Self-Service Sign Up: Enhancing User Onboarding Experience.

CraftJack Responsive web

I designed a comprehensive self-service onboarding flow that eliminated the need for sales and account manager intervention - a significant shift from our previous high-touch model.

Project background

Existing sign up flow

Our research revealed that 70% of potential customers abandoned signup when forced to schedule calls with our sales team, while our account managers were spending 40% of their time on repetitive setup tasks rather than strategic support.

The sign up process was lengthy and fragmented, leading to a low sign-up rate and a disjointed onboarding experience. Additionally, relying heavily on sales personnel resulted in high operating expenses for the company.

Current sign up flow

Design solution

Implemented a comprehensive, multi-step sign-up flow that guides users through the essential steps to start receiving leads.

Updated sign up flow

Project results

  • 8.2 % lift in user retention.

    With more robust onoarding educaton and efficient sign up, users were able to gain value from the product faster.

  • Reduced sign up time

    Previously, completing user sign up took at least 1-2 days. With the new sign up flow a user can become active in minutes.

  • Lower operating costs.

    Since users were no longer required to speak with a member of our sales team before signing up, we were able to cut operating costs.

User research

Uncover user needs, wants, and pain points.

I analyzed both qualitative and quantitative data sources, including VWO, NPS scores, user surveys, Mode reports, and competitive research. Additionally, I listened to numerous recorded sales calls and even went "undercover" to experience the sign-up process firsthand.

You can read more about my research methods and findings below.

  • Persona findings

    • Most SPs signing up employ less than 6 employees

    • SPs are frequently not worried about competition for a job

    • SPs expect higher job close rates with lead generation over other marketing sources

    • Excellent customer service can sometimes overpower the threat of a few poor reviews

    • Referrals are the top reported source of jobs not Lead Genion text goes here

  • Description I conducted an in-depth competitive analysis. Since many of our users have used or currently use our competitors, it was important to learn what our competitors offer and their strengths and weaknesses. Additionally, to create a usable feature we want to use language and processes the user is already familiar with.text goes here

  • I wanted to test our product first hand. I thought it was important to experience how long the process was, when communication touch points occurred and how it was to speak with a sales team member. With the permission of team managers and leadership (of course) I went through the current sign up flow and tested out various “personas”.

Research findings

MVP features for the redesign

  • Easy to understand steps for sign up

  • Educate user about product throughout onboarding

  • Highlight our pricing model and free to sign up

Design and develop

My design process is very collaborative. I like to get feedback and brainstorm ideas from my team early. I lead a design brainstorm meeting where we took time to review our findings and sketch ideas on a whiteboard.

Keep it Simple

Intially, the size of the project and amount of features I wanted to include was beyond scope. I realized after speaking with stakeholders that I needed to focus on MVP. I went back to the drawing board and parsed down the flow even more.

“Make it work”

I needed to pivot and reduce engineering scope. Inspired by Tim Gunn and his famous words of wisdom, I needed to “Make it work”.

I took the initiative to find a low-code onboarding tool to provide context and education for our users. After exploring various tools I decided to use UserPilot. This tool has allowed me to create tooltips, guide users through onboarding and track metrics and goals.

Prototype & Test

I conducted usability tests with a diverse group of users to identify potential issues and gather feedback.

After testing and stakeholder feedback, I iterated on the design based on test results to enhance usability and clarity. Changes that were made based on feedback was the order of onboarding steps, and the location map feature.

Outcome & impact

Sign up success and user satisfaction

After an initial release we have rolled out the feature to all users. Self sign up has proven to be a successful project and has received positive feedback from internal teams and users. Metrics and KPIs have reflected this success.

The sign up time for users reduced significantly. Previously, completing user sign up took at least 1-2 days. With Self Sign Up a user can complete sign up in minutes.

The project has grossed more than $1 million dollars in revenue, improved retention by 60% and increased conversion rate.

  • Increase sign up rate

    Streamlined process led to a significant rise in completed sign-ups.

  • Cost reduction

    Decreased dependency on sales personnel led to lower operating expenses.

  • Higher user retention

    Faster time to value improved overall user satisfaction and retention.

Learnings

This project provided a valuable opportunity for me to lead the entire design process, from ideation and research to the implementation of the final design.

On a personal level, I frequently reminded myself to be flexible and not become too attached to my designs.

Working in a small team necessitated creative solutions, such as finding a no-code tool to assist with onboarding, which enabled us to launch the product faster.

Interestingly, maintaining a simple onboarding process proved highly effective. We shared our data with a team at another company, and they were impressed by our high sign-up and retention rates.