Open-source libraries offer a cost-effective and efficient way to design and implement user onboarding flows that are both user-friendly and customizable.
In this article, we will explore the benefits of open source user onboarding and offer a selection of top libraries to consider.
Explore Open-Source Library Options
Open-source libraries are an excellent resource for designers and developers looking to create effective user onboarding experiences. These libraries offer a range of pre-built components, tools, and templates that can be customized to fit specific product requirements.
By leveraging open-source libraries, teams can save time and resources that would otherwise be spent building custom onboarding experiences from scratch.
Popular Open-Source Libraries
There are many open-source libraries available that can be used to create open source user onboarding flows. Here are some of the most popular ones, along with their unique features:
1. Shepherd
Shepherd is a JavaScript library that allows you to create step-by-step user guides with customizable tooltips, modals, and popovers. Shepherd's UI is easy to use and is customizable, making it easy to design an onboarding flow that matches your product's design.
Additionally, Shepherd can integrate with other JavaScript frameworks like React and Angular, making it easy to integrate into your existing codebase.
2. Intro.js
Intro.js is a JavaScript library that offers step-by-step guidance for users. Intro.js is highly customizable and can be used to create onboarding flows that include modals, tooltips, and popovers.
One unique feature of Intro.js is its support for dynamic elements, making it possible to create onboarding flows that change based on user input or behavior.
3. Joyride
Joyride is a jQuery plugin that can be used to create product tours with tooltips, modals, and popovers. Joyride's UI is highly customizable, making it easy to create an onboarding flow that matches your product's design.
Additionally, Joyride provides built-in support for responsive design, making it an excellent choice for mobile-first products.
4. Bootstrap Tour
Bootstrap Tour is a jQuery plugin that can be used to create product tours with tooltips, popovers, and modals. Bootstrap Tour provides a range of customization options, including colors, animations, and fonts.
Bootstrap Tour is highly extensible, making it possible to create custom components that integrate seamlessly with your product.
Assess Library Suitability
Before choosing a library to create open source user onboarding, it is essential to evaluate whether the library aligns with your product and onboarding goals. Here are some key factors to consider:
1. Functionality
The first factor to consider is whether the library provides the functionality required to meet your product's onboarding needs. Some libraries may be more suited to creating simple product tours, while others may be better suited to creating more complex onboarding flows with dynamic content.
2. Customizability
Another important factor to consider is whether the library is customizable to match your product's design and branding. Libraries that offer a range of customization options, such as colors, fonts, and animations, will allow you to create an onboarding flow that is consistent with your product's design language.
3. Ease of Integration
It is also essential to consider how easy it is to integrate the library into your product. Some libraries may require extensive setup and configuration, while others may be more straightforward to integrate. It is important to choose a library that can be easily integrated into your existing codebase.
4. Community Support
Finally, it is important to consider the level of community support that the library has. Libraries with an active community of developers will have regular updates and bug fixes, making them more reliable in the long run. Additionally, libraries with strong community support often have more resources available, such as tutorials and documentation.
Implement Onboarding Flows with Open-Source Libraries
Once you have chosen an open-source library for your onboarding flow, it is time to implement it into your product. Here are the steps you can follow:
1. Set Up the Library
The first step is to set up the library in your project. This will typically involve including the library's CSS and JavaScript files in your HTML file and initializing the library.
2. Create Onboarding Steps
Next, you will need to create onboarding steps using the library's components. This may involve creating tooltips, popovers, or modals that guide users through your product's features. It is important to keep these steps concise and easy to follow to avoid overwhelming users.
3. Add Navigation
Once you have created your onboarding steps, you will need to add navigation to allow users to move through the onboarding flow. This may involve adding buttons or arrows to move between steps.
4. Test and Refine
Finally, it is essential to test your onboarding flow and refine it based on user feedback. This may involve A/B testing different onboarding flows or making adjustments to the existing flow based on user behavior.
Customize Onboarding Experiences
While open-source libraries provide a great starting point for creating user onboarding flows, it is important to customize these flows to create a unique experience for your users. Here are some tips on how to customize your onboarding flow:
1. Incorporate Your Branding
One way to customize your onboarding flow is to incorporate your product's branding. This may involve using your product's colors, fonts, and logos throughout the onboarding flow to create a consistent experience for your users.
2. Use Your Product's Voice
Another way to customize your onboarding flow is to use your product's voice. If your product has a unique tone or voice, you can incorporate this into the onboarding flow to create a more engaging experience for users.
3. Incorporate User Feedback
Finally, it is essential to incorporate user feedback into your onboarding flow. By analyzing user behavior and feedback, you can make adjustments to the onboarding flow to improve user engagement and retention.
Check out our article titled Customer Onboarding Analytics 101 - how to measure and optimize for success to learn more about how to analyze user behavior.
Monitor and Optimize Onboarding Performance
Once your onboarding flow is live, it is important to monitor its performance and make adjustments based on user behavior. Here are some metrics to track:
Completion Rates
One key metric to track is completion rates. This measures the percentage of users who complete the onboarding flow. If completion rates are low, it may be an indication that the flow is too complex or overwhelming for users.
Time to Completion
Another important metric to track is the time it takes for users to complete the onboarding flow. If this time is too long, it may be an indication that the flow is too complex or requires too many steps.
User Feedback
Finally, it is important to solicit user feedback on the onboarding flow. This may involve conducting surveys or user testing to understand user perceptions of the onboarding flow. By incorporating user feedback into the onboarding flow, you can improve user engagement and retention.
Final Words
In conclusion, open-source libraries provide an excellent resource for designers and developers looking to create effective user onboarding experiences. These libraries offer a range of pre-built components, tools, and templates that can be customized to fit specific product requirements, saving time and resources that would otherwise be spent building custom onboarding experiences from scratch.
To get the most out of open-source user onboarding libraries, it is important to assess their suitability based on your product's needs and evaluate their functionality, customizability, ease of integration, and community support.
Once you have chosen an open-source library, it is time to implement it into your product and customize the onboarding flow to create a unique experience for your users.
Finally, monitoring and optimizing the onboarding flow's performance is critical to improving user engagement and retention.
By tracking completion rates, time to completion, and user feedback, you can make data-driven improvements to the onboarding flow and continually enhance the user experience.
In conclusion, open-source user onboarding libraries offer a valuable resource for creating effective onboarding flows that engage and retain users.
By leveraging these libraries and customizing them to fit your product's needs, you can create a user onboarding flow that reflects your product's unique value proposition and creates a positive user experience.
