Personalising the process.

This is the final part our six-part series on optimising onboarding for B2B SaaS. Have a look at the other articles in the series:

Part 1: B2B SaaS Onboarding - an intro

Part 2: Delivering value, fast

Part 3: Showing, not telling

Part 4: Evaluating now, learning later

Part 5: Discovering features

Part 6: Personalising the process

W

hen it comes to keeping users engaged from the first touch of the product through to subsequent onboarding and after, a great way to do this is by personalising the process. Our research found that people respond to products and apps that feel tailored to their needs, with communications that are personalised to what they’re trying to do.

Make them feel like they’re not just a number, and that there’s something unique about their experience.

Make them feel like like more than a number links back to our earlier article about tutorials and discovering features:, we’ve found a lot of users would like tiered account modes matched to their skills and experience.

Building the relationship

As designers, we’re always thinking about how to empathise with the user, and acknowledge where they’re coming from. Surveys are a great way for product owners to start building a relationship with the user from the start. What better way than to ask them directly for input? Frame it in language that explains why you’re doing this and how the user benefits: e.g. “we’re asking these five questions because we want to understand your goals better”.

Then, after you’ve gathered that vital intel, send them to a personalised onboarding process, or better still, a UI that’s tailored to their needs (which you’ve established from the survey). Email them when they start working with your product:

Hey [NAME], you’re new here, so these are the 5 things to focus on since you’ve started your account.

Straight away, you can give the user a sense of progress and goals achieved by having items to tick off a list.

There are product companies already doing this, leading people through a successful path. For example, they offer three options, e.g. business, education, personal, and use this as a way to tailor content and provide guidance based on what they should be doing in order to get value out of the product.

Naturally, not everyone is an expert right out of the gate, and when it comes to support, our studies showed that users appreciate knowing that it’s there if they need it, but don’t want to feel overwhelmed by it. A good way to strike this balance is to share links to further support resources, or help them with recommendations or optimisation notifications. “I noticed you tried to use feature X, Y or Z, here’s an article to help…”

Help should be there when they need it

Based on our research, users are busy, so they want to be able to receive help on their own time. That can be a prompt to arrange a support call at a suitable time. Our group said they value real, human support. Product owners need to reassure users that they’re not alone and they have the option to reach out to experts.

Another way to sustain the relationship is through in-product chat. Instead of it being generic support, the chat can differ based on where the user is at: what page or what step; they want to be able to get their questions answered when they need it. It can reassure users if they know they can speak to a human support agent if they need it, so you could offer this option as a backup step.

"TikTok is great. They honestly come back within 2-3 hours, and more often than not, they’ll give you a good reasoning and understanding of where you’re going wrong…" –P7

So what next?

Right through this series, we’ve been looking at acquisition and onboarding through the lens of customer needs. Good metrics will tell you where the gaps are. This is about driving data, and by this we mean more than just tracking how many users signed up vs. how many dropped off.

The good news is, user testing and qualitative research will give you a lot of answers. It’s easy to create a survey for your user base that gives the product owner something to work with. The marketing team in charge of the website can also be a source of valuable data. In our view, there needs to be a joined-up line of communication between the marketing team and the product team, because the customer journey is the same from the user’s standpoint.

For companies looking to acquire and retain users, personalisation is a strategic move. Based on the data you have access to, you can start moving forward, filling in blanks, and confirming hypotheses. You don’t necessarily need all the data in the beginning, nor do you need fancy tools to get started. There’s no minimum amount of data you need to understand the customer journey better and improve your UX.

Want to find out how we can help you understand your customers? Contact us today.