Preparing for Interviews
Good interviews start with good preparation - from recruiting the right people to writing the right questions
Your Progress
Section 2 of 5Preparation Makes or Breaks the Interview
Bad PMs wing it. Good PMs prepare. Great PMs over-prepare then throw away the script. You need a discussion guide, but you shouldn't follow it robotically. The guide keeps you on track. The conversation uncovers insights. Prepare like crazy, then be flexible in the moment.
Recruiting the Right Participants
✅ Good Screening
- • Recruit your actual target users
- • Ask behavioral screening questions ("When was the last time you...")
- • Over-recruit by 50% (expect no-shows)
- • Offer fair incentive ($50-100 for 45min)
- • Mix power users and casual users
❌ Bad Screening
- • Talk to anyone who will respond
- • Screen based on demographics only
- • Recruit only power users (or only beginners)
- • No incentive or insufficient incentive
- • Interview your friends/colleagues
Interview Prep Checklist
Use this checklist to prepare for your interviews. Check off items as you complete them:
Prep Progress
0 / 19Research Goals
Participant Recruiting
Discussion Guide
Logistics
Day Before
Discussion Guide Templates
Choose a template based on your interview type. Customize questions for your specific context:
Discovery Interview Template
Warm-up
0-5 min- •Thanks for joining! Tell me a bit about your role.
- •How long have you been doing this?
- •What's a typical day look like for you?
Context Setting
5-15 min- •Walk me through your workflow for [relevant task]
- •What tools do you currently use?
- •How did you discover those tools?
Problem Exploration
15-35 min- •What's most frustrating about this process?
- •Tell me about the last time that frustration happened
- •What did you do when that happened?
- •If you could wave a magic wand, what would change?
Deep Dive
35-45 min- •You mentioned [pain point] - tell me more about that
- •How often does that happen?
- •Who else on your team experiences this?
- •What have you tried to solve it?
Wrap-up
45-50 min- •Is there anything I should have asked but didn't?
- •Who else should I talk to?
- •Can I follow up if I have questions?
The Discussion Guide Is Training Wheels
You need a discussion guide, but the best interviews don't follow it linearly. When a user says something interesting, chase that rabbit hole. Your guide is there to make sure you cover key topics, not to restrict the conversation. Prepare your questions, internalize them, then have a natural conversation. The guide is a safety net, not a script.
Key Takeaways
- •Recruit your actual target users using behavioral screening questions, not just demographics.
- •Over-recruit by 50% and offer fair incentive ($50-100 for 45min) to reduce no-shows.
- •Create a discussion guide with 8-10 open-ended questions ordered from broad to specific.
- •The guide is training wheels, not a script. Chase interesting topics even if they're off-script.