
Show HN: Onboarded – User Onboarding as a Service - ObserverEffect
https://www.getonboarded.com/?utm_source=hn
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supercoder
I never really like this style of on boarding. Mostly because I can 'see' the
app behind the dialogs and I just want to start using it.

Much prefer is on boarding is baked into the design of the app. So literally
hide / alter the page based on where they are in the setup / learning process.

~~~
ObserverEffect
One of the goals we had when we designed Onboarded was for it to be
unobtrusive yet flexible. It can be used to accomplish just what you are
saying. The styling as overlay/modal is just a default to get you going. It
can be made into a fullscreen flow or inline, or however you want. Onboarded
makes it easier to do all those things stylistically, as well as bind event
handlers, post data, etc.

~~~
bobbles
Maybe in the intro path in addition to saying 'let me out' you could have an
option like 'i like the concept, but show me a different style' and then take
a few example paths to show off possibilities

~~~
ObserverEffect
This is a great idea. Thanks for the feedback.

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mkilling
I'd love to get an idea of the pricing before I sign up for a trial. I don't
want to spend time trying out a product that will end up costing more than I'm
willing to pay for it.

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onassar
Correction: Ahh I see what you're saying and agree. I wouldn't think about
using a service that carried with it so much inherent uncertainty.

Pricing is linked to in the footer:
[https://www.getonboarded.com/pricing](https://www.getonboarded.com/pricing)

~~~
ObserverEffect
The thing is, we're just focused on the free tier right now. When you've
onboarded lots of people and decide you like the product, pricing is an open
conversation.

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robzyb
> pricing is an open conversation

I do not want pricing to be an open conversation. That sounds horrible to me.

To take a wild guess - maybe you think that an open conversation is good for
the customer because it represents flexibility? To me it doesn't. To me it
screams "UNCERTAINTY!" and the less of that I have the better.

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ROFISH
Or even worse: "If you have to ask, you can't afford it."

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axiom
We use [http://www.walkme.com](http://www.walkme.com) at Top Hat, how does
this compare?

~~~
ObserverEffect
The key point about Onboarded is that it's made for developers. It makes it
simpler and faster to completely customize the user experience that you want,
integrated as you see fit with your app's existing functionality and
look/feel.

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rajacombinator
I'm your target customer. I need to rework my onboarding flow but haven't done
it yet because it seems like a huge pain. Would like to see better examples of
the non-modal options, because I'm trying to move away from the modal
approach.

~~~
ObserverEffect
Got it. Would you send me an email at hello@getonboarded.com? I'd love to show
you how you could implement a non-modal flow with Onboarded in ~5 minutes.
Would love your feedback.

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newobj
Does Onboarded use Onboarded?

~~~
ObserverEffect
Yes

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EGreg
The correct place to dump users after they create an account is the Account
screen, where they can fill out various sections, but don't have to. Each
action on the site/app which requires certain info from the user (eg their
location or interests) would have a link to an inline / popup allowing them to
fill out that section before proceeding.

~~~
vandingmils
I could not disagree more.

I am never interested in building a social profile or entering preferences to
some app I'm unfamiliar with. Like others comment, I'd like to get to using
the product ASAP.

Signing up is already a hassle that should have been kept to a minimum.

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sfeng
This seems similar to Appcues ([http://appcues.com/](http://appcues.com/)).
Appcues is oriented at PMs though. I'm not sure what the market is for a
product which requires messing with the HTML of the site.

~~~
aquark
There is something a bit ironic about a web site which claims to be 'the most
effective way to communicate with new users' showing me a YouTube video to
explain what they do ...

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carrotleads
How different would your service be to using something like impromptu.js
[https://github.com/trentrichardson/jQuery-
Impromptu](https://github.com/trentrichardson/jQuery-Impromptu)

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jonalexr
Hm, looks like the example pages are missing validation for user input.

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adambratt
What's really the advantage of this over writing 50 lines of javascript to
automatically do the same thing and using segment.com to track events?

~~~
ObserverEffect
We don't think developers should have to reinvent the wheel, or cobble things
together to build a customized experience. You're usually not writing 50 lines
of javascript one time only and calling it a day - you are changing your flow
all the time, as soon as you see evidence for how to make it better. Onboarded
is a tool that will make that process of learning and iteration much more
efficient (and thus faster and cheaper). And there's no reason you couldn't
integrate with Segment too.

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Animats
From the article: _" After new users sign up to a website or app, they are
often dropped directly into a home screen. ... This is a big missed
opportunity. This moment is a chance to ... ask important questions, and
personalize their experience. ... They will then be more likely to tell their
friends about you. When combined with analytics, the onboarding process
presents an opportunity to learn vital details about your users ... and
increase retention and conversions."_

So this isn't for the user's benefit.

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kareemm
> So this isn't for the user's benefit.

I think it is. You're understanding what problems they need solved so you can
do that for them (and thus increase retention and conversions).

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ObserverEffect
Exactly. Plus you can improve the user's experience by helping them find and
understand the things they are looking for in your app :)

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stephengillie
This kind of response makes me think of the mandatory training missions that
have started populating the introductory levels of many videogames - Even
though movement is the same as every other game, we're going to spend 10
minutes to teach you how to walk around and shoot your gun.

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icebraining
I think those are fine, as long as you can skip them.

~~~
stephengillie
Increasingly, the option to skip is removed. If you want to play a game with
your friends, you have to spend 10 minutes doing what the game tells you to
do.

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killerpopiller
reminds me of [http://zurb.com/playground/jquery-joyride-feature-tour-
plugi...](http://zurb.com/playground/jquery-joyride-feature-tour-plugin) zurbs
joyride for foundation

~~~
Vekz
Or LinkedIn's Hopscotch
[http://linkedin.github.io/hopscotch/](http://linkedin.github.io/hopscotch/)

