Hey reader, if you enjoyed the high-level strategy about launching EdTech product - here’s where we get tactical.

In my earlier pieces on launching a product in the U.S. and testing growth levers, I focused on strategy-level insights and early experiments. But here, as a continuation of my exploration of what it really takes to build and grow EdTech products, I want to go deeper - into the practical side: the research rituals, user interview systems, and internal playbooks that helped me navigate launch, product-market fit, and the whole process from the ground up.

Why Just Talking to Users Isn't Enough

We all love a good user interview. But most early-stage product teams fall into a dangerous pattern: they treat user feedback like gospel, but only collect it from one lens. The happy path user. The maybe-user. The person who clicked a button.

Here’s the truth: users don’t always say what they really mean. They say what they think you want to hear. Or they describe an ideal version of themselves. Or they mask doubt with vague enthusiasm. And that’s how you end up building something based on aspirations, not reality.

What I think works the best is multi-perspective discovery. That means talking to people beyond the people currently in your funnel. Especially in EdTech.

The 3 Groups of users You Actually Need to Interview

I strongly believe that this approach is relevant not only for EdTech products, but to tech products in general.

Here is my thought process.

When you’re entering a new market or just creating a new product for the existing one - especially something as sensitive and personal as education - it’s tempting to only talk to your potential users. And yes, that’s crucial. But that isn’t enough.

In my experience when I launched EdTech products, I realized I needed a wider lens. So I spoke with three very different groups:

Why do all this? Because I didn’t just want a nice user persona. I wanted a realistic, well-rounded user portrait from a 360 degree perspective - something that captured both the learner’s inner world and the external expectations they’d eventually have to meet.

A Quick Example: Two End-Users, One Product

Imagine you're launching an EdTech product designed to help parents strengthen their bond with their children while talking about growing up. Your target audience may be parents, but your product actually has two end-users: the parents and their children.

If you build the product as just a list of informative articles, it might fall short. Why? Because you won’t address one of the core goals -making the knowledge or skills easily transferable to the second end-user.

But if you frame your product strategy and user experience as something interactive, playful, and emotionally resonant - even if it's not directly designed for kids - parents will intuitively know how to adapt it. They’ll be better equipped to pass it on in a way that suits their child’s world. And that’s what strengthens the bond.

The Tools I Used during the Discovery phase (And Still Use)

To keep it practical, here’s my stack:

And yes, I tag everything. Emotional drivers, practical blockers, confidence moments. I use themes like "friction," "fear of failure," or "unclear value."

Building Real User Portraits (Not Personas)

I use Jobs-To-Be-Done (JTBD) framework when interviewing users. This process helps me create what I call job-based user portraits. Let me give you two quick examples.

Job 1: Expand Without Starting Over

Job 2: Stable Career, New Identity

When Do You Know You’ve Found the Real Need?

When you can confidently finish this sentence:

They’re hiring my product to help them __________.

And that blank includes both a functional and emotional outcome. Not just "learn to do this & this," but "feel employable again." Not just "get into this industry," but "feel like I belong there."

When you hear the same fear, same goal, same driver repeated by people across 20–30 interviews? You’re onto something real.

Final Thought

If you only listen to the users you’re already attracting, you’ll build a product that fits them - and maybe no one else.

But if you go wider - if you listen to the frustrated, the skeptical, the hiring manager who has to make the final call - you’ll build something much better:

👉 In the ext articles about EdTech product development I’ll write how to validate your product idea before launch, team rituals to stay alive during and after the launch and be calm, and what early-on metrics to track (spoiler alert - it is not a retention rate!)

Stay tuned!