Customer onboarding: UX design tips for SAAS customers to use immediately.

Have you ever encountered this problem? New customers apply ... and "disappear"

For the SAAS (Software As a Service) business), nothing is more than sight than seeing the new user graph (New Signups) rise, but after a few days Active users graph (active users) go down to the abyss. It is a nightmare called the "leaky bucket" that we have to use the marketing budget to find new customers to fill ... then leak all out.

You may have encountered situations like this: Customers see advertisements, come to the website, feel wow and features. And decided to press "Signup" with excitement But after logging in for the first time They found an empty screen, complex menu, and do not know where to start using it first. In the end, the excitement became confusing. Confusion became frustrated. And finally ... they press to close the window and won't come back again. Let your subscription become another cost that was canceled in the next month. This is a big problem at a small starting point called "Customer Onboarding".

Prompt for illustrations: 2 graph images in the opposite direction The first line wrote "New Signups" rising and another line says "Active User" plummeted quickly. There is a water tank with a hole beside to convey "Leaky Bucket Syndrome" in the SAAS business.

Why does SAAS customers "pour" you since they haven't started?

This problem is not caused by your product badly. Or without the features that customers want But the main root is often from "First experience, meet" or Customer Onboarding that has completely failed. Let's see why new customers give up from the first step:

1. They can't find "AHA! Moment" once: "AHA! Moment" is the second that the user understands and sees. "True value" of you for the first time, for example, when the Dropbox user sees the file across the device automatically. Or when the SLACK users successfully send a message to the team for the first time. If your Onboarding cannot guide the user to that point quickly They will conclude that "This product would not be suitable for me."

2. You "subjected" Information Overload: Classic mistakes are the product Tour that points to every button from the first use. It's like taking someone who has never driven before going to see the engine. And explain the work of every piston Instead of teaching how to start the car and step on the accelerator The result is overwhelming and boring.

3. The first screen is "Blank Slate": When the user logged in and found an empty screen without information, no guides LINE. Nothing to continue It's like being left in the middle of the open hall. They don't know where to create a project. Or how to add teammates This emptiness creates enormous friction that makes people easily give up.

4. The value that has been promised ... Where did you go ?: When on the website You may say that your product will help. "Save time" or "increasing sales" but after actually using it Users do not see the way to reach those results. Good onboarding must be linked. "Marketing promise" with "real use"

Understanding these causes is the beginning of the SAAS website design problem that focuses on growth. Therefore have to think about the experience after signup as well, not just attracting people to apply

Prompt for illustrations: The user image is sitting in front of the computer. Confused and confused There is a question mark (?) Floating the head. On the computer screen is a complicated UI and an arrow pointing in all directions, reflecting the Information Overload.

Let Onboarding fail = burn money every day.

Having an ineffective Customer onboarding is not just about "Bad user experience" but it has a direct impact on financial health and growth of your SAAS business. Imagine:

• Churn Rate spurt: This is the most clear effect. Customers who do not understand the value of the product is the first group of customers to cancel the service. When the next payment is due The treatment of old customers is more cost than finding a new customer, but the bad onboarding is pushing new customers out every day.
• Loss of Customer Acquism Cost (CAC) for free: every baht, every satang that you pay with advertising, SEO, or various marketing fees. Will be wasted immediately If the customers you find can escape only once in use It's like throwing a lot of money to fill the water in the leak.
• Negative Word-Mouth: Customers who have bad experiences Not just leaving quietly But they tend to tell or review negatively that "This product is difficult to use" or "Apply and can't do anything." It destroys the reputation and makes finding new customers in the future.
• Business growth is disrupted: when the Churn rate Higher or close to the rate of new customers Your business will not grow. You will be stuck in place No matter how hard work is, I don't see the results that grow up.

These problems are often caused by the experience of users who are stuck. Especially the speed of loading and response of the web Which is an important reason for the slow UX on the Saas website to make customers lost , and onboarding is the first checkpoint where the speed and smoothness are extremely important.

Prompt for illustrations: Shocking infographic images Show money (Dollar image) is being poured into the fire that writes the sign "High Churn Rate" and smoke floats up as the word "Wastened Cac" and "Negative Reviews".

The solution here: 5 The main heart of the UX Onboarding design that "is in"

The good news is that this leakage problem can be resolved with the design of the experience of the Customer onboarding that is well thought and has a strategy. Instead of splashing all the features at the user, we should gradually guide them to success one step at a time. This is the 5 main ways that you can start immediately:

1. Start with "Welcome Screen" that is friendly and target: the first screen that users see after Signup should be a warm welcome. While also asking 1-2 simple questions to understand their goals (Personalization) such as "You want to use [What is the product name] for what? "(A. Manage the project B. Private work) This answer will help you customize the onboarding experience to meet his needs.

2. Use "Interactive Product Tour" instead of videos or tooltip boring: Don't just "point" which buttons do anything, but "create a situation" for users to act really, such as "try to create your first project by clicking on this button" or "invite 1 teammates by putting their emails here." Tools like Appcues are a good example of this interactive tour.

3. Create "Onboarding Checklist" and "Progess Bar": People like the feeling of successful and seeing the progress of the short checklist (3-5) which is an important step in the use of such as [✓]. Create the first project, []. Helps the user to follow the steps until complete. And make them feel good about themselves

4. Design "Empty States" that is useful: empty function (such as a projectpage that does not have a project) is a golden opportunity to teach users. Don't let it open But put the recommended message, clear call-to -ction button, or a short video to say, "Start your first thing here!"

5. Use "Lifecycle Emails" to help support at the beginning: not all users who will learn everything at one time. Send an email to follow in the first 1-2 weeks to help stimulate and provide additional knowledge, such as welcome emails, emails. That he has not tried, or an inspiring case study

To create these experiences Must start by understanding the user's route. User Journey Mating is an important tool. That will help you see the overall picture and design each step precisely

Prompt for illustrations: UI images of the SAAS application, showing "Onboarding Checklist" with 3 steps, with the first green mark and with a Progress Bar that runs about 33%.

Examples from the real thing: how "Slack" transforms a newbie into a true fan.

If talking about SAAS, which is the most expert in Customer Onboarding, the name of "SLACK" must be ranked first. They deeply understand that making new users successfully send the first message is "AHA! Moment". And this is how they do:

Starting problem: Users apply But don't know who to talk to Or how to create a channel (channel), making it feel useful

How to solve the problem of SLACK:

• Onboarding Discussion: Instead of a dry product Tour, Slack uses "Slackbot", which is a bot to talk and teach steps one by step. It will ask questions Inviting us to name the profile Try to send a message to Slackbot by yourself, making us feel like chatting with friends and learning how to use it naturally.
• Create a context of usage immediately: SLACK will advise us to create the first Channel or invite teammates immediately from the first step. To make sure that we will have a "person" to talk and see the benefits of communication through the app immediately.
• Empty States intelligent: in Channel that has no conversations, Slack will not let it be free. But will show short suggestions, such as "This is the beginning of the #general channel. Try to introduce yourself!" To destroy the silence and stimulate the first conversation.

Results: With this great Onboarding, Slack can change the enormous amount of users into customers who pay successfully. They reported that the team with a message of 2,000 messages has a chance to stay with Slack up to 93%, which to reach that point ... must start by sending the first message successfully on the first day. This is the power of design. SAAS web features that stimulate growth with Onboarding as a heart.

Prompt for illustrations: Slack screen model with "SlackBot" is sending a new user to welcome. With a balloon saying "Hello! I will help you start using it yourself. Try typing back me here! "

Want to follow, right? Checklist 5 steps to create Onboarding at "Love" customers.

Read here You probably already see how powerful onboarding is. And would like to start your own improvement, right? Don't worry, it's not a matter of magic. But it is a process that can be followed. Try using the 5 checklist. This step is a navigation map:

Step 1: Set "AHA! Moment" and "User Success" clearly.

• Ask yourself: What is the first thing that users have to accomplish in order to "Ket" the value of our product? Send the first message? Creating the first Report? Successful connection to other apps? This is the ultimate goal of your Onboarding.

Step 2: Map the User Journey

• Write all the steps that users have to do. From the latter, press Signup to "AHA! Moment", which points maybe confused? Which point to provide special assistance? User Journey Map will help you see all overview.

Step 3: Choose the right tool.

• You don't need to create everything from the center. Now there are good tools that help create Interactive Tour, Checklist, or ToolTip easily without having to write a lot of code. Try to study tools like UserPILOT or AppCues that will help reduce the development time and allow you to try to adjust faster.

Step 4: Introduction and creation of Onboarding elements

• According to 5 main hearts mentioned above Don't do everything at the same time. But focus on the main route to "AHA! Moment" first

Step 5: Measurement, Learning, and continuously improving

• Onboarding is not one thing to do. You have to set up a successful indicator (KPIS) such as Activation Rate (the user ratio of important action), Time to Value (the duration of the AHA! Moment) and the new user's Retention Rate. Then keep an eye on the information to find a point that needs to be improved

Having a SAAS website development team will help bring these plans to practice smoothly and efficiently.

Prompt for illustrations: Large checklist images on the board have 5 topics as mentioned above. And there is a person who is ticking correctly at the first "Define AHA! Moment"

Questions that SAAS people often doubt about Customer onboarding.

I have compiled a popular question that is often heard. About making Onboarding answered to clear here To make you confident and ready to do more

Q1: How long should it take onboarding?
A: The shortest as possible! The goal is not teaching all features. But is to take the user to "AHA! MOMENT" as soon as possible (Time to Value). For most apps onboarding, the main app should not exceed 5-10 minutes, but learning can continue via email or other guides.

Q2: Should we give users "skip" (SKIP) Product Tour?
A: It should be very much! Some users may have used similar products before. Or some people like to trial and error by themselves Forcing everyone to watch TOUR until the end will cause irritability. Having a "Skip Tour" or "skip" is always a good choice.

Q3: How to measure the success of Onboarding?
A: Look at the 3 main indicators: 1. Activation Rate: The percentage of new users who have done an important action successfully. 2. User Retention: Reuse of new users in the first week or the first month and 3. Feature Adoption: The main feature usage rate. That we try to teach in Onboarding

Q4: Hiring UX/UI experts to help design onboarding worthwhile?
A: Very worthwhile, because Onboarding is one of the highest return investments (ROI) in the SAAS business. The poor design can cause you to lose customers and burn the marketing fee continuously. Having experts to help restructured, Flow design, and A/B Testing will reduce the risk and take you to the results much faster.

Prompt for illustrations: Large lamp image icon Along with a symbol of questions and answers (Q&A) around to convey the solution

It's time to fill the leak! Change the new applicant into a customer that "Can't live without you"

At this point, I believe that you can clearly see that Customer Onboarding is not just "supplement" or "beautiful features", but it is one of the most "growth strategy" of the SAAS business. It is a bridge that connects the "promise" that you provided on the website with the "true value" that customers will receive from your product.

Investment is effective with the excellent UX onboarding design is the smartest investment. It will help reduce the cancellation rate (Churn), increase the value of the customer's lifetime (Customer Lifetime Value), and change the new customers that are confused to be a true fan that loves and tells your product proudly.

Don't let your "tank" "leak" anymore. Try to bring the checklist and the concept that I gave today. Go back to review and plan your onboarding process. Beginning with small steps, measure and continuous development. And you will definitely see a remarkable change to your business.

Today ... are you ready to build the strongest bridge for your customers?

If you want a partner and a professional team that will help you design and develop experiences onboarding on SAAS website that is not only easy to use, but can also help "change users into customers" . We are ready to help your SAAS business grow sustainably.

Prompt for illustrations: The two -hand images are connecting the last puzzle together. The puzzle has the word "Onboarding" and when successfully successfully became a strong bridge connecting the "New User" to the "Happy Customer" side.

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