The customer onboarding strategy is much like a first date: you can only make a first impression once, and if you mess it up, you will most likely be going home empty handed. Luckily, business is nowhere nearly as complicated as human emotions, so we can easily affect one side of this metaphor. In this article we’ll focus on how to ace the first date using 5 concepts for customer onboarding.
For starters, customer onboarding represents the process of setting up your users with the knowledge and settings required to use a SaaS optimally to achieve their goals.
1. User tracking
This method is required for understanding what users do at all. We’ll need to know how far they are in their onboarding process. Additionally, it is used to determine what feature a visitor will most likely be interested in, based on his previous interactions (browsing patterns, searches, likes etc.).
Heatmaps are a very interesting product of user tracking. Many online analytics platforms offer you this path to understanding how your visitors interact with your content. A heatmap shows what the hottest parts of your site are by highlighting the location of most clicks. Alongside other similar tools, you can virtually see a summary of how every inch of your site, including offers and content, have been perceived and interacted with by your visitors.
Funnel analysis is another interesting way to gain a better perspective of the state of your site and your conversion rates. The term funnel analysis is derived from the way a typical funnel works: it gets narrower along its length, allowing less substance to pass through it, except in this case, the substance represents your potential customers. Funnel analyses can show you when specific goals have not been reached.
In the case of onboarding, use funnel analysis to help visitors reach the milestones in your onboarding process. Lincoln Murphy describes them as “Common Conversion Activities.” By setting milestones, you can see how many people actually get closer to buying the subscription.
Funnel analysis in more detail on the mixpanel.com blog.
2. Walk-through (tooltips)
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Walk-through software takes the visitor by the hand and shows them the most vital parts of your site, which greatly influences the outcome of onboarding.
Sometimes we overestimate our audience and presume they’ll go the extra mile in researching the content in front of them. Not to be offensive, but this also applies to their abilities. Not all visitors are the same, and perhaps some don’t know what a typical layout of a page is.
Personally, I’m one of those people who judge very quickly. If I have to spend more than 10 seconds looking for a starting point, I will probably look for an alternative site. The little pop-ups saying “Here, I’ll help you. Click here!” trick me into staying. Naturally, no visitor is the same but this helping hand definitely makes a difference.
WalkMe is a great example of software which can span from a simple requirement of a mouse and a keyboard, to a demanding level of IT knowledge. It really depends on what you’re looking for.
I’d also like to point out that you don’t have to program every single step of your user’s interaction with your site. Take a look at Facebook for example. You’re provided a basic walk-through at the start, and I bet you don’t even remember going through it the first time you registered. After a certain point, interaction comes logically, and you don’t really need a pop-up for every single detail.
There is one tool that I haven’t seen before: Toonimo, which provides audio-based approach. It is a very intimate and detailed approach as well. I jumped on a call with their sales manager, Nir Dekel:
We have seen an average of 5-7% conversion uplift when using audio in the onboarding/sales funnel
While it may provide a more detailed and clear walk-through, it could be more time-consuming and demand adaptation to the audio: adjusting the volume, shutting down background audio etc. If your SaaS has users that need to have a personal touch and some more guidance, see if this is for you.
3. In-app messaging
With In-app messaging, you can set the stage for the relationship your customer has with your product. It is quite an effective tool to use for pointing out the vital features you want them to focus on. This form of interaction can be done through announcements, pop-up notifications or via chat. Chat is definitely the best option as it offers a clear focus on what your visitor wants to know.
You should reach out to your visitors based on their interaction and on certain milestones they’ve reached, as opposed to automated messaging based on time-based interaction. This applies to most types of automated interaction you want to have with your visitors.
When it comes to a onboarding strategy, in-app messaging can provoke a stronger response than email communication. With in-app messaging, the user doesn’t have to leave your site for you to engage them within your website or app. Emails, on the other hand, still carry a powerful use in a different department: a matter we’ll discuss in the later sections of this article.
Alongside its other powerful applications, this is a great platform to utilize all the information you’ve collected about your visitors. Using data you acquired from user tracking and sign-up information, your messages can be made more personal and thus more effective!
4. Feedback requests
Feedback is vital for development, and in most cases, it’s the negative feedback upon which empires are built. Yet how do you provoke your visitors to care enough to provide you with feedback?
Feedback can be obtained through surveys within a website, requests sent via email, surveys within mobile apps, direct interaction etc. The most common form you’ve probably encountered is email interaction. It’s the easiest one to set up, that is a certainty, but is it most effective? We asked Rodrigo Fuentes from listenloop:
Sometimes asking questions during that process can detract from that flow. In those cases, email is a superior choice if you’re willing to accept the lower response rates.
The question of format delivery, content, questions asked and the overall style of the email are the focus here. What is the perfect combination of these factors? Simplicity and a casual tone go a long way, and a mail which immediately sends a message “We want your feedback, click here,” will be the most effective type.
Never force feedback from your user! Remember, feedback is optional, which is why you should allow the user to provide it as quickly as possible. Otherwise, they’ll simply ignore it altogether. Surveys and short questions are the tools of choice as they are most direct and effective.
5. Lifecycle Emails
Welcoming and thanking new users is just the beginning of a healthy onboarding strategy. It is not a rare occasion for users to lack patience in getting acquainted with your site. In-app messaging is much like the chapters of a book. They may focus on a clear message at their core, they still provoke a sense of curiosity for further exploration.
The first email, the one where you welcome and thank your potential clients, is definitely the one which should carry most value.
A personal email, one which contains a breath of personality, will most definitely be better perceived than an email from a nameless source which screams “Hi, I’m automated!” Also, whilst a call-to-action should be present in the first email, a product-related one will frequently go ignored.
Once the user has formed a subjective opinion based on future interactions, a product-related call-to-action will have a better chance of provoking a response. Thus, it’s highly recommended to deliver it in later emails. Whilst not being a strict guide, Groove (a help desk software provider)has provided interesting views on customer onboarding with their 3 lessons learned from testing hundreds of onboarding emails.
In case you don’t see any of these tools fitting perfectly to your style, here are some additional tips in the field of customer onboarding which may spark your imagination.
Are time-based emails a good idea?
We have established that milestone-based emails overpower time-based emails. However, this doesn’t mean the underdog in this comparison has no use. Time-based emails are a great way to go the extra mile, despite not being the bread and butter of your onboarding strategy.
Nudge emails are a great way to, well, nudge the visitors about your offers. They are a great way to remind of limited offers or trial expirations.
Nudge emails can also be used for visitors who didn’t find a use for your site in the past, but may have one now. Although the percentage of reaction to this type of email will be low, it still has the potential to increase your onboarding success, even if that success is minimal.
Deal-breakers of customer onboarding
A strong and polished customer onboarding strategy can be very fragile if you allow even a single one of them to slip through your fingers.
Unfulfilled expectations are number one, not only in customer onboarding but also in every service which involves any form of an offer delivered to a customer. A certain leeway can be forgiven, but false promises will definitely lose the customer attention and lose sales. Add to that the tendency we all have to express our frustrations, and you may find yourself losing more than a single potential customer.
Slow response times show a lack of care, not to mention they can be quite frustrating. If your response rate is not at its peak, it’s advised to at least notify the customer when a response will likely be sent.
Confusion is a very common deal-breaker because why should I have to sweat to understand what you’re trying to offer, when a competitor is standing just around the corner? This is vital in the sign-up process, which is supposed to be simple enough, and be completed in seconds. Complicated pricing can also raise suspicion, not to mention be extremely irritating and subconsciously nudge the viewer to keep walking.
Analytics are your friend! This is the main data you need to use and apply in your onboarding strategy. By refining your understanding of your customer base, you can polish your interaction by a severe amount.
Ask the pros! Creating a unique approach to customer onboarding takes a lot of knowledge and practice. You can get quite a bit of insight from people who have been in this business for quite some time.
Most important tools in your onboarding strategy?
This is the main set of tools you can use to significantly improve your interaction and help you educate your customers in a more efficient a fashion.
Which of these do you think is the most important tool in customer onboarding?
The post SaaS Onboarding Concepts appeared first on Till Carlos.