The Causal Interview Protocol

"It's criminal and intelligence interrogation that feels like therapy because most people don't actually know why they bought." — Bob Moesta

What It Is

A specific interviewing technique designed to reconstruct the customer's timeline and uncover the causal mechanisms behind a purchase, resembling a criminal investigation or therapy session rather than a standard survey.

When To Use

• During customer discovery
• Validating zero-to-one product concepts
• Understanding why a product is being "hired"
• When survey data seems unreliable or shallow

The Protocol