User onboarding plays a crucial role in the user’s experience with a software product. It introduces them to the technology by making them active participants and sets the stage for any future interaction. For these reasons, you should always be trying to improve the onboarding experience for the users of your software and not leave it for last-minute planning.
The following five steps will help you create a meaningful user onboarding experience.
Test Your Process
As you would with any new product, test your onboarding process amongst yourselves or with a test group so you can get reactions and thoughts of others before letting real users onboard. This way, you can make any necessary improvements before many people have an unsatisfactory experience.
When you test and receive feedback, you’re potentially improving the experience for everyone who will interact with your products and services in the future.
Personalize the Onboarding Experience
It’s essential to make the onboarding experience as relatable as possible. Get to know the user so you can personalize their experience.
Customers want to feel connected to brands nowadays, and adding personalization within their product experience will encourage this. That way, users want to continue to the product adoption phase and continue to use your product. When they feel connected, they’ll also be more apt to share their feedback with you.
Keep it Simple and Easy
KISS stands for Keep It Short and Simple. The easiest way to do that is to reduce the number of steps required by the end-user. It should be a process that they master quickly. The more steps needed or, the more complicated the steps are, the less likely people are to complete the process in its entirety.
Next, utilize a product experience software with user onboarding features. User onboarding software helps you better understand the needs of your customers. The software’s features let you create a personalized, guided experience with pop-up greetings, hotspots, videos, and more that teach the consumer how to use your digital product.
Stay in Touch with Users
An open line of communication between the user and your company is crucial, especially during the onboarding phase, when they’re only beginning to learn how to use your product.
Open communication on your part allows you to be proactive. It’s important to touch base with your users every so often to you avoid frustrations and check in on their progress. If there are issues that arise, an easy way to contact customer support also lessens frustrations and can diminish complications right away.
Take Action with User Feedback
Don’t forget to ask for user feedback in both the testing and onboarding phases. You’ll want to use it to revise and strengthen the onboarding experience you’ve created for future users. If you find that the onboarding process didn’t go as planned, you’ll be able to avoid future problems with the revisions you’ve made.
Obtaining onboarding feedback is the most critical step in the entire process because it is the only way to see your products through your customers’ eyes.
Why a Positive Onboarding Experience Matters
A positive onboarding is critical for product adoption, and therefore a smooth, pleasant onboarding experience is essential. It provides you with valuable feedback about the process long before it reaches widespread acceptance across your company.
