The Mom Test

How to talk to users?

Takeaways:

• Don’t sell your idea to the user but gather information from them using their past experience when they faced the problem.
• Customer don’t buy the “what”, they buy the “why”.

Some questions to ask:

1. What is the hardest part about doing the thing that you’re trying to solve?

   Start of an open ended conversation

2. Tell me about the last time that you encountered this problem?

   Specifics of the context in which they are. Use this to think about product features and positioning

3. Why was this hard?

   Helps to identify the real problem. This is the real - “why”. Potentially your marketing proposition to the customer.

4. What, if anything, have you done to try to solve this problem?

   Indicates that this is a real problem that they are investing time solving it

5. [Tactical] What don’t you love about the solutions that you’ve already tried?

   • This is the beginning of your feature set.

Principle	Description	Example
Avoid Pitching	Refrain from directly pitching your idea to potential customers. Instead, focus on understanding their needs.	Instead of saying, “I have a great product idea. Would you buy it?”, ask, “Tell me about the biggest challenge you face in XYZ area.”
Talk About Their Lives	Engage customers in conversations about their experiences, challenges, and goals.	Ask questions like, “Can you walk me through a recent situation where you encountered this problem?”
Ask About Past Behavior	Inquire about their past experiences and decisions related to the problem you’re addressing.	Ask questions such as, “Can you describe a time when you tried solving this problem? What approach did you take?”
Listen for Specifics	Encourage customers to provide specific details and examples.	Prompt them to share specific instances, like “Could you give me an example of when this problem caused a significant issue?”
Focus on Actionable Insights	Strive to uncover insights that guide decision-making and product development.	Look for insights such as “I tried using XYZ solution, but it didn’t solve the problem effectively.”
Validate Scalable Problems	Ensure the problem you’re addressing is widespread and impacts a larger target audience.	Validate if multiple customers in the same industry or market segment face a similar challenge.
Iterate and Learn	Treat conversations as learning opportunities and iterate based on the feedback received.	Actively take note of customer feedback and make adjustments to your product or approach accordingly.

Relevant Links

An amazing explainer on how this founder applies these principles practically