CTC6: How to avoid confirmation bias when gathering feedback
Stay curious: how to avoid only hearing what you want when gathering feedback.
Gathering feedback is an important part of product management.
But be careful: it’s easy to fall into the trap of confirmation bias — hearing only what you want to hear. Here are a few ways to avoid it.
1. Define clear objectives and hypotheses
Before starting to gather feedback, be clear on your goals.
What are you trying to achieve? What assumptions are you testing?
Setting clear objectives keeps you focused — and helps you spot when feedback doesn't fit your assumptions.
2. Look for contradictory comments
Positive feedback feels good — but it rarely points to areas for improvement.
Go looking for the uncomfortable stuff. Encourage users (and your team) to challenge your ideas.
The real gold often lies in what people don’t like.
3. Try A/B testing and experiments
Feedback isn’t just "yes or no."
An idea might be good, but the execution might not land.
Run experiments. Try alternatives. Find out not just if the idea works — but if there’s a better way to do it.
4. Use third-party moderators
When you're close to an idea, it’s hard to stay objective.
Ask someone else to review the feedback. See if they spot trends — or concerns — that you might miss.
5. Reassess your assumptions
Product development is never static.
Keep revisiting your assumptions.
What was true early on might need rethinking as you gather more feedback. Be flexible and open to changing your strategy based on new insights.
In summary
Feedback isn’t there to validate you.
It’s there to tell you the truth.
Listen carefully — especially when it’s not what you expected to hear.
Hi, I’m Ben Barden. “Cutting Through Chaos” is about organising messy, chaotic information in product management. Head over to the About page to find out more.
If you found this post useful, why not subscribe below?