Customer Discovery
Customer discovery is a process used by entrepreneurs and businesses to gain a deep understanding of their potential customers, their needs, and their problems. The goal of customer discovery is to identify and validate key assumptions about the market, the customer base, and the value proposition for the product or service being offered.
The customer discovery process typically involves a series of structured interviews or conversations with potential customers, to learn about their preferences, habits, pain points, and other factors that may impact their decision to buy or use a particular product or service. The process may also involve market research, competitor analysis, and other methods to gather data and insights about the target market.
The insights gathered during the customer discovery process can help businesses and entrepreneurs to:
- Identify potential market opportunities and niches
- Refine the value proposition for their product or service
- Validate or invalidate key assumptions about the market or the customer base
- Develop a more targeted and effective marketing strategy
- Improve product development and design
Customer discovery is an important step in the overall product development and business planning process, as it helps to ensure that the product or service being offered is aligned with the needs and preferences of the target market. It can also help to minimize the risk of launching a product or service that fails to resonate with customers or meet their needs.
Ask good interview questions
what are good questions to ask when doing customer discovery?
When doing customer discovery, it’s important to ask questions that will help you gain a deep understanding of your potential customers, their needs, and their problems. Here are some good questions to ask:
- What is your current process for [insert problem or task related to your product/service]?
- What do you find most frustrating about [problem or task related to your product/service]?
- How do you currently solve [problem or task related to your product/service]?
- What are the biggest challenges you face in [industry or field related to your product/service]?
- What are the top features or benefits you would want from a product/service like ours?
- How would you describe our product/service to someone else?
- What would make you decide to buy or use our product/service?
- How often would you use our product/service?
- Who else do you know that might be interested in our product/service?
- Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience with [problem or task related to your product/service]?
These are just a few examples of the types of questions you can ask during customer discovery. The specific questions you ask will depend on the nature of your product/service, your target market, and your research goals. It’s also important to approach the interviews with an open mind and be prepared to ask follow-up questions to dig deeper and uncover key insights.
Jobs To Be Done
“Jobs to be done” is a concept in product design and innovation that focuses on understanding the core functional and emotional needs that customers are trying to satisfy when they “hire” a product or service to get a job done. The theory proposes that customers “hire” products or services to accomplish a specific job, and that by understanding the job and the customer’s context and motivation, businesses can create products and services that better meet the needs and desires of their customers.
The “jobs” that customers are trying to accomplish can be either functional (such as “getting from point A to point B”) or emotional (such as “feeling more confident or secure”). By understanding the specific jobs that customers are trying to accomplish, businesses can create products or services that better address those needs, rather than just focusing on features or benefits.
The “jobs to be done” theory involves identifying and defining the key jobs that customers are trying to accomplish, as well as understanding the circumstances and motivations that drive them to “hire” a particular product or service. This can involve interviewing customers, conducting user research, and analyzing data to gain insights into the customer’s needs and preferences.
Some potential benefits of using the “jobs to be done” approach include:
- Developing a better understanding of customer needs and motivations
- Creating more targeted and effective product and service offerings
- Building stronger relationships with customers by better meeting their needs
- Improving customer satisfaction and loyalty
- Reducing the risk of launching products or services that fail to resonate with customers
Overall, the “jobs to be done” approach can be a powerful tool for product designers, marketers, and entrepreneurs who are looking to create products and services that truly meet the needs and desires of their customers.