Customer Research

# /customer-research

> If you see unfamiliar placeholders or need to check which tools are connected, see [CONNECTORS.md](../../CONNECTORS.md).

Multi-source research on a customer question, product topic, or account-related inquiry. Synthesizes findings from all available sources with clear attribution and confidence scoring.

## Usage

``` /customer-research <question or topic> ```

## Workflow

### 1. Parse the Research Request

Identify what type of research is needed: - **Customer question**: Something a customer has asked that needs an answer (e.g., "Does our product support SSO with Okta?") - **Issue investigation**: Background on a reported problem (e.g., "Has this bug been reported before? What's the known workaround?") - **Account context**: History with a specific customer (e.g., "What did we tell Acme Corp last time they asked about this?") - **Topic research**: General topic relevant to support work (e.g., "Best practices for webhook retry logic")

Before searching, clarify what you're actually trying to find: - Is this a factual question with a definitive answer? - Is this a contextual question requiring multiple perspectives? - Is this an exploratory question where the scope is still being defined? - Who is the audience for the answer (internal team, customer, leadership)?

### 2. Search Available Sources

Search systematically through the source tiers below, adapting to what is connected. Don't stop at the first result — cross-reference across sources.

**Tier 1 — Official Internal Sources (highest confidence):** - ~~knowledge base (if connected): product docs, runbooks, FAQs, policy documents - ~~cloud storage: internal documents, specs, guides, past research - Product roadmap (internal-facing): feature timelines, priorities

**Tier 2 — Organizational Context:** - ~~CRM notes: account notes, activity history, previous answers, opportunity details - ~~support platform (if connected): previous resolutions, known issues, workarounds - Meeting notes: previous discussions, decisions, commitments

**Tier 3 — Team Communications:** - ~~chat: search for the topic in relevant channels; check if teammates have discussed or answered this before - ~~email: search for previous correspondence on this topic - Calendar notes: meeting agendas and post-meeting notes

**Tier 4 — External Sources:** - Web search: official documentation, blog posts, community forums - Public knowledge bases, help centers, release notes - Third-party documentation: integration partners, complementary tools

**Tier 5 — Inferred or Analogical (use when direct sources don't yield answers):** - Similar situations: how similar questions were handled before - Analogous customers: what worked for comparable accounts - General best practices: industry standards and norms

### 3. Synthesize Findings

Compile results into a structured research brief:

``` ## Research: [Question/Topic]

### Answer [Clear, direct answer to the question — lead with the bottom line]

**Confidence:** [High / Medium / Low] [Explain what drives the confidence level]

### Key Findings

**From [Source 1]:** - [Finding with specific detail] - [Finding with specific detail]

**From [Source 2]:** - [Finding with specific detail]

### Context & Nuance [Any caveats, edge cases, or additional context that matters]

### Sources 1. [Source name/link] — [what it contributed] 2. [Source name/link] — [what it contributed] 3. [Source name/link] — [what it contributed]

### Gaps & Unknowns - [What couldn't be confirmed] - [What might need verification from a subject matter expert]

### Recommended Next Steps - [Action if the answer needs to go to a customer] - [Action if further research is needed] - [Who to consult for verification if needed] ```

### 4. Handle Insufficient Sources

If no connected sources yield results:

- Perform web research on the topic - Ask the user for internal context: - "I couldn't find this in connected sources. Do you have internal docs or knowledge base articles about this?" - "Has your team discussed this topic before? Any ~~chat channels I should check?" - "Is there a subject matter expert who would know the answer?" - Be transparent about limitations: - "This answer is based on web research only — please verify against your internal documentation before sharing with the customer." - "I found a possible answer but couldn't confirm it from an authoritative internal source."

### 5. Customer-Facing Considerations

If the research is to answer a customer question:

- Flag if the answer involves product roadmap, pricing, legal, or security topics that may need review - Note if the answer differs from what may have been communicated previously - Suggest appropriate caveats for the customer-facing response - Offer to draft the customer response: "Want me to draft a response to the customer based on these findings?"

### 6. Knowledge Capture

After research is complete, suggest capturing the knowledge:

- "Should I save these findings to yo