In-depth Customer Interviews: Case History Example
The previous blog entries described an interview module for obtaining detailed site usage case histories from customers (http://www.virtualfloorspace.com/2009/11/in-depth-customer-interviews-site-usage-case-history/ and http://www.virtualfloorspace.com/2009/11/site-usage-case-history/). This post gives some practical example questions for obtaining case histories.
Case history for a resort web site:
When you’ve been on these vacations you described, how did you find information each day about what to do, where to find things, amenities, etc.? Please describe all of your information activities regarding:
- Food
- Games or other fun day activities
- Water sports
- Sight-seeing
- Night time entertainment
For each item on the list, create a table of responses to the following:
- Please tell me more about it.
- Were you satisfied with the information resources you found?
- Did you end up doing less than you had hoped to do?
- How much did you spend?
Specific purchase process
Select one item from actual. Probe for details of purchase process using the following questions:
- Let’s talk for a minute about one of the items you purchased online.
- When did you first start looking for this item?
- What did you do first?
- How did you get background information?
- What stores did you visit?
- Which web sites did you visit?
- What other options did you consider for this purchase (retailer, brand, or model)?
- How did you finally decide between these options?
- What were some of the challenges you encountered along the way?
- What prompted you to finally complete the purchase where you did?
- Could any of the web sites have done something that would have encouraged you to purchase this item from them?
Depending on time, probe attitudes and behaviors in this category of merchandise:
- Major considerations you have for purchasing this type of item, whether offline or online
- Role Internet plays for purchase in this category?
- Propensity to order items online
- Impression of this company for this category of product
- Purchase urgency
- Ability to evaluate quality online
- Role of supporting information
- Need to compare multiple products, sites
- Tendency to buy from unknown sites
- Need for product details
- Relevance of promotion to trigger purchase
- Perceived complexity of purchasing online
Copyright 2009, Paul Bryan, Usography Corporation (http://www.usography.com)
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