App's Onboarding Optimization
The main goal is to redesign an app's onboarding process to improve user experience and reduce TTV. This involves evaluating the usability and effectiveness of the new 2 variants compared to the current one.
Client
Private
Role
UX Researcher and Designer
Date
December 2024
Industry
Travel Arrangements
Project Overview
Re-designing the Onboarding
Based on the results of this research, we decided how to redesign the onboarding process and what onboarding strategy we should follow. These decisions will focus on ensuring that the process is more intuitive, effectively educates users about the product, and clearly guides users through the steps for doing the key actions to improve app's metrics.
My role
UX Researcher and Designer
For this occasion, it was my responsibility to define the research, in which the flows related to the onboarding experience were evaluated, which were previously determined together with the team (UX and UI designers, Product and Growth Managers). I designed the final variants to be tested by creating 2 interactive prototypes together with a UI designer.
Project Context
Under what context did the project started?
User’s onboarding is the key to retention. This research was a strategic decision based on key results from previous research were we identify frictions with the App's understanding and the value proposition itself, so it was necessary to prioritize it in the product's roadmap.
Client's Context
What was the company's situation?
This client owns an e-commerce site and created an app to facilitate purchases through mobile devices, which represents nearly 80% of total sales, which is why facilitating the use of the app for new users has been priority. We knew that new users need to understand how the App works, they also expect clear guidance including the product functionality.
Project Impact
Onboarding is one of the most important flows of any app to generate engagement with the user and our objective with this one was to reduce the Time to Value (TTV): this is a metric that measures how long it takes a user to see the value of a product or service, the time is calculated from when the user downloads the app until they make a “key action”
Roadmap
Planning
Prototyping
Recruitment
Analysis
Reporting
Research Planning
Hypothesis
By improving the onboarding process to address the needs and expectations of new users, there will likely be an increase in the onboarding completion rate and the time to value (TTV).
This hypothesis is based on the findings from the UX audit and previous research, which identified several pain points that may be hindering user experience and process completion.
Goals
Determine what new users need and seek during the onboarding process to educate them effectively and ensure they complete the process, clearly understanding the essential steps to use the application.
A/B test both options (the control variant was the actual version)
decide how to redesign the onboarding process and what onboarding strategy we should follow
Success Criteria
The research would be successful if we are able to identify key moments when users abandon the onboarding flow and the exact reasons to fix it in the next iteration.
Methodology
Process
I wanted to Identify:
Metrics: improvement of System Usability Scale (SUS), increase in onboarding completion rate, Miss click Rate, average time and the time to value (TTV).
Behavioral patterns: where users hesitated or got stuck, screens with high bounce or misclick rates, differences in time and engagement between variant A and B
Engagement Analysis: I use tools such as Maze to analyze engagement, time per task and completion rates. We will also look at heat maps to identify clicks in unexpected places.
A/B Testing: it will be performed to compare the current version of onboarding with the new one, evaluating which one motivates users the most to complete key actions such as making a purchase or searching for a destination.
Testers sample
Desired Outcome
Analyzing
Connecting the qualitative responses to behavioral patterns
Clustered open-ended answers into common themes.
Tagged each response based on the identified themes.
Quantified each theme by counting how often it appeared and cross-referenced it with the variant seen.
Analyzed sentiment when relevant (positive/neutral/negative perceptions).
Project Deliverables
New Strategy
To make an more effective onboarding reorganize the screens based on the recommendations to create a seamless user flow
Synthesizing Insights
The research report involved mapping not just what users did, but also why they behaved that way. by working with cross-analyzed behavioral and qualitative data.
Reporting Methodology
Findings were synthesized into clear takeaways, supported by visual data (heatmaps, user flows) and theme frequency charts. The report was structured around goals, user behavior, perceived value, and actionable recommendations, combining both quantitative and qualitative insights to provide a holistic view of the onboarding experience. I cross-referenced variant performance with user feedback to highlight which version communicated value more effectively.
Next Steps
Recommendations
Most testers identified the main benefits of the value proposition, but it is necessary to reorganize the screens based on the recommendations to create a seamless user flow. Anyways it is necessary to make adjustments in way to get users to do the things that will increase engagement and retention.
Project Impact
Combining behavioral metrics with thematic analysis of qualitative responses allowed us to:
Identify the more effective onboarding variant (B)
Validate comprehension of key product messages
Uncover points of friction and optimize copy or visual hierarchy
Reflections and learnings
Consistency in communication is even more important than the interaction itself.
I learned that beyond the interface, it is essential to work on the company's value proposition from all points of contact with the user (marketing, social media, support, design, product, etc.). Otherwise, the message received by users will not be consistent, and even if the product is well designed, it will create friction due to the lack of trust.
