Level 1: What they say
Level 2: What they think & feel
Level 3: What they do
Level 4: Why they do it

There is for example different reasons for a cancellation: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7140680577552117760/

The wheel of emotions https://uca.edu/bewell/files/2020/11/Feelings-Wheel-Learn-How-to-Label-Your-Feelings.pdf

Observe instead of asking whereas possible: https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2026/05/four-levels-customer-understanding/#observe-and-diagnose-don-t-validate

Practical ways to uncover user needs:

• Exposure hours, when every employee must be exposed to their customers for at least 2 hours every 6–12 weeks.
• Live UX testing, where we invite everyone in the company to join and observe.
• Co-design with users, where we show new features and ask users to rank them.
• Helpdesk insights, where we ask for frequent complaints and questions from the support every 3–6 months.
• Listening in, where we tune in on a customer service call, web chat, or eavesdrop where users hang out.