Creating a Welcoming User Experience for New Users

Emitly UI design Sign up screen ⬇️ When we talk about user experiences that leave a mark, we often think of the “big moments”—exciting features, flashy animations, powerful interactions. But let’s take a moment to look at the sign-in/sign-up process—the unsung hero that’s often a user’s very first touchpoint. How we design this “entryway” can set the tone for everything that follows, even influencing a user’s decision to stick around. Here’s why I believe we need to put as much heart into this part as any other, and a few ways to do it right: ◽Prioritize Simplicity: First impressions count, and no one wants to spend too long setting up. Keep the process short and simple. Only ask for essentials, making every field feel necessary and justified. For Emitly, I trimmed the flow to just the core elements, aiming for a seamless and friendly start. ◽Offer Multiple Sign-in Options: Different users, different preferences! For instance, some are more comfortable using social accounts, while others lean towards email or phone numbers. I incorporated multiple options for Emitly, so users can pick what feels right for them. It’s a small thing that makes a big difference in the welcoming experience. ◽Communicate Trust:Users are trusting us with their information, and that’s a big deal. Reassuring them through familiar icons, a clean design, and hints of secure data handling goes a long way. For Emitly, every design choice, from icons to colors, was about reinforcing that sense of safety and reliability. ◽Optimize for Speed: There’s little as frustrating as lag in the sign-up flow. Make sure that each action is responsive and that any loading time feels almost invisible. With Emitly, I focused on speed and clarity—no unnecessary loading, no awkward waits. ◽Onboarding, Not Just Signing Up: Once users sign in, don’t just leave them there. Offer a brief tour or subtle prompts, guiding them to what matters most in your app. For Emitly, the aim was to make users feel they’re instantly in the right place, discovering features without feeling overwhelmed. A smooth, engaging sign-in/sign-up experience isn’t just about getting users in the door; it’s about showing them you value their time and privacy. When done right, it sets the tone, builds trust, and creates that all-important first sense of connection. So, next time you design, give this step the love it deserves. #userinterface #userexperiencedesign #userinterfacedesign #uiux #usercentricdesign #figma #uidesign #uxdesign

When I was head of growth, our team reached 40% activation rates, and onboarded hundreds of thousands of new users. Without knowing it, we discovered a framework. Here are the 6 steps we followed. 1. Define value: Successful onboarding is typically judged by new user activation rates. But what is activation? The moment users receive value. Reaching it should lead to higher retention & conversion to paid plans. First define it. Then get new users there. 2. Deliver value, quickly Revisit your flow and make sure it gets users to the activation moment fast. Remove unnecessary steps, complexity, and distractions along the way. Not sure how to start? Try reducing time (or steps) to activate by 50%. 3. Motivate users to action: Don't settle for simple. Look for sticking points in the user experience you can solve with microcopy, empty states, tours, email flows, etc. Then remind users what to do next with on-demand checklists, progress bars, & milestone celebrations. 4. Customize the experience: Ditch the one-size fits all approach. Learn about your different use cases. Then, create different product "recipes" to help users achieve their specific goals. 5. Start in the middle: Solve for the biggest user pain points stopping users from starting. Lean on customizable templates and pre-made playbooks to help people go 0-1 faster. 6. Build momentum pre-signup: Create ways for website visitors to start interacting with the product - and building momentum, before they fill out any forms. This means that you'll deliver value sooner, and to more people. Keep it simple. Learn what's valuable to users. Then deliver value on their terms.

It's your job to support Activation. Don't just "get out of the way"... When opening your app for the first time, users have little information about how it is and how it works. First, use onboarding to educate them about your app's value and learn about them (your conversion rate will thank you). But, after that, if you just drop them on a dashboard and multiple tabs, a lot of them will be overwhelmed or distracted. You should leverage product design to customize the experience and guide them, particularly at the beginning. Here is one of the #growthgems I shared in Growth Gems #105, from Ana Oarga (Co-founder & Product Strategy at Just Mad): -- 💎 𝘿𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙗𝙮 𝙘𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚: 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘰 (𝘦.𝘨., 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵 → 𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯), 𝘥𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘦 (𝘦.𝘨., 𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴, 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯), 𝘱𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘶𝘴𝘦 (𝘦.𝘨., 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮, 𝘴𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘦𝘴𝘵), 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 (𝘣𝘢𝘥𝘨𝘦𝘴, 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘴). -- This is the Reforge playbook as well: first, you define what activation is for you. Then, you use the UX/design levers at your disposal to support activation to find the right balance. User journeys are complex, everyone has a different level of intent, and there is no single path. But you have to start somewhere, and simplifying things during the first-time user experience is a good starting point. Want more advice on activation? 👉 Check out Growth Gems #105 for more insights https://lnkd.in/ejBaUudS ___ 👋 I'm Sylvain Gauchet. Click my name + follow + 🔔 so you don't miss out on the #growthgems I share.