Executive Summary
A product research team transformed their user interview process by conducting Reddit research before each interview study. Pre-interview community analysis improved question design, increased coverage of relevant topics, and doubled the insight quality rating from stakeholders compared to interviews conducted without Reddit preparation.
Background
User interviews are foundational to product research, yet their quality depends heavily on preparation. Researchers often develop interview guides based on team assumptions, previous research, and stakeholder questions. This approach misses topics users care about but researchers haven't anticipated.
Reddit provides a window into how users naturally discuss problems and solutions. Reviewing these discussions before interviews helps researchers ask better questions, probe deeper on meaningful topics, and avoid wasting interview time on irrelevant areas.
The Challenge
A product research team found that stakeholders often rated interview insights as "surface-level" or "not actionable." Despite following best practices for interview design, the team struggled to uncover deep insights that changed product decisions. Post-interview reviews revealed they were often asking the wrong questions or missing topics users cared about most.
The Research Enhancement Method
Traditional Interview Preparation
Before implementing Reddit research, the team's preparation included:
- Stakeholder input on questions to explore
- Review of previous research findings
- Analysis of product analytics data
- Competitor feature comparison
This preparation captured internal perspective but missed external user context.
The Solution
The team added Reddit research as a mandatory pre-interview step. Before each study, researchers spent 3-4 hours analyzing relevant Reddit discussions to understand how users naturally talked about the research topic. This informed question design, identified unexpected angles, and provided vocabulary for building rapport with interviewees.
Implementation Process
Phase 1: Topic Discovery
For each research study, the team searched for Reddit discussions related to the research topic:
| Research Type | Reddit Search Focus | Insight Type |
|---|---|---|
| New feature research | How users solve problem currently | Workarounds, pain points |
| Usability research | Confusion and frustration posts | Specific problem areas |
| Competitive research | Comparison discussions | Decision criteria, perceptions |
| Persona research | Self-description posts | Goals, contexts, behaviors |
Phase 2: Question Enhancement
Reddit insights enhanced interview guides in several ways:
- Topic coverage: Added questions about issues users discussed that team hadn't considered
- Language calibration: Used terminology from Reddit discussions to improve question clarity
- Probe development: Prepared follow-up probes based on Reddit discussion patterns
- Scenario creation: Developed realistic scenarios from actual Reddit situations
Phase 3: Interview Execution
During interviews, Reddit preparation improved conversations:
- Researchers could reference common experiences, building rapport
- Natural follow-up questions came easier due to topic familiarity
- Interviewees felt understood, leading to more open sharing
- Unexpected responses could be contextualized against Reddit patterns
"After researching Reddit discussions about workflow challenges, I knew exactly what follow-up questions to ask. When an interviewee mentioned a frustration, I could probe deeper because I'd seen similar discussions online. The interview felt more like a conversation between people who understood each other."
Results
Performance Outcomes
Quantitative Improvements
- Stakeholder "actionability" ratings doubled (3.2/5 to 4.4/5)
- Number of product decisions influenced by research increased 45%
- Analysis time decreased 35% due to clearer patterns
- Follow-up research requests decreased (more complete initial studies)
- Interview rapport ratings improved significantly
Example: Feature Prioritization Study
A study to prioritize product features illustrates the improvement:
Without Reddit preparation (previous approach):
- Questions based on internal feature roadmap
- Interviewees responded to feature descriptions
- Insights confirmed what team already believed
- Stakeholder rating: "Useful but not surprising"
With Reddit preparation (new approach):
- Reddit revealed features users discussed that weren't on roadmap
- Questions explored user-described problems, not team-defined features
- Discovered unexpected priority: integration users built workarounds for
- Stakeholder rating: "Changed our roadmap thinking"
Key Learnings
What Worked
- Reddit vocabulary improved question clarity and interviewee understanding
- Unexpected topics from Reddit often yielded highest-value insights
- Researchers felt more confident and conversations flowed better
- Pattern recognition during analysis was faster due to prior exposure
What Required Adjustment
- Initial tendency to over-prepare; needed balance of structure and flexibility
- Reddit vocal minorities sometimes led to over-emphasis on niche issues
- Researchers needed to avoid leading questions based on Reddit patterns
For more research approaches, see Product Manager solutions.
Prepare Better Interviews
reddapi.dev helps researchers understand user perspectives through semantic search across Reddit. Prepare interviews that uncover deeper insights.
Start Interview PrepFrequently Asked Questions
How much time should Reddit preparation add to interview planning?
3-4 hours per study is typically sufficient. This includes community identification, discussion analysis, and question guide enhancement. The time investment is recovered through more efficient interviews and faster analysis.
Won't Reddit preparation bias my interview approach?
This risk exists but is manageable. Use Reddit for topic discovery and vocabulary, not to form conclusions. Keep interview questions open-ended and let interviewees share their perspectives. Reddit provides hypotheses to explore, not answers to confirm.
What if my interview participants aren't Reddit users?
Reddit users may differ from your specific participants, but the topics they discuss often apply broadly. Use Reddit for topic coverage and vocabulary, then let your actual participants confirm or contradict Reddit patterns. Differences can be as insightful as similarities.
How do I cite Reddit research in formal research reports?
Frame Reddit as exploratory research that informed interview design. Note specific insights that were validated through interviews. Distinguish between Reddit hypothesis generation and interview-validated findings. This transparency strengthens rather than weakens research credibility.
Should every interview study include Reddit preparation?
Most studies benefit from some Reddit review, but depth varies. Exploratory research in unfamiliar domains benefits most. Validation studies on well-understood topics may need less preparation. Judge based on how much you already know about user perspectives.