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I see The Mom Test recommended anywhere. Can anyone shed some light into what other information it contains other than "focus on the problem (not your solution)

I see The Mom Test recommended anywhere. Can anyone shed some light into what other information it contains other than "focus on the problem (not your solution) and explain things simply and concisely enough that your mother could understand?"

redm 6y ago
The book is about how to avoid getting false signals of customer needs for a problem you think your solving, regardless of solution, that doesn't exist. People also “fire customers” when they don't like what they hear. Its in the same vein.
tchock23 6y ago
I’ll summarize the book in one sentence so you don’t have to read it: ‘When talking to customers, ask about their current behaviors rather than hypotheticals (e.g., ‘would you buy this’).’ I have 20 years of experience in conducting customer discovery interviews professionally, so I found the information in the book to be incredibly simplistic and sometimes misleading or incorrect. I get frustrated every time I see it recommended as some kind of bible for startup founders doing discovery...
- uxcolumbo 6y ago
  Which book(s) would you recommend? I quite liked: Validating Product Ideas https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/lean-user-research/ https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/lean-user-research/
- this2shallPass 6y ago
  What information in The Mom Test would you say is misleading or incorrect?
  - tchock23 6y ago
    As one, he says surveys are 100% useless, which is not entirely correct (there is a time/place for them). Second, he says customer interviews must be face to face to be valuable. That is patently false, and even dangerous. In a face to face setting many people feel social pressure to conform and there is a strong interviewer bias. A mix of in-person and online methods is essential to get an unbiased read. I’m on vacation right now, otherwise I’d spend the timing outlining my many criticisms of the book...
    - this2shallPass 6y ago
      Makes sense. Agree with what you're saying, that surveys can have value and customer interviews can be valuable even if not face to face. Would love to hear more of your thoughts sometime after you vacation.

redm 6y ago

The book is about how to avoid getting false signals of customer needs for a problem you think your solving, regardless of solution, that doesn't exist. People also “fire customers” when they don't like what they hear. Its in the same vein.

tchock23 6y ago

I’ll summarize the book in one sentence so you don’t have to read it: ‘When talking to customers, ask about their current behaviors rather than hypotheticals (e.g., ‘would you buy this’).’ I have 20 years of experience in conducting customer discovery interviews professionally, so I found the information in the book to be incredibly simplistic and sometimes misleading or incorrect. I get frustrated every time I see it recommended as some kind of bible for startup founders doing discovery...

uxcolumbo 6y ago
Which book(s) would you recommend? I quite liked: Validating Product Ideas https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/lean-user-research/ https://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/lean-user-research/
this2shallPass 6y ago
What information in The Mom Test would you say is misleading or incorrect?
- tchock23 6y ago
  As one, he says surveys are 100% useless, which is not entirely correct (there is a time/place for them). Second, he says customer interviews must be face to face to be valuable. That is patently false, and even dangerous. In a face to face setting many people feel social pressure to conform and there is a strong interviewer bias. A mix of in-person and online methods is essential to get an unbiased read. I’m on vacation right now, otherwise I’d spend the timing outlining my many criticisms of the book...
  - this2shallPass 6y ago
    Makes sense. Agree with what you're saying, that surveys can have value and customer interviews can be valuable even if not face to face. Would love to hear more of your thoughts sometime after you vacation.