Driving SaaS User Adoption: 10-Point Checklist

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Poor user adoption is a quiet killer for SaaS companies.?

While growth teams are focused on gaining new leads and resolving user issues, users who never fully take advantage of a product are sneaking under the radar — and quietly leaving for competitors.?

Improving user adoption is a proactive process that starts before customer onboarding by contextually understanding your users. To achieve meaningful results, you have to develop a strategy to help your users find value in your product and make the most of all your tools and features.?

The Importance of a User Adoption Strategy for SaaS Companies

Many SaaS brands consider user adoption the natural outcome of user onboarding. And while a great product-led onboarding experience can boost user adoption, it’s still important to have an adoption strategy beyond standard onboarding.?

Here’s what a great user adoption strategy can do for your SaaS company:

1. Improve product-led growth with retention and upsells

Customer acquisition is expensive.?

For enterprise-level SaaS brands in specific industries, it can cost almost $15,000 just to gain one new customer. A strong user adoption strategy prevents those costly customers from churning before you can see a return on your investment.?

High user adoption rates improve customer retention and make upsells or cross-sells easier. If they already see the value in your brand, they’re more likely to trust your recommendations and purchase new or additional products.?

2. Lower churn rate by increasing customer value

A high churn rate is a telltale sign that your users aren’t happy with what you’re offering them — but it doesn’t always mean your product or service is the wrong fit. A user churning might mean they couldn’t see the value of your SaaS.?

Guiding users to find value in your product can prevent customer churn. A user adoption strategy helps direct users on how to engage with various features and tools within your platform, setting them up for long-term success.

3. Increases overall customer lifetime value

For subscription-based platforms, customer lifetime value (CLV) is critical to profitability. CLV needs to outweigh acquisition costs and other business expenses, and for most SaaS companies, that doesn’t happen immediately after a new user signs up.?

A user adoption strategy increases customer lifetime value by giving users the resources they need to find success with your platform. Customer lifetime value will also improve when customer retention is high and churn low.?

4. Better experiences mean better products, happier customers

Even the most powerful SaaS platform will need a great user experience to take off. If your users don’t understand how to get the most out of your platform, they’ll start looking for an alternative — even if you have all the latest features and tech.?

Investing in user adoption means investing in user experience. An excellent user adoption strategy focuses on supporting your customers’ needs, leading to better overall experiences and happier customers.

Checklist for Creating an Effective SaaS User Adoption Strategy

Here’s how you can start building an effective user adoption strategy for your SaaS.?

1. Create contextual in-app guidance for onboarding and continuous learning

A robust user onboarding experience sets the foundation for user adoption, and in-app guidance is an efficient way to make your onboarding experience as engaging as possible.?

Use in-app guides, product tours, instructions, task lists, and more to help your users learn by doing. Next steps and tips are presented to them as they move through actions or engage with features, giving users personalized assistance to keep them engaged.?

And your in-app guides can go beyond just a user onboarding checklist.?

With a digital adoption platform (DAP), you can add helpful nudges or tips to introduce existing users to new features, product updates, or platform redesigns. Making a proactive effort for continuous learning ensures your users stay engaged and find value in your product.

2. Build end-user help and support content

No matter how robust your onboarding process is, your users will have questions. It’s expected, but answers should be readily available for them when it happens.?

Creating customer self-help and support content allows your users to get additional assistance on demand, exactly when they need it.?

You can then use this content in:?

• User knowledge bases: A centralized, searchable knowledge base hub of resources, information, and data users can access when they need support.

• AI chatbots: Use AI to assess user challenges and direct them to the most relevant solutions.

• Contextual content: Link to your help content in in-app guides, blogs, support conversations, and more to provide in-depth information at the right time.?

Having a comprehensive bank of help and support content readily available can also give your team a break. Users can get help independently, freeing up your support team to focus on more complex problems. Shorter time-to-resolution for user issues can also increase product satisfaction and improve user adoption.?

3. Continuously experiment with in-app messages and guidance to improve user experience

Testing new in-app messages and guides is a great way to catch users’ attention and keep them engaged.?

Switching up your user adoption strategy to align with changing needs, new updates, or just trying something new can prevent your onboarding or education material from growing stale and outdated.?

Here are some ways to use in-app messages and guides that you may not have already considered:?

• Live chat: Give users quick access to on-demand support, resources, and live help right within your app.?

• Tip pop-ups: Pop-ups showing tips or instructions point your users to the next point in the process to complete a task.?

• Product tours: Guide your users through how to use your product with on-screen overviews and instructions.?

• Checklists or to-do lists: An in-app to-do list shows users what they still need to complete.?

• Alerts: Using pop-ups as alerts can ensure you get users’ attention to relay important information.?

• Feedback requests: Add a pop-up to collect feedback requests and allow users to give their input without ever leaving the app.?

Get creative with how you add in-app messages or guidance. Look for new, personalized ways to connect with users and include visuals or interactive content that will help keep them engaged.

4. Collect user feedback

A strong user adoption plan is built with users in mind, meaning their input is crucial for building and refining a strategy that works.?

Go straight to the source to collect customer feedback, including connecting with your users through:?

• In-app messaging?
• Short surveys and prompted requests
• One-on-one conversations
• Social media?

But you’ll also want to include non-direct feedback, like reviews, social media threads, or conversations on forums or in communities.?

Looking externally for feedback from users (especially past users) is a great way to identify areas for improvement. See what prompted past users to switch to a competitor or see what areas your product falls short compared to your competitors.

5. Identify power customers and users, then turn them into product adoption evangelists

Who better to encourage new users to stay engaged with your product than those already reaping the benefits??

Loyal customers and power users are great for connecting with your new user base.?

Power users have been in your new users’ shoes and can provide peer-to-peer insights that your team may struggle to deliver authentically. Incorporating power users into your adoption strategy can help improve trust and facilitate more profound connections.?

Here are some ideas for converting your top customers to adoption advocates:?

• Write case studies: Show off user results and outcomes in written, video, or interactive case studies.?

• Create an affiliate program: Reward power users for bringing on new users with an affiliate or referral program.?

• Get on social media: Encourage top users to share how they use your product across social media platforms.
• Build a digital community: An online platform, forum, or chat group where users can connect and interact makes it easy for power users to showcase how they use your product to get results.

Continue reading about how to drive SaaS user adoption here.?

?? Digital transformation clicks with Whatfix

Whatfix streamlines the build vs. buy decision in user onboarding, offering a no-code platform that crafts personalized in-app guidance and support. It’s an ideal solution for businesses exploring efficient ways to onboard users without the heavy lifting of developing custom software. With Whatfix, create dynamic flows, pop-ups, and task lists for an engaging onboarding experience directly within your apps.

Leveraging Whatfix’s analytics, pinpoint workflow inefficiencies and user engagement blocks to optimize onboarding paths and improve user experiences. The platform’s capability to gather real-time feedback through in-app Surveys further refines your strategy, making Whatfix a compelling choice for businesses seeking a balance between customization and convenience in user onboarding.

Explore our library of customer success stories now!

?? Essential reads for digital adoption & enablement professionals

Tech.co — Restaurant Technology Trends, Tools and Insights for 2024

The food and beverage industry is undergoing a digital transformation to adjust to changing customer preferences and economic pressures. Technologies like POS systems and digital menus help to reduce waste and expand online presence. Despite high costs and competition, businesses are adopting loyalty software and delivery apps for long-term sustainability.

Forbes — The Tech-Savvy Executive: Overcoming Digital Anxiety In Leadership

Business leaders are experiencing "tech anxiety" due to the rapid evolution of digital tools. This often leads to "tech paralysis," hindering the integration of new technologies such as AI and cybersecurity measures. To overcome this, executives should adopt a growth mindset and view technological advancements as opportunities for learning and growth. Continuous learning, collaboration, manageable tech initiatives, and external expertise are key strategies to lead digital transformation.

EY — How IKEA transformed both customer experience and employee satisfaction

IKEA transformed its Customer Support Center in response to the challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Led by EY teams and Ingka Group, the initiative focused on enhancing the digital customer experience, modernizing technology and processes, and empowering employees. The shift resulted in improved customer and employee satisfaction, service efficiency, and a culture of continuous improvement and collaboration, setting a new standard in customer support.

HealthcareITNews — Digital messaging surge between doctors and patients requires EHR management

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of electronic health records, leading to a surge in patient-physician digital communication. Health systems like Kaiser Permanente, Rush, and Johns Hopkins are implementing AI and other technological solutions to manage inbox volumes, reduce response time for urgent communications, and combat physician burnout.

?? Whatfix news bites

• We are excited to announce that GP Strategies Corporation has reached the esteemed Certified Delivery Partner status within the Whatfix Rise 2 Excellence Partner Program! This recognition highlights their outstanding expertise in Whatfix, distinguishing them as a top-tier regional partner. Congratulations on this remarkable accomplishment!
• We're excited to share that we've received 25 new G2 badges based on customer feedback. Among them is the Momentum Leader badge, which recognizes organizations that make continuous progress over time. We dedicate this badge to all our customers who inspire us to keep improving and delivering value!

?? Whatfix podcast catchup?

• Cammy Bean, author of "The Accidental Instructional Designer" and an expert in instructional design, shares her extensive experience and explains the transformative power of instructional design in crafting compelling learning experiences.
• Zeliko Ivkovic, CIO at ISS, discusses the importance of understanding cultural nuances and fostering collaboration to drive successful transformation. Zeliko highlights the need for a problem-solving approach that aligns innovations with operational excellence and customer satisfaction.

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