Customer Feedback Management in Tourism

How I get genuine feedback from my clients (5 game-changing questions you haven’t asked yet) In business, the feedback you receive feels like a well-rehearsed script hastily delivered. It's a phenomenon I call the Echo Chamber Effect - where the feedback we receive is just an echo of what we want to hear, not what we need. Here’s what happens: You think you're ticking all the boxes: - client satisfaction, - exceptional service, - open communication… And then, out of nowhere, you're out of a job. Or - your services are abruptly canceled. You’re blindsided. But were you? Or did you just ask the wrong questions all along? Here are 5 powerful, open-ended questions that you should ask: 1.) “𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘥𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨?" This invites honest critique, not just polite nods. 2.) “𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘴, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘦/𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵?" This encourages the respondent to offer insights you might have overlooked. 3.) “𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘮𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩?" This is a collaborative invitation, making the respondent a partner in problem-solving. 4.) “𝘐𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘦'𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴; 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺?" This question not only seeks feedback but also fosters a vision of shared success. 5.) “𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥, 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘢𝘺?" This helps gauge the perceived value and authenticity of your service or product. Remember, it's not about interrogating. It’s about engaging in a meaningful dialogue. P.S. What other questions would you add to this list?

I’ve been into hotel finance for almost 10+ years now. I’ve learned that what’s left unsaid by your guests often impacts your bottom line the most. Sure, you’ve got rave reviews from happy travelers, and yes, complaint-handling protocols are in place. But what about the guests who leave with a polite smile yet never return? 𝟭. 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗟𝗼𝘀𝘀: Returning guests are 60%-70% more profitable than new ones. But if their dissatisfaction remains unvoiced, you may never know why they didn’t come back. 𝟮. 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲: A guest who doesn’t complain might not be angry—but they also aren’t recommending your property to friends or family. 𝟯. 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀: Issues like slow room service or poor amenities that go unreported stay unaddressed. Unsolved problems can cost more over time, both financially and reputationally. 𝟰. 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗮𝗴𝗲: A seemingly "happy" guest may quietly book elsewhere next time, even if your rates are competitive. 𝟱. 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗨𝗽𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀: Unspoken discomfort (like noisy rooms or bland food) can discourage guests from spending more on upgrades or F&B services. But how do you identify these silent signals? 𝟭. 𝗗𝗲𝗲𝗽-𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗚𝗼 𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗰𝘀 - Ask open-ended questions like: “𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙮 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧?” 𝟮. 𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 - Patterns like short booking durations or lower in-house spending can signal dissatisfaction. 𝟯. 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗳 - Train them to observe non-verbal cues and proactively check in: “𝙃𝙤𝙬’𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙢? 𝙄𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙚?” 𝟰. 𝗘𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝗼𝗻𝘆𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 - QR codes or anonymous forms allow shy guests to express concerns without confrontation. 𝟱. 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗢𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝘁-𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘆 - A lack of reviews could be as telling as negative ones. 𝟲. 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺—𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺. 𝗔 𝟱% 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝟮𝟱%-𝟵𝟱%. - Catching and resolving hidden pain points early reduces the cost of negative guest experiences and their long-term ripple effects. If you want to unlock your hotel’s full revenue potential, listen closely to what’s not being said. The best time to address silent dissatisfaction is before it leaves your property. Every smile, every stay, and every “thank you” has a story. Make sure you know all of it.

If you do this, you’re the worst kind of Product Manager. A customer makes a request, and before they even finish, you jump in: “Oh, we already have that feature! Let me show you…” A customer shares an issue, and you instantly respond: “Here’s how you can fix that…” A customer provides negative feedback on a new release and you immediately start defending: "We did a good amount of research..." Great Product Managers know this: If it's a request or feedback, listen and ask for use cases before proposing existing features. If it's a concern, listen and ask for scenarios before offering solutions. When you don't listen, you lock yourself into your interpretation of their request / problem. When you slow down and ask questions like “Tell me more about when this happens” or “What is the impact on your workflow?” you uncover the context. Customers do not just want your features or fixes. They want to feel heard. And when they feel heard, they are more open to your ideas, more trusting of your judgment, and more likely to see you as a partner rather than a vendor. Agree? Note: This is not just a Product Management skill. It is basic professional etiquette. Whether with customers, colleagues, or stakeholders, listening first and probing for clarity before defending your point of view almost always leads to better outcomes. #productmanagement #customerconversations

I thought I was being helpful. 🧨 I sat the person down. I used a calm voice. I even started with something positive. Then I said: “Here’s where you could improve…” The room went cold. Their face dropped. Tears welled up – not in slow motion, but in that instant, gut‑punch way. The feedback I gave didn’t build. It burned. The damage wasn’t just their reaction. It was my realisation, hours later, that I had done everything right by the textbook – and still got it wrong. Specific. Timely. Private. I checked every box. But I forgot one thing: feedback is not about what you say. It’s about what they hear. Here’s what I learned from the wreckage: The old way – “constructive criticism” – assumes the problem is the gap. The real problem is the delivery architecture. So I stopped winging it. And built a four‑part formula that turns feedback from a grenade into a bridge. The formula: 1. Context – Name the specific situation. No vague accusations. “Regarding the Q3 marketing report presentation…” 2. Impact – Describe what happened, not their character. “…the data visualisation was hard to follow, so the executive team missed the key takeaways.” 3. Request – Offer a clear, actionable alternative. “Could we try a more streamlined chart format, like the one from the Q2 sales brief?” 4. Invitation – Ask for their perspective. Make it a dialogue. “What are your thoughts? Is there anything that would make this easier for you?” That conversation would have looked different if I had used this. No tears. No shutdown. Just a shared understanding and a path forward. Feedback isn’t about being right. It’s about being heard – and helping the other person feel safe enough to listen. The carousel below is the post‑mortem of my biggest feedback failure – and the framework that saved my future ones. 👇 (Swipe to see the anatomy of a feedback fiasco – and the four steps that turn it into a bridge.) Save it. Share it with someone who’s about to give a hard conversation. Question for you: 🪞 What’s one piece of feedback you gave that didn’t land as you hoped – and what did you learn? Drop your story below. No names. Just the lesson. 🔥

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗜𝘀…𝗔𝗦𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗤𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦? Too often leaders mistakenly have a mindset that the central action in providing effective feedback is TELLING others how their behaviors either need to be developed, changed, or stopped to improve their performance. The best leaders understand that the most important skills for providing effective feedback are ASKING QUESTIONS and LISTENING. In today’s matrixed, virtual and ever-changing world very few feedback conversations are so clear cut that there isn’t a need for the leader to hear perspectives and gather more information. Many times, giving difficult feedback is made even harder because of the fact that the leader has to provide feedback about behaviors that they didn’t witness first-hand. It is a rare occasion that the feedback that needs to be shared is so critical or urgent that it justifies a leader not taking time to ask questions and listen. 𝟯 𝗧𝗬𝗣𝗘𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗤𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗦𝗨𝗖𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗙𝗨𝗟 𝗙𝗘𝗘𝗗𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 𝟭) 𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗨𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 After introducing the issue, transition to asking questions. Asking questions demonstrates the leader doesn't have all the information and they want to hear the employee's perspective before deciding what feedback is necessary. Example questions: • How do you think it went? • What went well? What could be improved? • What challenges were you encountering? 𝟮) 𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗦𝗢𝗟𝗨𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 Often leaders make the mistake of directly moving to sharing their solutions for how the employee should improve instead of taking the time to ask the employee solution-oriented questions. These questions invite the employee to be an active participant in the problem-solving process. Example questions: • What are your ideas for next steps? • How can we work together to make progress? 𝟯) 𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗕𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗖𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥 𝗔𝗖𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗧𝗔𝗕𝗜𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗬 It is frustrating to have an effective feedback conversation and then receiving no updates about action or progress. Often this lack of follow through is because the leader has not taken the time to create explicit agreements for next steps. Example questions: • What are your next steps? • When will these steps be completed? • How will you keep me updated on progress? What are your ideas for creating a healthy feedback culture? Share your COMMENTS below. ⤵️ To learn more about this post read my LinkedIn newsletter article, What Organizations And Leaders Get Wrong About Creating A Healthy Feedback Culture: https://lnkd.in/ejk4HX2x #humanresources #leadership #careers

"With all due respect..." "I understand how you feel." "That's an interesting idea" "Noted." Sometimes the nicest words can feel dismissive and silence people. 👉🏼 Here’s some small changes you can make for people to feel heard and encouraged to speak up: "I’ll take that into consideration." ➡️ “Here’s what I’ll do next. Your feedback matters, so I’ll keep you posted on how it shapes my decision.” "With all due respect…" ➡️ “I see where you’re coming from on x. Here’s my take, what are your thoughts?” "Just playing devil’s advocate." ➡️ “I appreciate your thinking. Let's brainstorm together what might happen if we look at it from this other perspective." "Noted." ➡️ “Thank you for raising this. I want to give it the attention it deserves and will get back to you with an update." "Thanks for your input." ➡️ “Thanks for sharing your thoughts about [specific topic]. Can you expand on that?" "That’s an interesting idea." ➡️ “Tell me more... What would it look like in practice?" "I understand how you feel." vs. ➡️ "I want to make sure I fully understand how this is impacting you. Can you share more, and let’s talk about what would help?" "Let’s agree to disagree." ➡️ "I appreciate your perspective on this. I respect that we have different opinions on this, and I’m glad we can speak openly about it.” "Let’s circle back on this." ➡️ “Let's circle back on this next week in our one-on-one. Does that work for you?” "It’s company policy." ➡️ “This is our company policy. I understand this policy can feel limiting. Here’s the reasoning behind it, and I’d like to hear your concerns so we can explore options within our constraints.” "No offense, but…" / "I don’t mean to be difficult, but…" ➡️ “I want to help us get to a better outcome. Are you open to some feedback?” Words matter. What sounds encouraging may not be enough. In fact, common polite expressions can be interpreted as shutting people down. Then: ❌ Teams stop speaking up. ❌ People stop caring. ❌ Innovation dies before it starts. Smart leaders don't focus on being polite and kind. They focus on open communication. It takes a lot more. Teams don’t need more courtesy. They need more candor, delivered with respect and encouragement. What’s the most “polite” phrase you’ve heard at work that made you feel shut down, or empowered? ➡️➡️➡️ Bring a workshop on bold communication for influential leadership to your team: contact me for details. #Leadership #Communication #TrustAtWork #TeamCulture #HR #L&D #CorporateCulture #EmployeeExperience #WorkplaceWellness #AuthenticLeadership #Influence #ManagerTips #SpeakUp #PsychologicalSafety #Innovation #IvnaCuri

Over the last several weeks, Tipalti has hosted several customer advisory boards across the globe. One in NYC for US clients (by Far our best attended ever!), one EU CAB in Amsterdam, and our first-ever internal CAB with key customer-facing subject matter experts. CABs are an excellent way to engage with and deepen client relationships, but the real objective is to get deeper, more contextualized customer feedback to better inform your product and other business-related decisions. Here are a few insights I have garnered from our recent experiences: 1. The Impact of Listening: The power of Active Listening (aka #reflecting) can never be understated. Hearing first hand feedback from a customer while you look them in the eye, asking questions to clarify understanding, and then expressing that you are genuinely considering that feedback into your decision-making helps to improve your business while making customers more loyal. These conversations also help ensure your team is putting the customer at the center of their decision-making. 2. The Power of Human Connection: There is a distinct difference to capturing feedback in-person vs digital methods of capturing need. Businesses often prefer to use spreadsheets to make decisions and that is very important. But relying too heavily and solely on this, without getting the deeper understanding of Why clients care about certain things and without fully appreciating the Emotion and excitement or frustration levels tied to the feedback can lead you off track. There is an important place for human-to-human interaction in business and those who get that will ultimately run a more successful business imo. 3. The Value of Collaboration: These CABs are, by nature, cross-functional efforts to pull off. Customer marketing may pull the event all together, customer success and account management helps to recruit attendees, product guides much of the content and conversation, and customers may also help to inform the topics and agenda too. At the event, everyone is engaging with one another. After the event, these different groups need to synthesize the input, prioritize it, share the learnings with business leaders, and action the learnings. These are big undertakings but they pull the entire company together to focus on the customer as their north star and that alone is transformative. Thank you to Leslie Barrett, Paola Johnson, Veronica Wynkoop, Irina Musteata, Reut Golan, Gil Vind Picciotto and everyone involved in making these 3 CABs a great success!

From rising through the ranks in investment banking to coaching future leaders, I know feedback is the secret to success. In my 25+ years, I’ve seen how timely, well-asked feedback can unlock promotions, raises and career growth —don’t wait to ask. 1 - Ask for feedback in a timely manner - as soon after the event (eg presentation, meeting, research paper, sales pitch, etc.) as possible. ⭐ Avoid waiting too long to ask, as memories can fade over time. ⭐ Choose a time when the person can focus on your request - scheduling 1x1 time, go for a coffee, etc. - strive for an environment with few distractions. ⭐ Give the person a heads-up that you’ll be asking for their feedback, so they have time to prepare. 2 - Ask someone who you TRUST and will be honest and forthcoming ⭐ Be careful not to be tempted to ask people who you know will provide positive feedback. (Personally, I like to ask a pessimist/glass is half empty personality). 3 - Be CLEAR and SPECIFIC on what you want feedback on ⭐ EXAMPLE - Don't say "How Am I Doing?". Be more specific and say "Can you provide feedback on how I at the sales pitch with Client ABC" 4 - Ask for EXAMPLES ⭐ EXAMPLE - "When you say I sounded nervous during the pitch, what specifically did you observe? Was it my body language, the way I spoke, the pace of my speaking, etc.?" 5 - Be OPEN and receptive to the feedback and do not get defensive ⭐ If you are defensive, you can discourage the person giving you honest feedback (or any feedback at all) ⭐ Realize that PERCEPTION IS REALITY. If the person provided feedback that you do not agree with, realize it is their reality (and likely others as well). 6 - Put an ACTION PLAN in place to address the feedback. ⭐ Ask the person providing feedback for their views on steps you can take to improve. Be grateful and thank the person who provided you feedback and ask them if you can follow up with them in a few weeks time to see if they have seen improvement. I also like to encourage them to share TIMELY feedback with me whenever they notice something. P.S. Want help with your development needs ⭐⭐ I can help. DM me now or email me at craigbroder@emergingedgellp.com. ♻️♻️♻️PLEASE REPOST AND SHARE WITH YOUR NETWORK ♻️ ♻️♻️

One VP client used this 12-word feedback opener and their team member actually thanked them: "I noticed something that might be holding back your incredible potential here." That's it. Twelve words that transformed a dreaded feedback conversation into genuine connection. The VP had been putting off this conversation for weeks. Sound familiar? She'd rehearsed scripts, worried about reactions, and found every excuse to delay. But when she finally sat down with her direct report and opened with those words, something shifted. Instead of defensiveness, she got curiosity: "What did you notice?" Instead of shut-down, she got engagement: "I've been wondering about that too." Instead of resentment, she got appreciation: "Thank you for caring enough to tell me." Why does this opener work? 🎯 "I noticed" - Grounds the conversation in observation, not judgment 💡 "Something" - Creates curiosity without immediate threat 🚀 "Might be holding back" - Focuses on potential, not problems ✨ "Your incredible potential" - Affirms their value while addressing gaps The best part? This framework scales. Whether you're addressing missed deadlines, communication gaps, or strategic misalignment, starting with potential rather than problems changes everything. Your team doesn't need perfect feedback. They need leaders brave enough to help them see what's possible. What feedback conversation have you been avoiding? Try this opener this week. Notice how it shifts the energy from correction to collaboration.

In the first company we founded (and exited), we talked to thousands of users. Here at Pivot (YC S22), we just crossed our first 100. We are obsessed about speaking to users. But how do we talk to users effectively? Here are the top 4 tactics that have helped us gain valuable insights: 1/ Spend the first 5 minutes just talking about their lives. Don’t approach user conversations like a sales pitch. I know that it’s tempting to push the call towards your goals, or perhaps you are worried about wasting the other person’s time. But resist that urge! Instead, focus on genuinely getting to know them as if you’re making a new friend. First, this provides valuable context about who they are and what matters to them, helping you better make sense of their insights. Second, this deeper connection fosters genuine care for each user, which is key to building a successful company. 2/ Look for Lightbulb Moments. These rare moments provide unique insights that bring us closer to achieving Product Market Fit. For instance, Brian Chesky went down to Airbnb hosts just to realise that they needed help with photography, and Brian Armstrong phoned up all early Coinbase users just to learn from one guy the importance of a "Buy Bitcoin" button. By staying patient and attentive, a single comment from a user can spark a breakthrough idea. Even if 100 conversations don't yield Lightbulb Moments, the next one just might. It is our job to look out for them. 3/ “Huh! That’s interesting. Tell me more.” This is the go-to statement whenever a user shares something unexpected or unusual. Ask it, then pause and let them respond. While it may catch users off guard initially, it prompts them to reflect on their feelings, often resulting in a more detailed and nuanced explanation. This could just lead to a valuable Lightbulb Moment (as mentioned earlier). 4/ 5 consecutive “whys” when seeking an explanation. The 1st “why” might uncover something interesting, but it’s not until you get to the 5th “why” that you start to unearth their deepest motivations and underlying pain points. These are often things that the user themselves may not even be aware of. This technique helps us move past surface-level feedback to gain deeper insights, guiding our product development and UX from first principles. Ultimately, this helps us create something users truly want. The best founders continue to talk directly to their users even after they've reached $100M+ in ARR. It's crucial that we start making this our superpower today. I’d love to learn about other tactics that have worked for you as well, feel free to drop them in the comments below 👇