Start Here: Building a better onboarding experience

Key takeaways

An effective onboarding experience should be immersive, hands-on, and mimic sitting next to a customer, helping them understand the product naturally.
Continuous iteration and personal involvement are crucial in keeping onboarding relevant and aligned with the product’s evolution.
Founder-led engagement, including direct interactions with customers, enhances trust and provides valuable insights for product improvement.
Authenticity, approachability, and personalized communication help differentiate a brand in a crowded marketplace.
Understanding and improving onboarding is a reciprocal process that benefits from real user feedback and observational insights.

Summary

Evolution of Onboarding: From Basecamp to Basecamp 5

This section discusses how the onboarding process at 37signals has evolved over time. Initially, Basecamp's onboarding was basic and somewhat instructional, but with the development of Hey, the team introduced an interactive, email-driven onboarding that allows new users to learn directly within the product. With the launch of Basecamp 5, they redesigned the onboarding to be more hands-on and immersive, involving a walkthrough of a real project, videos, and guided interactions. This approach aims to mimic sitting next to a customer and guiding them through the product, thereby creating a more effective and natural learning experience. The difference in onboarding between versions highlights the importance of continual iteration and the challenge of maintaining an effective onboarding experience as products grow and evolve.

Challenges and Insights in Creating Effective Onboarding Experiences

This section delves into the difficulties of maintaining an engaging onboarding process. The main challenge is that companies seldom see their onboarding flow every day, leading to a disconnect and potential neglect of updates as the product changes. The speakers emphasize that onboarding often becomes outdated or less effective because it does not receive the same dedicated focus as other features. The section also explores how direct customer feedback and real-world testing reveal what truly works, and how founders and product teams can benefit from personal involvement in onboarding to identify issues and opportunities for improvement. This ongoing process aligns the onboarding experience closely with customer needs and expectations.

Founder-Led Engagement and Personal Connection in Customer Relationships

This section highlights the unique value of founder-led customer interactions. Jason Fried's offer to personally walk new customers through Basecamp exemplifies how direct, personal involvement can foster trust and showcase the product's strengths authentically. Such engagement emphasizes the company’s transparency and approachability, distinguishing it from competitors. The founders believe that showcasing their product personally reflects their genuine confidence and care for quality, reinforcing the company's identity. The personal connection serves both as an evangelism tool and as a means to gather insights on customer reception and usability, ultimately enriching the company’s understanding and relationship with its users.

Brand Identity and Differentiation through Personal Approach and Communication

The final section discusses how 37signals differentiates itself from the competition by emphasizing transparency, friendliness, and approachability. This is reflected in their onboarding process, personal communication style, and in-app announcements, which are often personalized with avatars and direct messages from team members like Jason Fried or DHH. These efforts demonstrate that there are real people behind the product who care deeply about customer success and engagement. The company’s approach aims to build a trustworthy, relatable brand that is approachable and distinct from other software companies that rely heavily on AI and generic interfaces. The discussion underscores the importance of personality, community, and genuine communication as core elements of their business philosophy.

Show notes

Getting a new customer through the door is one thing, but making sure they understand how things work is another. In this episode, Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson break down how (and why) 37signals redesigned the onboarding experience with their latest version of Basecamp, why onboarding is one of the easiest things to overlook, and what it looks like when founders stay personally connected to that first impression.

Key Takeaways

00:09 – What Basecamp's onboarding looked like before, and what changed with Basecamp 5
04:01 – Why onboarding is one of the hardest things to get right
08:33 – Why the people who built it are best suited to showcase it to customers
11:07 – Using onboarding to introduce who you are, not just what you built

Links and Resources

Record a video question for the podcast
Watch The REWORK podcast on YouTube
Basecamp is the no-nonsense project management system. Sign up for free at Basecamp.com
HEY is a fresh take on email. Sign up for a 30-day free trial at HEY.com
Fizzy is a modern spin on kanban. Sign up for free at fizzy.do
Books by 37signals
Jason Fried on X
David Heinemeier Hansson on X