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The Problem
In 2024, Coach launched an AI chatbot designed to deliver personalized career guidance based on user preferences from onboarding. However, the current onboarding process is underperforming, with a dismal 3.5% conversion rate.
The Goal
The goal is to revitalize Coach’s onboarding experience, making it more fun, engaging, and user-friendly. This includes streamlining and unifying the three disjointed sections into a seamless, cohesive flow.
Our constraints included WCAG 2.0 AA color compliance and maintaining the original survey question wording.
We strive to...
Increase conversion rate of 3.5%
Increase user satisfaction
Increase user completion
Research methods
We conducted a comparative analysis of onboarding processes from leading platforms like Duolingo, Stoic, Grammarly, Wysa, and Handshake, drawing inspiration to enhance our redesign.
Duolingo’s onboarding process inspired us to incorporate a character.
Wysa’s chatbot delivered concise, yet highly engaging messages.
Stoic’s loading page added a personalized touch to the onboarding experience.
In addition to our comparative analysis, we interviewed three college students from underrepresented communities to gather insights on Coach's onboarding experience.
Participants found the chat questions irrelevant to career advising, struggled with the usability of survey sliders, and felt overwhelmed by excessive text and questions. Additionally, they indicated a preference for alternative resources, such as ChatGPT, over Coach.
User 1: The survey sliders were challenging to use and frustrating to interact with.
User 2: The onboarding process felt unnecessarily lengthy and drawn out.
User 3: I’m curious about what sets Coach AI apart from other generative AI platforms like ChatGPT.
Process Flow
We kept the overall user flow the same but shifted the chatbot to the end of the onboarding process. Based on user feedback, we decided to prioritize the survey at the start to better engage users, while still giving them a preview of the chatbot's functionality later on.
Prototype Iterations
For the lo-fi wireframes, we began by sectioning off the onboarding process flow. Given the tight timeline, we jumped straight into wireframing and brainstorming new approaches for the onboarding process.
First, we decided to use a character/persona as a starting point to brainstorm its role in the new sign-up flow.
Furthermore, the original survey scale (left) was challenging to interact with, so we created several iterations to make it more fun and compelling.
We shortened the chatbot to align with the tutorial, allowing users to familiarize themselves with the tool before completing the onboarding.
The product
We completely transformed Coach AI's onboarding process by introducing characters to personalize the experience.
Usability Testing
We interviewed adults (ages 20-40) in the workforce or pursuing Master's/PhD programs to ensure the character theme and onboarding process resonated universally.
Key insights revealed that users appreciated the character, as it gave the AI chatbot a distinct personality and made the interaction more engaging, motivating them to continue. However, users were unclear about the purpose of the survey and how it would influence their experience with the platform.
User 1: I enjoyed the survey, but I'm curious how Coach uses my answers to personalize the onboarding process.
User 2: I really liked the emoji scales in the survey because they made me want to answer the questions.
User 3: I liked the bear; it made the AI feel personal and gave it a real personality, not just "nothingness technology."
Impact & Retrospective
Based on our participant interviews and testing, we increased user satisfaction rate by 22%, as users expressed that they were more willing to complete the onboarding process with our redesign. Our client plans to ship the product in Q2 2025 after reviewing the prototype with her team and executive leadership, discussing any iterations, and finalizing launch logistics.
Challenges Along the Way...
Working with our client was a great experience, though we faced challenges balancing the scope and timeline to create a fun, engaging onboarding design. Incorporating a persona without overshadowing the survey was tricky, and designing a measurable survey scale required careful adjustments. Once the character was developed, everything aligned seamlessly with the process.
If We Had More Time...
To enhance the experience even more, we would add more actions and emotional states to the character, making it feel more personable. We would also include a message before the survey to clarify its purpose and benefits. Additionally, further user testing would be conducted to ensure consistency with key insights, particularly regarding the character’s connection to Coach.
