.
- Spend no more than 2-3 minutes per question.
- Interview at least 13 respondents for quality research, no fewer than 9 for the minimum.
- Always ask the same questions and record the answers in an idea table.
Good questions
These questions are key for an effective interview: "Why does this concern you?" Until you understand the other person's goals, you will be "shooting in the dark."
For example, the founders of a company shared large reports with financiers, who requested an improved messaging tool. The following questions were: "Why does this concern you?" and "Can we be sure that the new proposal will solve your problems?" It turned out that instead of the messenger they initially requested, the best tool for exchanging information was Dropbox.
"What are the consequences of this situation?"
Some problems are not really problems. Some have large-scale and costly consequences, while others simply exist without playing a significant role. It's useful to distinguish between them to understand the price that can be charged.
"Tell me more about what happened last time"
By observing how customers solve their problems, we see real problems and limitations, not just their perceptions. Your source of information should be their actions, not their opinions. If you own a sandwich shop, it's silly to ask customers if they prefer cheeseburgers or hamburgers. Just observe what they buy. However, if you want to understand why they prefer one over the other, you will still need to talk to them.
"What else have you tried to do?"
If potential customers have not tried to find a solution to the problem themselves, they will not pay attention to the solution you propose (and will not buy it).
Example: a customer may say emotionally, "Yes, this literally happens at every step! I will definitely pay to solve this problem." Here we have a promise that must be fulfilled in the future, but it is not backed by any commitment, so it is necessary to know how true it is. You can ask, "When was the last time you faced this problem?" It turned out that it was very recently. And this is a good sign. To dig a little deeper: "Can you tell me more about how you tried to solve it?" Without seeing any emotion on their face: "Did you try to find other ways to solve this problem? Did you search the Internet?" Their look was as if they had been caught stealing money. They replied, "No. I didn't think about that. You know, I'm used to this kind of thing." But in theory, this was a problem the customer was "definitely" willing to pay for. But once we moved on to specific questions, it turned out they hadn't even tried to find a solution (which, by the way, exists).
"How are you solving this problem right now?"
Although people rarely tell you exactly how much they will pay you, they can often show what matters to them.
"Is there any other question I should ask?"
People want to help you, but they rarely do so if you don't give them a valid reason.