Why Customer Interviews Are Harder Than They Look — And Why They’re Worth It

On the surface, customer interviews seem easy.

We talk to people every day. We ask questions. We get answers. So we assume talking to customers should be easy — just have a conversation, right?

Not quite.

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Too often, teams dive in thinking it's just about "having a chat" with customers. But a casual chat won’t give you the insights you actually need to shape your messaging, improve your product, or understand what really matters to your audience.

Let’s unpack why customer interviews are harder than they seem — and how to do them well.

Why We Think Interviews Are Simple

For most people, the word “interview” brings to mind job interviews or media interviews.

And while those are high-stakes, they’re also structured.

In a job interview, the candidate is prepared. They’ve read the job spec, practised their answers, and expect certain types of questions. The hiring manager usually has a plan — a consistent set of questions, a scoring system, and a clear goal.

It’s performative, yes — but everyone knows the rules.

What Makes Customer Interviews Different

Customer interviews are a different situation. 

You’re not interviewing someone who has prepped. You don’t know what they’ll say.

You might have a discussion guide — I usually do — but once the conversation starts, it’s less about following a script and more about listening carefully and knowing when to dig deeper.

Sometimes you’re asking people to recall something that happened months ago.
Or describe a decision they barely thought about at the time.
Or explain a feeling they’ve never had to put into words before.

They might not remember clearly. Or they might give you a surface answer at first, and it’s your job to help them unpack it — without putting words in their mouth.

That’s where it gets tricky.

Interviews aren’t just about questions — they’re about how you listen.

You have to:

• Know when to stay quiet
• Follow the thread when something interesting comes up
• Avoid leading questions or jumping to conclusions
• Balance structure with curiosity.

It takes skill and practice. And restraint.

I usually start with one or two key questions I ask everyone. Beyond that, the conversation goes where it needs to — depending on what the person shares, and what I’m trying to learn.

Why Good Interviews Are So Important

When done well, interviews help you:

• Understand your customers’ real needs and motivations
• Hear how they describe their problems (not how you’d write it in a deck)
• Test assumptions before you spend time and money building something
• Make decisions with more clarity and less guesswork.

When done badly, they give you surface-level answers, vague quotes, or — worse — false confidence.

That’s why I take the process seriously. Even simple interviews can reveal a lot, if you do them properly.

4 Tips for Better Customer Interviews

If you’re running your own customer interviews, here are a few ways to improve them:

1. Use a guide, not a script: Have a plan, but be ready to deviate when something interesting comes up.

2. Ask fewer, better questions: I usually start with one or two key questions and build from there based on what the person shares.

3. Know when to stay quiet: Silence gives people space to think and often leads to better answers than you’d get by filling the gap.

4. Look for patterns, not just soundbites: It’s not about clever quotes; it’s about the bigger themes that emerge across multiple conversations.

When to Bring in a Research Partner

Sometimes, running interviews in-house makes sense. But often, teams are too close to the product or too short on time to do it well.

You might benefit from outside support if:

• You’re launching a new product or feature
• You’re repositioning your brand or messaging
• You’ve done interviews before but didn’t get much from them
• You want to make faster decisions with more confidence

A good research partner can help you ask better questions, listen more effectively, and pull real insights from the noise.

Wrapping up

Customer interviews are a powerful tool — when done right. But they take more skill than people expect

If your team is planning interviews soon and wants to make the most of them, it’s worth slowing down and getting the approach right.

If you’re working on something and want to get more from your interviews, I’m always happy to chat.