Customer segmentation for interviews: who to talk to

You

I reread my notes. A student with one cat wants the cheapest food. A family with four cats buys 10 kg bags. One woman's cat is on a vet diet. A breeder wants bulk discounts…

Alex Tutor

And what did the team decide after reading them?

You

Nothing. Every feature idea is somebody's favourite. Whenever we try to drop one, someone says: “But the breeders would love it!”

Alex Tutor

Classic signs of a customer segment that's too broad. Answers don't repeat, everything half-works, and you can't prove anything wrong because something always works for someone.

You weren't having nine conversations with one kind of customer. You were having one conversation each with nine different kinds.

Alex Tutor

Question 1

Which signs suggest a team's segment is too broad? Select all that apply.

Choose all that applyEvery conversation reveals a different main problemRemoving any feature is blocked by “but group X would love it”The last four conversations described the same problem in similar wordsWillingness to pay ranges from almost nothing to a lot, with no patternThe team can name a place where it will find its next five customers

You

So I pick one of the nine at random?

Alex Tutor

No, you slice. Customer slicing means splitting a broad group again and again with a few questions. First: within “cat owners”, who needs regular food delivery the most?

Then: why do they need it? Do they already pay or build a workaround to solve it? Does everyone in that subgroup have the same reason? And where can I find them?

You

Let me try. The woman whose cat is on a prescribed kidney diet can't skip a single day. The food is sold in few places, it's expensive, and she sets phone reminders to reorder.

Alex Tutor

That's a slice with a real motive: a missed day hurts, she already pays a premium and uses a workaround. Now repeat the questions inside that group until you know exactly who and where.

Alex Tutor

Question 2

Put Sofia's slices in order, from the broadest to the most specific.

Tap an item, then tap where it should go. You can also drag or use the arrows.

Alex Tutor

A good segment is a who-where pair: a specific group plus a place where you can reliably find them. If you can't name the “where”, keep slicing.

You

Then: owners of cats on prescribed diets, in the waiting rooms of vet clinics and in an online group for owners of cats with kidney disease.

Alex Tutor

Now you could be talking to them tomorrow morning. Compare that with “women aged 25–45 who love cats”: nice for an ad brief, useless for finding a single person.

Also notice how you sliced: by motive and situation, not by age or income. Demographics describe people; motives explain why they'd change what they do.

Alex Tutor

Question 3Short answer · AI-checked task

Marta suggests another segment: “owners of several cats”. Slice it once or twice and write one who-where pair Sofia could use this week. Add one sentence on why this group would care most.

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You

Now I have three pairs: diet cats at vet clinics, foster volunteers at the shelter, and students in dorm chats. Which one first?

Alex Tutor

Check three things. Is it easy to reach? Is it profitable or big enough to matter? And is it rewarding for you, people you'll enjoy spending months with?

You

Students are the biggest group, though.

Alex Tutor

Big, but they buy the cheapest bag and rarely stay long. Don't overthink it: spend twenty minutes, pick one, go talk. Starting narrow doesn't close the other doors forever.

Alex Tutor

Question 4

Match each fact about the “diet cats at vet clinics” segment to the criterion it supports.

Tap an answer, then tap the row it belongs to. You can also drag.

There are four vet clinics within a 15-minute walk of the CatChow office
Prescription food costs about twice as much as regular food and is bought every month
Sofia's own cat was on a kidney diet, and she likes talking to these owners

Answers left to place

You

I went to the clinic on our street. The cat owners in the waiting room were busy, but the administrator, Taras, had a quiet moment. Here's part of what he said.

Taras

Half our clients ask what to feed after the appointment. The doctor writes the diet on a piece of paper, and a week later they call in a panic because the pet shop ran out.

We keep a small shelf of diet food, but ordering it is my headache. The supplier wants at least 30 bags per order, and the owner decides what we stock.

Alex Tutor

Look what just happened. Taras isn't a cat owner, but he's part of how the food gets bought. The vet recommends, the clinic stocks and sells, the owner pays and feeds.

And the clinic has its own problem: minimum orders and running out of stock. It's a second customer with its own needs, not just a place to meet owners.

Alex Tutor

Question 5

Which of Taras's lines best shows that the clinic is a separate customer with its own problem?

Choose one answer“Half our clients ask what to feed after the appointment.”“The doctor writes the diet on a piece of paper.”“Ordering it is my headache. The supplier wants at least 30 bags per order.”“They call in a panic because the pet shop ran out.”

Alex Tutor

CatChow is now in a multi-sided market: cat owners on one side, clinics on the other. Each side needs its own conversations.

And inside the clinic there are several people. The one who orders isn't the one who pays. The decision maker controls the budget; every stakeholder can quietly block the deal.

You

So I map who does what in the clinic before I talk to anyone else there.

Alex Tutor

Exactly. And not only the most senior person. The clinic owner makes a nice line in a report, but Taras is the one who fights with the supplier every week.

Alex Tutor

Question 6

Match each person to their role in how diet food gets bought through the clinic.

Tap an answer, then tap the row it belongs to. You can also drag.

The clinic's vet
The clinic owner
Taras, the administrator
The cat owner

Answers left to place

You

I'm going back to Taras tomorrow. What should I ask him?

Alex Tutor

The same Mom Test rules, now about the clinic's life. How did the last order go? Who was involved? Who decides, and where does the money come from?

Listen for purchasing criteria too: what makes the clinic choose one supplier over another. That's worth more than any list of wished-for features.

You

And no mentioning a clinic subscription.

Alex Tutor

Question 7Short answer · AI-checked task

Write two or three questions for Taras that reveal who takes part in choosing and paying for the clinic's diet food. Follow the Mom Test: past specifics, no pitch.

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Marta

Can't we save time? Taras sees hundreds of cat owners. Let's just ask him what owners want and skip talking to them.

Alex Tutor

Taras can tell you what owners say at the reception desk. That's second-hand, filtered through his own worries.

Each side needs its own conversations: owners about their lives, clinic staff about theirs. Casual chats make that cheaper than it sounds.

Marta

Fine. Two lists of questions, then.

Alex Tutor

Question 8

In a multi-sided market, a well-informed person on one side can replace conversations with the other side.

TrueFalse

Marta

My team wants to sell to “pet businesses”: clinics, groomers, shelters, pet shops. Could you check that before we start calling?

Alex Tutor

“Pet businesses” is the B2B version of “cat owners”. A shelter and a grooming salon have almost nothing in common. Same method: slice, pair, pick, and map the people inside.

You

I'll write it up as a plan for Marta.

Alex Tutor

Good. Keep it short and concrete, with names of places, not categories.

Alex Tutor

Question 9Case · AI-checked task

Turn “pet businesses” into a first segment for CatChow's B2B conversations.

Marta's sales team wants to offer CatChow food to “pet businesses”: vet clinics, grooming salons, shelters and pet shops. From Taras you already know that clinics struggle with supplier minimums and running out of diet food.

Write a plan (150–300 words):

Slice “pet businesses”: which kind needs regular food supply the most, and why.
Two or three who-where pairs.
Which pair you start with, judged by reach, profit and personal reward.
Who inside that business you need to talk to, and one opening question for each.

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You

It feels like I'm giving up on most cat owners.

Alex Tutor

Only for now. Win one group properly, then widen. A product that half-works for everyone is worse than one that really works for someone.

Alex Tutor

One more lesson. You now have two kinds of customers and a pile of notes that live mostly in your head. Next time we fix that.

Alex Tutor

That’s the lesson. You answered every task — nicely done.

Next lesson: Notes, synthesis and working as a team