Entrepreneurship, Second Edition

5.10. Appendix: Customer Interview

To whom should we ask the questions?

What possible information would we ask about?

Should the questions be open ended or structured?

How should the questions be sequenced?

5.10.1. General Outline: It Needs to Be Tailored to Meet Your Research Needs

1. Opening discussion (introduction and warm-up):

   Briefly describe research purpose, introduce self, ensure confidentiality of response, and state expected duration of the interview session.

   Opening statement: Think of the last time you purchased or used such a product. What prompted or triggered this activity? What specific activities did you perform to get the product or service? What was the outcome of your shopping experience?

2. Current practice:

   How do you currently purchase or use a product/service of interest? How did you go about deciding on what to buy? How frequently do you buy/use this product/service? How much do you buy/use each time? Where do you buy?

3. Familiarity/awareness about product/service:

   What other products/services/stores have you considered before deciding on the final product/service you bought?

4. Important attributes:

   If you were shopping for such a product, what would you look for? What is important? What characteristic(s) are important to you?

5. Perception of respondents:

   How would you compare different products/services? How well do you think of the product/service you bought compared with those of its competitors with respect to these attributes?

6. Overall satisfaction with or liking of the ...