How do you present customer discovery insights to decision-makers?

1 Know your audience

Before you prepare your presentation, you need to know who you are talking to and what they care about. Different decision-makers may have different goals, perspectives, and expectations. For example, a CEO may be more interested in the strategic fit and the market potential of your product, while a product manager may be more concerned about the feasibility and the usability of your solution. Therefore, you need to tailor your presentation to your audience and highlight the insights that are most relevant and valuable to them.

2 Structure your story

A good presentation is not just a collection of facts and data, but a story that connects the dots and shows how your product solves a real problem for real customers. To structure your story, you can use a simple framework that answers three key questions: What? So what? Now what? The What part describes what you learned from your customer discovery interviews, surveys, or experiments. The So what part explains why your insights matter and how they support or challenge your hypotheses. The Now what part suggests what actions you should take based on your insights, such as pivoting, iterating, or validating your product.

3 Use visuals and quotes

One of the best ways to make your presentation more engaging and persuasive is to use visuals and quotes that illustrate your customer discovery insights. Visuals can help you simplify complex information, show trends and patterns, and highlight key points. Quotes can help you bring your customers' voices to life, show their emotions and motivations, and create empathy and credibility. However, be careful not to overload your presentation with too many visuals and quotes, as they can also distract or confuse your audience. Choose the ones that are most relevant, impactful, and memorable, and use them sparingly and strategically.

4 Anticipate questions and objections

No matter how well you present your customer discovery insights, you may still face some questions and objections from your decision-makers. They may challenge your assumptions, methods, data, or conclusions, or ask for more evidence or details. To prepare for these situations, you need to anticipate the possible questions and objections that your audience may have, and have ready answers or explanations. You can also use your presentation as an opportunity to invite feedback and suggestions, and show that you are open to learning and improving.

5 Follow up and follow through

After you present your customer discovery insights, you need to follow up and follow through with your decision-makers. You need to follow up by sending them a summary of your presentation, thanking them for their time and attention, and asking for their approval or input. You need to follow through by taking the actions that you suggested based on your insights, such as conducting more customer discovery, building a prototype, or testing a hypothesis. You also need to keep your decision-makers updated on your progress and results, and show them how your product development is influenced by your customer discovery insights.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?