Pictures Are to Words as Conversations are to Surveys

November 22nd, 2011 Sean Murphy

Q:  I am having trouble getting people to fill out my customer discovery surveys, how many do I need to be statistically significant.

I think the following approaches burn time and social capital without generating much in the way of insight:

• Using surveys for “customer discovery.”
• Landing pages for signups where little if any information is provided about the team or product but many answers are required of a prospective user to signup.
• Launchrock style landing pages that require your prospects to invest their credibility by tweeting, blogging, or otherwise announcing their interest in your offering to their friends before you give them access to your beta. This is destroying the value of any endorsement you might ever generate.

One conversation is worth between 100 and 10,000 survey responses. Provided you are listening and prepared to be surprised.

A dozen to two dozen conversations with relevant and knowledgeable individuals will put you will be well ahead of any survey based approach.

Entry Filed under: Customer Development, Early Customer Stage, Rules of Thumb, skmurphy