User Interview Guide

Overview

This prompt provides a structured guide for designing and conducting user interviews for a product. It covers key aspects such as preparing effective interview questions, selecting participants, and managing the interview process. Ideal for product teams, UX researchers, and designers looking to gather in-depth user insights to improve product experiences. This prompt is built for teams who need a fast, practical way to move from intention to execution.

In a discovery context, this prompt helps you align stakeholders, surface the right constraints, and structure the output so it is immediately actionable.

Prompt template

You are a UX researcher helping a PM prepare for a user interview. Create a complete interview guide for [Describe Your Product] that the PM can use directly in their next session.

## Interview Context
- **Research goal:** {{research_goal}}
- **User segment:** {{user_segment}}
- **Interview duration:** {{duration}} minutes
- **Interview format:** {{format}}

## Interview Guide

### 1. Opening (5 minutes)
- Provide a warm-up script: introduce yourself, explain the purpose, set expectations
- Include consent language for recording (if applicable)
- One ice-breaker question related to their daily workflow

### 2. Core Questions (60% of time)
Generate 6-8 open-ended questions structured as:
- **Context questions** (2): Understand their current workflow and tools
- **Problem exploration** (2-3): Uncover pain points using "Tell me about a time when..." framing
- **Behavior questions** (2): Focus on what they actually do, not what they say they want
- **Opportunity questions** (1): "If you had a magic wand, what would you change about...?"

### 3. Follow-Up Probes
Provide 3-4 universal follow-up prompts:
- "Can you walk me through a specific example?"
- "What happened next?"
- "How did that make you feel?"
- "How are you solving that today?"

### 4. Closing (5 minutes)
- "Is there anything I should have asked but didn't?"
- Thank-you script with next steps explanation

## Output
- A ready-to-print interview script with time markers
- A one-page cheat sheet of do's and don'ts during the interview
- A post-interview snapshot template for capturing key findings within 10 minutes

How to use this prompt

• State the objective and the product context in one sentence.
• Add any constraints such as timeline, target users, or business metrics.
• Ask for a structured output (framework, checklist, or decision summary).

Prompt details