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Category: App Development & Marketing
Tags: App MonetizationCal AIGen Z BibleOnboarding ProcessUser Engagement
Entities: Apple HealthAustinineCal AIGen Z Bible
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There is a tweak you can make to your app to convert more users into paying customers. And it's not the marketing.
It's not about adding new features. It's not about refactoring your entire codebase for the latest trendy framework.
It's all about the onboarding
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flow. Check out Cal AI.
It made $2 million last month from $800,000 downloads. and they've invested a lot of energy into an onboarding flow that converts well, generating around $2.50 per download last month.
In this video,
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I'll uncover how the Cal AI onboarding process works, and I'll explore which onboarding flow will work best for your app. You've seen it before.
When you download a new app, you're presented with a boring screen telling you all about what the app does, but I want to
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actually use the app. I don't want to be told what the app does.
It feels like a bit of a waste of time. So, why do so many apps have an onboarding screen?
And the answer is simple. You only have a few seconds to capture the user's attention and tell them why you should
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be using their app. And it's similar to this YouTube video.
The hook goes at the beginning. I told you what the video was about and why you should continue watching.
And think about the onboarding flow as your app's hook. If the user is
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thrown into your app with no explanation or guidance on what to do, what do you think is going to happen? They might not take full advantage of the features you've built in your app, and within a few moments of evaluating your app, they might just be completely lost, or they
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might not see your amazing features that you've built. The onboarding flow simplifies that process.
You get a few seconds here to show the user what your app does. You have a captive audience here.
Think about it like this. You've just jumped onto a plane and you've put
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your seatelt on. Now you're not going anywhere.
You're stuck with nothing but the in-flight entertainment system inches away from your eyeballs. This is what a captive audience looks like.
For a few moments, your app has this and
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take full advantage of that. You have these eyeballs for a few seconds.
But it doesn't just stop there. As well as educating the user what the app does, the onboarding screen can also prepare them for the premium features.
A good onboarding flow has these key elements.
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First, a big congratulations to the user for downloading your app. Well done.
You're fantastic. And then a bunch of social proof to show that that was actually a really good idea.
Then showing what the app does, but not in like a features way, more in terms of
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showing what the benefits are to the user, what the user gets out of it. And then demonstrates the advanced functionality of the app.
And this is where you can explain any premium features, any premium functionality and what it does. Then the final step of any successful onboarding screen is the payw
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wall. Here you reinforce those special features that were actually not included for free are paid features.
Is this a bit bait and switch? I don't know.
Saying it out loud makes it feel a bit bait and switchy. Let me know what you
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think. But the key across the entire onboarding flow is to focus on the benefits.
Benefits, benefits, benefits, benefits. And the feeling the user will get from the app.
You want them to feel like this is the right app, exactly what they're looking for, and they're ready
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to subscribe right there and then. before they've even used the app.
Cal AI does this so well. There is an extended onboarding process which steps you through questions, features, benefits, you name it.
A lot of time and energy has gone into this onboarding flow. And
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later in the video, I'm going to do a step through each step of the onboarding flow and the psychology behind it. But first, here's the onboarding process I already use.
Nowhere near as complex as what Cal AI on boarding flow looks like, but it's easier to implement. I'll be
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putting a link to the Swift UI source code in the description below. I call this my cinematic onboarding screen.
The first screen is a big welcome. Hey, you've come to the right place.
This is the app you're looking for. Followed by some social proof.
Then I always jump
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straight into the core feature. In this case, turn your phone into a Bluetooth mic.
That's it. That's what it does.
It's simple and it communicates nicely to the user. An animated graphic shows them exactly how it works.
It doesn't need to look boring. It's quite
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engaging. This is the cinematic part I was talking about.
Okay, so yeah, I'm no Christopher Nolan. Then I hit them with the voice filters.
These are those extra features, the value ad features. They didn't even know they wanted these features, but now they want them.
Ooh,
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that sounds good. I want to try that.
And if you're feeling extra brave, add a prompt here for review. But sometimes you'll get a few one-star reviews, so just be cautious.
Then bam, unlock premium access. Cal AI follows the same process, but instead of four steps,
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they've got 20. How can you keep someone engaged for an onboarding process that lasts 20 steps?
Well, they've done a really good job here by mixing in questions, stats, information, and features, all while keeping the onboarding process highly personalized and engaging. You have to see it to
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believe it. The first screen shows the app in action.
The user has just downloaded a calorie tracking app. They want to track calories.
Oh, look. It's really simple.
You just take a photo of your food. Then the user asks how often they work out.
But this is a calorie
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tracking app. Why?
It's genius actually. This is hooking into the why.
Why is the person even downloading the app in the first place? Some people are downloading it to lose weight.
Others are downloading it to bulk or to put on weight. And the first question is not
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how much weight do you want to lose. It's a generic question about fitness.
Genius. Then you're asked where you heard about the app and whether you've tried other similar apps.
This is market research. Even if the user doesn't finish the onboarding process, even if
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the user doesn't sign up for the app, they've got some free market research here. Now, we get into the benefits.
Cal AI creates long-term results. And here they provide a stat.
80% of Cal AI users maintain their weight loss after 6 months. And next, the user answers some
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really personal questions. how much they weigh, how tall they are, their age, their goal, and target weight, followed by a positive and affirming screen.
Losing 5 kg is a realistic target. It's not hard at all.
This is now digging deep into the psychology of the app
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here, showcasing the benefits and making the user feel part of the process, like this is being tailored specifically for them. And I love the additional stat here at the bottom.
90% of users say that the change is obvious after using Cal AI. Where do I sign up?
But we're
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not even halfway through the onboarding process yet. The first part was focused on market research, validating the user's choice, showcasing the benefits, and personalizing the user experience.
The next phase digs deeper with rapidfire questions followed by hard
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stats. How fast do you want to lose the weight?
followed by lose twice as much weight with Cali verse on your own. What's stopping you from reaching your goals?
Do you follow a specific diet? What would you like to accomplish?
Then you get a nice affirmation screen again.
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You have great potential to crush your goal. This screen is really interesting actually.
It shows the initial results are slow. Based on Cal AI's history data, weight loss is usually delayed at first, but after 7 days, you can burn fat like crazy.
And this is an important
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message. As with any sales pitch, if you overpromise, you run the risk of setting wrong expectations.
They could have said, "You will lose weight. Full stop." Instead, what they're saying is it'll take some time to build momentum.
Being honest and open from the beginning probably helps to reduce the number of
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refund requests they get, but it also helps to build trust and credibility. And it makes sense that the next step here is privacy focused with the key message, trust us.
And then the third and final part of the onboarding process is all about setting up the app. Link it
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with Apple Health, add goals, set up calorie rollovers, write a review, set up notifications, enter a referral code, and then we're done. Now we finally get to generate our custom plan.
And after a few minutes, the plan is magically calculated. I've got a feeling that this
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is kind of performative. Do I think it's actually generating a real plan?
Probably not. or maybe it doesn't take so long.
But it carries on with the theme of the onboarding process. This entire questionnaire was to personalize the app just for me, just
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for the user. So no other person in the world will have the same app.
After all, it's AI. It's magic.
Then we're back to the first screen. But this time, no payment is required.
Hitting continue throws you to the inapp subscription
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screen for $49.99 Australian every year. And that's a long and convoluted onboarding process with over 20 steps.
Do you need that many? Probably not.
A more sensible approach might actually be the way to go. Check out Gen Z Bible by
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the talented Austinine, also known on X as Ammani. It's a really straightforward process that strips down the Cal AI onboarding questionnaire format into something a little more digestible.
Why are you using the app? Followed by a positive affirmation.
We care about you.
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You're in the right place. Followed by a list of benefits and highlighting this is not your grandma's Bible.
Then another personal question. What's your vibe right now?
Actually, I'm feeling a bit anxious. Oh, look at that.
God's got
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my back. This part demonstrates how the app works and steps the user through the process, followed by social proof, a prompt for review, and finally the payw wall.
And I love this simpler approach. For me, the Cal AI onboarding is great, and it's obvious that it's doing a
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really good job, but it just seems like a lot of work to implement. I don't know that I have the time to spend building an onboarding flow like that.
But the Gen Z Bible, this is something I can see adding to my own apps. With all the onboarding flows we've seen today, the
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main elements all remain the same. Congratulate and affirm the user for making such a good decision downloading your app.
Demonstrate what the app does, either by text, answering questions, or actually just showing them. Then finish
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with the payw wall to make the sale.