"Don't you agree the new button is much better?" That sentence was not in the notes. A researcher named Nia still almost sent it, because it sounded helpful. She wants to learn how people export a report today. She is not allowed to pitch the new button. Five interviews are booked.
After this guide you will be able to explain AI user interview guide in your own words, copy a prompt that fits the job, and catch the extra sentence before anyone else sees it.
What Is AI User Interview Guide?
AI user interview guide means using an AI tool to write an interview guide around one open question, while a person checks every factual line against a source.
It is not a magic phrase you drop into a chat. It is a short method: one job, one source, one shape, one ban, and one human send. A researcher named Nia is a clear picture of the method. You already have this in the source: how people export a report today, with no pitch. The draft is only useful if it stays inside that.
This matters now because the tools are easy to open and the extra sentence is easy to miss. A beginner can produce a page that sounds finished. Sound is not the same as truth. If you remember one definition, remember this: a good draft is one you can point at.
Why AI User Interview Guide Matters
- You start from something true. You already have this in the source: how people export a report today, with no pitch. The guide keeps the draft tied to that, instead of asking the tool to invent a better story.
- You can see the mistake. The mistake in this story is easy to quote: "Don't you agree the new button is much better?" Once you can quote it, you can delete it. Vague worry is harder to edit.
- You get a prompt you can reuse. The prompt below is written for this job. Next time you change the notes, not the rules.
- A person still owns the send. Do not lead the witness or pitch the product. The tool can draft. It cannot be the name on the email, the post, the file, or the decision.
People searching for user research interview questions or interview guide template are usually stuck on the same gap. They have notes. They do not have a safe way to turn the notes into something they can send. The method below is that way.
How AI User Interview Guide Works
- Name one job before you name a tool. The job here is simple: write an interview guide around one open question. AI user interview guide starts after that sentence exists. Why it matters: A tool list feels like progress, but the blank page is still there.
- Show the source, then ask for a shape. She wants to learn how people export a report today. She is not allowed to pitch the new button. Five interviews are booked. The shape is short enough that a colleague can check it quickly. Why it matters: The tool cannot be careful about a fact you never gave it.
- Hunt for one extra sentence. Delete "Don't you agree the new button is much better?" and read what remains. If the piece still does the job, that line was never needed. Why it matters: Most bad drafts are fine except for one confident addition.
Give this job 15 minutes. A longer chat feels thorough and often gets worse, because each reply adds another chance to invent.
Minutes 0 to 3. Open the source and nothing else. She wants to learn how people export a report today. She is not allowed to pitch the new button. Five interviews are booked. Highlight how people export a report today, with no pitch. If that detail is missing, you are not ready to prompt.
Minutes 3 to 6. Paste a fenced prompt. The weak version is "Write questions that prove users love our new button." It asks for tone and forgets the fence. The strong version names the job, the source, the shape, and the ban.
Minutes 6 to 10. Read the draft once without fixing grammar. Hunt only for new claims. The claim that should not survive is "Don't you agree the new button is much better?"
Minutes 10 to 15. Cut that claim. Check that this remains true: The guide asks how they export today and does not mention a new button. Then stop. More prompts after a clean draft usually sand it into something vague.
Research that sells is not research. Nia's new button can wait outside the room. The useful story is the clumsy way people export today, in their words. Leading questions manufacture quotes you will later believe. Write five open questions, thank them, and stop. Five interviews on one question beat twenty interviews that pitch.
A Prompt You Can Copy
Use this with Claude. Replace the notes. Do not delete the ban.
Write an interview guide. Goal: learn how they export a report today. Include open questions and a closing thank-you. Do not pitch, do not ask them to agree, and do not promise a feature.The weak prompt, for contrast, was: "Write questions that prove users love our new button." Keep the weak one in your head only as a warning. Do not paste it.
Best Tools for AI User Interview Guide
You do not need a large stack. Three tools cover the job. If you are choosing software for a whole company, start with the company buying shortlist after you can do this one task by hand.
Claude
Claude can draft open questions.
Best for: a first draft when you already have the source
Price: Claude Pro is about $20 a month on Anthropic's pricing page. Confirm before you buy.
How it helps: It turns the source into a draft of this job: write an interview guide around one open question.
Good to know: Do not lead the witness or pitch the product.
ChatGPT
ChatGPT can mark leading phrasing.
Best for: a colder edit after the first draft
Price: ChatGPT Plus was about $20 a month in public pricing notes, and Pro started near $100. Confirm the live plan on OpenAI's pricing page before you buy.
How it helps: It is good at listing lines that add a fact, including a line like "Don't you agree the new button is much better?"
Good to know: Do not lead the witness or pitch the product.
Notion AI
Notion AI stores the guide with the study.
Best for: a last pass in the tool that fits this file
Price: Check the current price on the vendor page before you buy. This guide does not invent a seat price.
How it helps: It stores the guide with the study.
Good to know: Do not lead the witness or pitch the product.
Step-by-Step: How to Get Started
Step 1: Write the job in one line
Write: write an interview guide around one open question. Put that line above the chat. If you need a second sentence to explain the goal, you are mixing two tasks. Split them. AI user interview guide works on one task at a time.
Step 2: Bound the source
She wants to learn how people export a report today. She is not allowed to pitch the new button. Five interviews are booked. Copy only what you are allowed to share. Keep how people export a report today, with no pitch visible. Remove passwords, customer lists, health details, and legal files you do not have permission to upload.
Step 3: Use a prompt that draws a fence
Do not start with "Write questions that prove users love our new button." That prompt asks for a nice tone and leaves the facts open. Paste the prompt from the section above. Then replace the notes with yours.
Step 4: Keep only the version you can point at
Do not lead the witness or pitch the product. Read every factual line and point at the source. The version you keep must pass this test: The guide asks how they export today and does not mention a new button. You send it. The model does not.
When the same shape comes up every week, copy a workflow or a prompt template instead of starting from a blank chat. Change the source. Keep the ban.
Real Examples
Example 1: A researcher named Nia
Situation: She wants to learn how people export a report today. She is not allowed to pitch the new button. Five interviews are booked.
What to do: Use the prompt above. Tell the tool the job is to write an interview guide around one open question. Reject any line like "Don't you agree the new button is much better?"
Why this works: Do not lead the witness or pitch the product
Result: The guide asks how they export today and does not mention a new button.
Example 2: A teacher
Situation: They want to know where students get stuck on one assignment.
What to do: The questions ask where, not 'wasn't it easy?'
Why this works: A leading question wastes the period.
Result: Students describe the stuck point.
Example 3: A nonprofit
Situation: They want to hear how donors heard about the event.
What to do: The question is open.
Why this works: A preferred answer would bias the report.
Result: The report quotes real paths.
These are practice examples, not customer results. The test is the same in each one: if you cannot point at the source, it does not ship.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Opening with "Write questions that prove users love our new button.". The tool fills the silence with a confident extra claim. Do this instead: Name the job, the source, the length, and the ban in the same prompt.
- Leaving "Don't you agree the new button is much better?" because it sounds polite. Polite and untrue is still untrue. The reader may act on it. Do this instead: Delete it, even if the paragraph feels shorter.
- Pasting a whole inbox, folder, or database. You only need how people export a report today, with no pitch. Extra text gives the tool more chances to grab the wrong fact. Do this instead: Paste the smallest source that still contains the detail.
- Asking the tool to pick a plan, a price, or a legal conclusion. Those are decisions. A draft can list what the source says. It cannot make the decision for you. Do this instead: Write 'not in the source' and decide yourself, or ask the person who owns the decision.
Quick Comparison
| Option | Best for | Difficulty | Cost | Beginner tip |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude | First draft from a small source | Easy | Free plan, paid if you need more | Paste less than you think |
| ChatGPT | Second pass on a smooth draft | Easy | Check the vendor page | Ask it to mark new claims |
| Notion AI | stores the guide with the study. | Easy | Check the vendor page | Do not move secrets into a personal login |
Tips That Actually Help
- Tip 1. Keep how people export a report today, with no pitch in the first three lines of the prompt so the model cannot skip it.
- Tip 2. If a question can be answered with yes, rewrite it until the person has to tell a story.
- Tip 3. If the draft uses a number, a date, or a name, find it in the source before you keep it. "Don't you agree the new button is much better?" fails that test.
- Tip 4. Run the same notes through ChatGPT only after the first draft exists. A second tool is an editor, not a new source of facts.
- Tip 5. Save the prompt in your notes or in the prompt library. Next week, swap the source and keep the ban: Do not lead the witness or pitch the product.
FAQ
What is the practical way to do AI user interview guide?
Start with one source. She wants to learn how people export a report today. She is not allowed to pitch the new button. Five interviews are booked. Ask for a draft of this job: write an interview guide around one open question. Then delete any line the source does not support. The line to practice on is "Don't you agree the new button is much better?" The version you keep should match this: The guide asks how they export today and does not mention a new button.
Why did the draft say "Don't you agree the new button is much better?"?
Because the first prompt was too open. "Write questions that prove users love our new button." asks for a polished result and does not forbid new claims. The tool prefers a complete sound. Do not lead the witness or pitch the product. Put that ban in the prompt, then check the draft yourself.
Which tool should I open first?
Open Claude for the first shape. Open ChatGPT when the draft sounds sure and you want extra lines marked. Open Notion AI when the work should stay in that product or needs a different kind of pass. Confirm the live price before you buy.
What should never go into the prompt?
Do not lead the witness or pitch the product. Also leave out passwords, payment data, private customer lists, and health or legal records you are not allowed to upload. If you would not email it to a stranger, do not paste it.
Is this useful for a complete beginner?
Yes. You only need an account and one real note. A researcher named Nia is not an expert in the story. The skill is the check, not a secret setting. You can practice on a free plan, then pay only if a limit blocks a real task.
The Bottom Line
AI User Interview Guide is a small, strict way to write an interview guide around one open question. A researcher named Nia almost sent "Don't you agree the new button is much better?" because the first prompt was vague. The fix was not a new subscription. The fix was a source, a ban, and a read-aloud.
Your next step is small. Open Claude, paste the prompt, and use a note you already have. Keep the draft only if this is true: The guide asks how they export today and does not mention a new button.
For more walkthroughs, browse the AI tools directory and these related guides: How to Start Using AI Tools and Survey Questions for One Feature.