The interview questions that get gaming viewers talking about what they actually did

Good interviews reconstruct a recent decision. They do not ask viewers to praise an idea or predict whether they will watch next month. Choose participants who recently found, left, paid for or commissioned the kind of gaming content being studied, then ask the same core questions with neutral follow-ups.

The GOV.UK Service Manual's in-depth interview guidance recommends open questions, real examples and a flexible discussion guide. It was written for government service research, so the questions below adapt that method to creator work rather than claiming an official interview formula.

What to take away

1. What were you trying to do the last time you looked for this content?

This identifies the triggering task. Ask which game, platform and stage they had reached. Do not supply possible answers unless the person genuinely cannot recall the event.

2. How did you choose what to watch first?

Follow the route through search, recommendations, clips, communities or a known channel. Ask what was visible at the decision point and which alternative was rejected. This is more useful than asking whether thumbnails are important in general.

3. Where and on what device did you watch?

The setting can explain demand for captions, pacing, screen detail or a live schedule. Ask about interruptions and shared viewing. Location should be collected only where England or another geography matters to the decision.

4. At what point did the content become useful or stop being useful?

Invite the participant to describe a particular moment. A tutorial may assume knowledge they did not have; a stream may begin after they are available; a review may omit the platform they use. Avoid defending the creator's choices during the answer.

5. What did you do immediately afterwards?

An actual next step is stronger evidence than stated satisfaction. The person may have tried the technique, watched another creator, joined a live session, bought nothing or abandoned the task. Ask what made that next action possible.

6. Tell me about the last time you paid for something connected with a creator

Use this only with participants relevant to a membership, product or other offer. Ask who made the payment, what they expected and what almost stopped them. If a young person is involved, research the parent or guardian's role separately and use an appropriate safeguarding process.

7. What information did you need before agreeing?

For viewers, this may concern benefits, cancellation or delivery. For a brand or agency buyer, it may include audience evidence, rights, approvals and reporting. The ASA's UK influencer marketing resources show why advertising identification should be discussed with commercial buyers rather than treated as an afterthought.

8. What should I have asked about that I missed?

This gives the participant room to correct the researcher's frame. Follow up on a concrete event, not a wish list. End by confirming what will happen to notes or recordings.

Recruit and protect participants

Use a short screener based on recent behaviour. The government's participant recruitment guidance advises selecting actual or likely users and including varied access needs. Do not rely solely on moderators, friends or highly vocal followers.

Before recording, explain the purpose, access, storage, publication and withdrawal arrangements. GOV.UK's informed-consent guidance calls for extra consent where children or vulnerable adults participate. A commercial creator should obtain specialist advice for higher-risk research rather than assuming a direct-message reply is sufficient.

After each session, write observations before conclusions. Compare repeated behaviours across relevant roles, retain contrary cases and mark the limits of the sample. Interviews can explain why these participants acted as they did; they cannot produce an England-wide percentage.

Before you act

Common questions

How should I word the core interview questions?

Use open questions with neutral follow-ups, as the GOV.UK Service Manual's in-depth interview guidance recommends. Ask the same core questions across participants, and do not supply possible answers unless the person genuinely cannot recall the event. Follow up on concrete events rather than wish lists.

What should I do about payments involving a young person?

Use the payment question only with participants relevant to a membership, product or other offer. Ask who made the payment, what they expected and what almost stopped them. If a young person is involved, research the parent or guardian's role separately and use an appropriate safeguarding process.

Can I turn the findings into a national percentage?

No. After each session, write observations before conclusions, compare repeated behaviours across relevant roles, retain contrary cases and mark the limits of the sample. Interviews can explain why these participants acted as they did, but they cannot produce an England-wide percentage.