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Ask HN: How to talk to users?

4 points by dayve ↗ HN
I often see a lot of advice on 'talking to users' as fundamental to understanding their needs, building a product they love & running a profitable startup. However, it seems there is a right way to talk to users & perhaps, steer conversations in a way that provides you valuable insights or gets you closer to what their pain points are. How do you ideally talk to users, most especially if you're trying to validate a B2B idea?

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Don't you mean talking to humans that you work with and build solutions for? The term 'user' depersonalises the relationship, and yes, you do need to take care, and so do they, but there are better means. Structure your business relationship and build order first to maintain clarity should the need arise. Bind that agreement on ethics not need. If you do not want a relationship with clients or prospective clients, perhaps use your engineering skills in an existing organisation that shields you from the interaction. Otherwise, honest personal contact is best. Your abilities should be evident in response to need, not assertion of need. Be prepared to skilfully manage emergency situations that are not your own.