The Failure of WTP Interviews: Why "Willing to Pay" Doesn't Mean "Will Buy"

Everybody lies.

We could basically end this post about assessing customers' willingness to pay with that famous quote from Dr. House.

But the goal is quite the opposite..

To somehow account for the human tendency to exaggerate their capabilities when conducting price interviews

There are different methods for analyzing WTP
(e.g., PSM, I wrote about it here)

The main objection from founders and product teams is that such questions are useless.

In words, they tell us they're willing to pay X

When we actually send the invoice, they pay less or don't pay at all.


What can I say..
Yes, that's true!

But that doesn't mean asking about price is pointless

It means it's important to properly design interview scenarios and account for this feature of our psyche.

We must remember that..

1) In an interview, there is no pain of parting with money

When there's no actual charge, the brain responds more generously. It's like "of course, I'll go to the gym 4 times a week starting Monday"

2) People answer in general, but buy in context

In an interview, they think: "the feature is useful". When buying: "well, what's my budget?", "need to get approval", "how much do others cost?", "what if it doesn't take off?" etc.

3) In interviews, people often keep the conversation going

They don't want to appear greedy, incompetent, or "too small". Especially when talking to a founder. Social desirability bias is real


So step 1..

Remember that "willing" in an interview = "hold on, hold on" in a real deal

What else makes sense to do

Bring the conversation closer to a real purchase

After "yes, I'd buy it for that much," it's useful to ask

- Who signs off on the invoice?
- From which budget is this paid?
- Who are you comparing us with right now?
- If we send an invoice tomorrow, what are the next steps?


Add a confidence check

Ask clients how confident they are on a scale of 0–5 that they will buy at this price by the end of the month?

A rating of 5 translates to 40-50% actual purchase
A rating of 4 is only 10-20%

Below that, don't expect a real purchase

Simple approach, but reduces the gap with reality


And the last (key) thing..

Make small but real commitments

Nudge clients toward real actions

- a paid pilot (even with a small check)
- a deposit / pre-order
- a letter of intent (even a simple one)

If someone is willing to pay, they are usually willing to take at least a small step.


These things improve the quality of results and the accuracy of price ranges.

(if, of course, you conduct more than 2-3 interviews)

Need help developing scenarios and questions? Reach out @serge_nosov

#willingness_to_pay