Here you’ll find examples of good and bad first time user experiences across digital and analog products. The goal is to inspire better design in this oft-overlooked part of product development.* 

How do we build better first time user experiences? It’s about moving from a mode of telling people what we want them to do to a mode of letting them experience it for themselves.  We want to show interact, not tell, in our first time user experiences.

Here are 3 ways to onboard first time users more effectively:

1. Provide guided interaction

• Craft an environment that lets a new user learn by doing.  
• Good guidance encourages the user to jump in and try a product while ensuring he has a successful time of it.
• Avoid techniques that passively explain a product, such as introductory slideshows or videos, which take the user out of the context of use.
• Use scaffolded instruction to gradually increase, and then decrease, the level of guidance provided over time. 
• Don’t overdo it.  Don’t waste a new user’s time by teaching obvious concepts (which can be determined based on research of the target audience), avoid modal interruptions, avoid repetition and always allow the user to skip it.

2. Give them free samples

• Personal information is a form of currency, and forcing a new user to sign up before a product can be experienced is akin to paying for an item sight unseen. 
• Instead, let the new user try a “free sample” of the product so she can experience its value proposition for herself. 
• There are many options for providing free samples, including, but not limited to, allowing a user to create drafts or localy-stored content, offering limited-time trials, or providing basic features.
• Prompt for registration after delivering on value.

3. Establish a personal focus

• A new user can’t be engaged until he discovers the features that are relevant to him.  
• Provide this personal focus by explicitly (through customization like quizzes) or implicitly (through personalization based on aspects like the user’s location) learning about the new user and tailoring his onboarding experience to his needs. 
• Strip away education or elements that are not relevant to him. 
• Create a platform for continued education by continuing to learn and adapt to the new users as his experience with the product grows and changes.

Further reading

I’m passionate about first time user experiences and I’ve written multiple posts, lead workshops and given several presentations on the subject.

Patterns for new user experiences (blog post)

4 user states to consider in your onboarding design process (blog post)

What’s your coaching cadence? (take-home activity)

New users matter too! (presentation with links to recordings/slides)

Designing better first time user experiences in mobile apps (blog post)

*Posts on this blog represent my own views and do not represent the views of my employers or clients. Posting a review does not imply endorsement of any product or service.