The Customer Interview Kit

Recruit and screen buyers, run a 30-minute interview about the last time, code the notes and see which problems are patterns. Word guide plus Excel workbook.

Word + Excel · Free

What this resource helps you do

Recruit and screen the right buyers, run a 30-minute interview about the last time, code every note, and see which problems are patterns and when to stop. Word guide plus a coding workbook.

Get the kit from AAJ's free marketing templates library.

What the Customer Interview Kit does

The Customer Interview Kit helps you talk to the right buyers, ask about the last time the problem happened, and count what they say. The Word guide covers recruiting, screening and a 30-minute interview; the workbook codes each note and shows which problems are patterns and when to stop.

What is inside

The guide (Word): recruiting, a screener with a sixth question for AI products, a 17-question interview guide for a 30-minute call, six extra questions for AI products, coding the notes, from notes to decisions, a note sheet and running it with your agent.
The workbook (Excel and Google Sheets): Plan, Interviews, Notes, Themes, Saturation and Export sheets, and an Example Co. (fictional) sheet with live formulas.
AAJ's rules of thumb, not research findings: once 5 or more interviews are done, a theme raised in at least 40% of them and by at least 3 people is a pattern; the sample is saturated when no new theme appeared in the last 3.

How to use it

Pick one segment and plan about 10 interviews. Write down the role, the company size and stage, and the situation that gives them the problem. Read patterns from the fifth interview, and stop early only when three in a row add nothing new. Go to 20 to 30 only when you need the complete list of needs.
Recruit and screen. Start with recent customers and trial users, ask each person for one introduction, and confirm with the screener that they have the problem before you book the call.
Interview for 30 minutes about the last time. Ask before you record, including for AI transcription. Most of the call goes to what they did, not what they think.
Code the notes the same day. One row per theme, in the same wording every time, with a severity: 1 annoying, 2 costs time, 3 costs money or customers.
Read the Themes and Saturation sheets. After five interviews, then after every two or three.
Decide. Take the top pattern, its quotes and its workarounds into a persona and your positioning, or narrow the segment if nothing has added up.

Who it is for

I wrote it for founders and first marketers at seed to Series B startups who need to learn the problem before they write a persona, positioning or a pitch. It works for B2B SaaS, EdTech and MedTech buyers, and the extra questions cover AI products. It is not a way to measure how common a need is across a market: interview first to learn the words and the problems, then run a survey.

The worked example uses Example Co., a fictional company; its figures are illustrative. The template is free in exchange for an email address.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many customer interviews do I need per segment?

Plan about 10 per segment. Read patterns from the fifth, and stop early only when three interviews in a row add nothing new. Go to 20 to 30 only when you need the complete list of needs, for example before you design a survey. That is AAJ's rule of thumb; my post on customer interviews covers what published studies found.

Can I record the interviews or use an AI transcription tool?

Ask first, for the recording and for any AI transcription, and say who will see the notes. Keep only what you need: the workbook needs an interview ID, a segment and a role, not names or contact details. This is orientation, not legal advice; check the rules on recording and personal data that apply to you with counsel.

Should I pay people to talk to me?

For business buyers, I offer the summary of findings rather than a gift card. It is useful to them, and it keeps the conversation about their problem rather than the reward.

When is a theme a pattern rather than an anecdote?

In the kit, once five or more interviews are done, a theme raised in at least 40% of them and by at least 3 people is a pattern; 2 or more people is emerging; 1 is an anecdote. These are AAJ's rules of thumb, stated so you can argue with them, and the free customer-interview-synthesis skill uses the same numbers.

Which version of Excel do I need?

Excel 2019 or later (including Microsoft 365), or Google Sheets. The workbook uses TEXTJOIN, MAXIFS and MINIFS, which earlier versions of Excel lack. There are no macros.

Is the kit free, and what format is it?

Free, in exchange for an email address. You get a Word .docx guide that opens in Word, Google Docs and Pages, and an Excel .xlsx coding workbook that opens in Excel and Google Sheets.