Deeply understand your users so you can build things that solve their problems ✨
Any good designer or product manager understands the importance of talking to users -- these days, it's just a basic expectation of the job.
But without training, it can be a disaster: despite good intentions, they waste time on inefficient practices, and they get biased data that steers their company in the wrong direction.
I’ve worked with dozens of folks who are pumped to talk to users, but they…
Waste tons of time and energy trying to recruit people to participate
Unintentionally ask leading questions that will only ever get them the answers they want to hear
Focus on validating the ideas they already think are great rather than testing their assumptions about what users actually need
Struggle to sift through all their data to synthesize the key insights
Miss opportunities to make an impact because they can't persuade stakeholders to take action
In this course, you'll learn how to run interviews just like a veteran user researcher. Through expert advice, personalized feedback, and plenty of of hands-on practice, you'll develop the skills to plan, execute, analyze, and document interviews effectively -- so you can translate your hard work into evidence-based product & design decisions.
What you’ll learn
Hands-on practice & expert guidance to 10x your interview skills. Get insights that power smart, data-driven product & design decisions.
Evaluate potential interview topics to choose the ones that are highest priority, then write a lightweight research plan to get buy-in
Recruit the ideal number of participants using a variety of strategies -- and get them to actually commit to signing up
Create an automated scheduling flow to make your life easier
Write non-leading questions to dig deep into needs and pain points without biasing participants' answers
Ask follow-up questions that reveal thoughts, feelings, emotions, and motivations
Figure out the tech setup that works best for you and troubleshoot any issues without frustrating your participant
Quickly build rapport with participants and make them feel at ease
Create "flow" for the conversation that feels natural and easy
Deal with "too chatty" or "too quiet" participants effectively and gracefully to keep the conversation on track
Conduct real interviews with your peers in breakout rooms, so you can experiment in a safe space to figure out what works best for you
Learn to read body language and other nonverbal cues
Get detailed feedback from the instructor both in-class and in written projects
Learn an easy-to-follow framework for synthesizing insights, and hands-on practice applying it on real data
Understand when and how to incorporate AI to save time without compromising quality and accuracy
Create research documents that people actually want to read
Translate insights into recommendations and next steps so your team understands how to take action on what you learned
Make an impact on business decisions through research YOU spearheaded
Learn directly from Elizabeth
Elizabeth Creighton, PhD
Founder @ Brazen UX | ex-Shopify | 1,000+ interviews conducted
Who this course is for
Designers who want to upskill by becoming proficient in one of the most useful & versatile user research methods.
Product managers who need to deeply understand their users so that what they build next meets their needs & solves their problems.
Early-career UX researchers looking for the hands-on practice & expert advice they need to level-up their interview skills.
What's included
Live sessions
Learn directly from Elizabeth Creighton, PhD in a real-time, interactive format.
Lifetime access
Go back to course content and recordings whenever you need to.
Community of peers
Stay accountable and share insights with like-minded professionals.
Certificate of completion
Share your new skills with your employer or on LinkedIn.
Maven Guarantee
This course is backed by the Maven Guarantee. Students are eligible for a full refund up until the halfway point of the course.
Course syllabus
9 live sessions • 18 lessons • 2 projects
Week 1
Feb
10
1️⃣ Course Welcome + Planning Your Research
Feb
12
2️⃣ Writing Smart Interview Questions
Feb
13
✨ Office Hour / Q&A
Module 1: Creating a research plan & interview guide
Module 2: Finding & recruiting participants
Week 2
Feb
17
3️⃣ Running a Great Interview
Module 3: Interview setup, tech, and data collection
Feb
19
4️⃣ Interview Practice 1
Feb
20
✨ Office Hour / Q&A
Free resource
The Art of Unbiased User Interviews
The causes & effects of bias in interviews
Understand how your actions impact the quality of your data -- and the product decisions that result from it.
My favourite strategies to limit bias
Build a toolkit of specific, proven steps you can take to improve your interviews immediately.
What to do if you mess up!
Practice pivoting and "de-biasing" questions on the fly, because even the most seasoned interviewers mistakes.
Schedule
Live sessions
3-4 hrs / week
Two 1.5-hour live workshops and an optional Q&A session each week.
Tue, Feb 10
5:00 PM—6:30 PM (UTC)
Thu, Feb 12
5:00 PM—6:30 PM (UTC)
Fri, Feb 13
5:00 PM—6:00 PM (UTC)
Projects
1 hr / week
Two short written assignments to help reinforce what you learned in class, with detailed feedback provided from the instructor.
Async content
1-2 hrs / week
Short videos that cover course concepts, as well as free downloads and other resources that you can start using immediately in your own work.
Testimonials
- Interviewing users should be a Basic Life Skill for designers and product people. Elizabeth created and delivered fantastic training for our in-house teams at Mozilla that was a comprehensive intro for those newer to it but with depth for the more seasoned practitioners. She left our teams knowledgeable and confident.
Madhava Enros
Fmr. Senior Director, Firefox UX @ Mozilla - I’ve had Elizabeth run research training at two companies, so I can attest that this course is full of actionable material and insights to take your interview skills to the next level. Designers and Product Managers, Elizabeth will make you feel comfortable to get started and help you integrate research into your processes.
Dave Poore
Manager, Product Design & UXR @ StackAdapt - Elizabeth trained our design team to conduct user interviews and build out a set of user personas to help guide our startup. It was a fantastic experience, and something we couldn't have done without her. Our designers came away more empathetic and empowered to support our customers’ businesses better.
Gianni Chiappetta
CTO @ Freshline
Frequently asked questions
$550
USD