Connor BrookeThe onboarding process for your mobile app is about the first impression of your mobile app users. When the user launches the app for the first time, it is this onboarding process that reinforces the app’s values, highlighting the features and the key benefits. A strong onboarding process contributes to the app’s success. If the app is designed successfully, then that only enhances the likelihood of a successful adoption. A sound onboarding process in place, will ensure that the retention rates goes up to 50 %.
A study finds out that 80 % of times, the mobile apps are deleted by the users, just after they are used for the first time. In most cases, the users spend a considerable amount of time for their favourite apps. So, it is wise that the users find immediate value in their apps, not deleting or abandoning them.
The mobile app users must exercise every precaution in designing the app onboarding process. Strong relations with the mobile app users will be on account of a proper onboarding experience, but a wrong experience means that the mobile app users will not be able to understand the usage of the app, thereby increasing the risks involved in app abandonment.
Here are some of the tips for successful onboarding of the apps, after the app development process is over, which ensures that the users love your app and keep using it.
Reduce Sign-up/Log in Fields
Just imagine how irritating is it, for typing passwords for your mobile apps, and even remembering them. If the user experiences, the moment the mobile device is opened that they need to go through a login/sign-up process, there are every chances that you will lose the users. The screen size is an important parameter for the mobile devices. Long forms are awfully bad ideas for such devices. The most ideal is that in which the user will get a signup/login via a single field like a Facebook or a LinkedIn login. But, the moment the users store the passwords key chain tools, and then forgets it, more complexity is added to the process.
Personalized Experience is What Matters
Various users respond to the same things in the same way. You need to understand the segments of mobile app users, with some mobile analytics tools and what appeals to them, in terms of contents and messages. The onboarding campaigns are ensured to send the right messages, to the right users at an appropriate time. The segments on demographics is not what is wanted, but also for locating where the users are with respect to the onboarding process. Start experimenting with the process, as to which users have opted out of the push notifications, and try to change their mind, at a later stage. Coach screens can be helpful in app onboarding process, showing it only to a certain subset of users.
Following “One Screen and One Concept” Rule
The user must not be overloaded with information. A single screen must be used for a concept, using a single screen. This is particularly helpful when we want a function- oriented and a benefits-oriented onboarding. One good example that AirBnb communicates to its users is a four screen onboarding experience.
Quick Feedbacks
Feedbacks serve different purposes for the onboarding process. The most common usage is the errors and the errors or successes in the validation process. Moreover, the users will be able to detect the reasons behind the failure of the passwords. The mobile app users will be able to navigate the apps better, as failures are reduced, when the users are clear on where they have gone wrong.
Guided Interaction
Progressive onboarding approach is what is used for the more complex mobile apps, in the form of a tutorial on how to use the apps. Guided interaction will make the mobile app discovery, much funnier, engaging the users as they explore.
Testing
The onboarding experience is all the more important for the mobile app users. You must listen to the reviews and the feedbacks of the users, for a complete understanding of the friction points in the onboarding process and bring about the required improvements in the apps. You must test on what the users are more likely to prefer.
Mobile app user onboarding needs to be paid more attention. The above mentioned best practices will ensure that you get one of the best onboarding experience, for an effective user engagement.
This article was written for Business 2 Community by Connor Brooke.
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Hi Ashfaq,
Great article. I agree that the user onboarding experience must be perfect or the chances of losing users increases. I really enjoyed your point about Guided Interaction. I think this can be a great way to onboard users in a friendly and easy to navigate manner.
I will say that it’s sometimes hard to know if the onboarding process is successful or not. However, I think with qualitative analytics which usually provides user session recordings and touch heatmaps these questions can be cleared up. This way you can see exactly how users are flowing through your onboarding process and if there are any friction points. A tool that’s good for this is https://www.appsee.com/.
Would love to hear your thoughts!
Thanks!
Emily