By Tangenix · Published 2026-10-23 · Free template

Customer Workaround Observation Template

Document how a person completes a task with existing tools, including what already works, friction and the cost of changing the workflow.

When to use this template

Use this when a founder labels a manual process inefficient but has not seen why the person chooses it or what it enables.

Choose another approach when: You want to record a private screen without permission, criticize the participant’s competence, or reinterpret every manual step as demand for your product.

Gather these inputs

• A relevant task the participant can safely demonstrate or recount.
• An agreed observation scope with confidential material excluded.
• A clear record of actions, context and researcher questions.

Copy and adapt the template

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Worked example

Illustrative example, not a Crany customer result. Replace every example detail with facts you can verify.

A fictional designer uses a shared document because clients can open it without learning another interface. Updating links is awkward, but the familiar access route is valuable.
The observer records both facts. A new app might organize sections better while introducing account friction that makes the overall handoff worse. The marketing implication is to investigate access expectations, not to declare that every designer needs to abandon documents. No real client file is copied into the research record.

How to use it

1. Agree on a safe demonstration scope and let the person use their existing method.
2. Record strengths as carefully as difficulties and separate observation from interpretation.
3. Investigate switching constraints before using the findings in positioning.

Check before using it

• The participant’s current method is treated as a rational choice in context.
• No private artifact is captured by default.
• A visible extra step is not automatically labeled wasted effort.

What to measure

Review whether later product and message decisions address the actual constraints uncovered. The observation reveals a workflow context, not a quantified efficiency advantage for an untested alternative.

Research and sources

The sources support understanding tasks, context and alternatives. The observation fields are original; any claimed time saving would require separate appropriate measurement.

• Yale: User Interview Example Questions — checked 2026-10-23. Interview structure, current tasks, past experience, alternative workflows and discovery paths.
• Teresa Torres: Customer Interviews — checked 2026-10-23. Story-based interviews about goals, needs and context; separate discovery from selling.

This original template and worked example were prepared with AI assistance. Source documentation supports the principles stated above; it does not endorse Crany or guarantee this template’s performance.

About Crany

Crany is an AI marketing co-founder in development for software founders and vibe coders, designed to strategize, execute approved marketing and improve based on results. This free resource is usable independently of the product. Join the public waitlist.