AI / Design Communication & Image Prompting
Turn one complaint into one change
Fix what the user actually hit, not what they asked you to fix
The user's exact words: [paste complaint]. Do not implement it as stated. Break it down: 1) Fill three columns — what they said, what they actually did, what they actually ran into; 2) List three possible interface causes, ranked by likelihood, each with its evidence; 3) For the most likely one, give the smallest change and say whether it touches copy, a control, or the flow; 4) Point out what new problem the literal request would introduce; 5) Give a way to verify — which metric, and for how long before calling it fixed; 6) Write one sentence back to the user that promises nothing you cannot deliver.
How to use
Reproduce before you attribute; a session replay beats anyone's paraphrase of what happened.
Good for
- Support forwards "your button does nothing when I tap it" — going straight to the button's response will very likely fix the wrong place.
- A one-star app store review is written in pure frustration — there is usually one specific interface decision inside it, and it has to be taken apart to be usable.
Not for
- The complaint already includes reproducible steps and an error code — that is a bug flow; reproducing it is faster than attributing it.
- The same feedback shows up from 20 people — cluster and count first; digging into one case misses the shared cause.
Example
Input
I have to pick a delivery time again every single time I change my address, it is infuriating — three users, all on checkout
What you get
The three columns read: they said pick the time again, they actually changed the address and then reopened the time picker, and what they hit was the address change clearing the chosen slot. The likeliest cause is that submitting the address form resets the whole delivery module's state; the smallest fix is to reset only the address fields and keep the delivery slot. Adding remember my last choice, as requested, would hide the real bug. Verification watches checkout abandonment and repeat clicks on the time picker for two weeks.
Common mistakes
- Treating the complaint as a requirement and scheduling it — users describe symptoms, not causes; doing exactly what they ask often removes only the phrasing.
- Closing with 'the user doesn't know how to use it' — that conclusion cannot be tested and produces no interface change.
Try tweaking it like this
- Ask the person who complained to replay it — write a short script and have them retell their path; closer to reality than anyone's paraphrase.
- Add find the reason this complaint should not be acted on — some complaints point at product strategy rather than interface, and changing for them hurts another group.