How to run in-context user interviews on your site

In-context user interviews mean inviting people to a short video or phone chat while they are using your site or product, instead of emailing them for a call next week. A pop-up or slide-out appears after a page view or action, the user picks a time or joins right away, and you ask about what they just did. It works when you have enough traffic to get a handful of yes answers per week and a clear question to ask. It is a qualitative method, so it answers "why" and not "how many".

How to do it

1. Write one research question. For example, "Why do people open the pricing page and leave?" or "What were they trying to do when they stopped at step 3 of setup?" The question decides which page and trigger you use.
2. Pick the trigger. Good moments are right after a task is completed, after a visitor views a key page several times, or after a failed attempt. Avoid showing the invitation on checkout or login pages.
3. Build the invitation. Appcues documents one way: a slide-out, which it calls "perfect for non-intrusive announcements, like surveys", with a short explanation and a button that opens your scheduling tool (it uses Calendly as the example) in a new window. It targets all pages except instrumental ones, limits the audience, and in its example shows the invitation every 60 days, only after 5 pages have been viewed in a session.
4. Offer something. A gift card or account credit is a common thank-you. State the length ("15 minutes") and what you will do with the answers.
5. Run 5 to 8 calls. Ask them to show you what they were doing, and ask about the last time they did it. Skip leading questions like "Would you use a feature that...".
6. Write up patterns. After each call, write down what the person tried, where they got stuck and the words they used. Use those words in your copy.

What it looks like in practice

Say you run a project tool and want to know why trial users do not invite teammates. You add a slide-out to the dashboard that appears once a trial user has created a project but has not invited anyone: "Got 15 minutes? Tell us how setup went and get a $25 gift card." The button opens a booking page with slots across the next two days. You hold six calls, ask each person to share their screen and walk through their first project, and then find out that three assumed invites cost extra. You change the invite screen to say it is free, then check invite rates before and after. This is an illustration of one setup, not a result.

Tools

• Appcues. Its documentation walks through the slide-out plus scheduling-link approach above.
• UXtweak. It has an on-site recruiting widget, a customizable pop-up placed on your website to invite visitors to studies.

Features and prices change, so check each tool's current page before you buy.

When it backfires

• Recording without consent. Tell people at the start that the call is recorded and get a yes before you start. In California, for example, Penal Code section 632 punishes recording a confidential communication "without the consent of all parties", with a fine up to $2,500 per violation. Other states and countries have their own rules.
• Interrupting the task. A pop-up on the checkout page can cost sales. Test it on low-stakes pages first and cap how often one person sees it.
• Self-selected samples. People who say yes to a pop-up are often your most engaged users. Balance with other methods, such as recruiting users who churned.
• Too few visitors. If you get a few hundred visitors a month, you may wait weeks for a call. Email invitations to existing users are quicker.
• Leading questions. What users say they would do rarely matches what they do. Ask about the last time, not the next time.

Sources

• Appcues docs: Recruit users for user interviews, read Oct 8, 2026
• UXtweak: Onsite recruiting widget, read Oct 8, 2026
• FindLaw: California Penal Code section 632, read Oct 8, 2026