Every support ticket your customers submit points to something that wasn’t intuitive or explained well enough during their onboarding process. Maybe you don’t even have a customer onboarding process. The good news is that a large portion of support tickets can be avoided with better onboarding processes.
When customers feel confident from the start, they submit fewer help requests and are more satisfied with a product.
Here’s how you can make your customer onboarding process more efficient.
1. Use screen recordings for visual instructions
Screen recordings are one of the most effective onboarding tools. Rather than forcing customers to interpret vague written instructions, you can show them exactly how to use your product in a video. The efficacy is backed by data. According to Wyzowl, 99% of marketers say video helped users better understand their product or service.
If your product is digital, use screen recordings to demonstrate step-by-step workflows like setup, navigation, or using integrations. If your product is physical, show users how to assemble it, use it, and any tips or tricks that make it easier/more effective.
Once you have a set of video walkthroughs, you can create a knowledge library where customers can access the videos 24/7 on their own time. Having this kind of documentation will reduce support requests for simple things that can be easily resolved without your help.
2. Identify and address user frustration early
When a customer struggles, they won’t necessarily open a ticket. They might just abandon your product. Identifying potential friction points before they give up or open a ticket is critical.
Look for indicators like rage clicks, bounce rates, and session replays. Most importantly, listen to customer feedback. Run surveys and get feedback from real customers to uncover points of frustration, so you can resolve those issues early. Fixing points of frustration will reduce support tickets and increase long-term retention.
3. Reduce “time to value” with quick wins
Customers judge products by how fast they get results. If your onboarding drags, they’ll submit tickets or churn. If your product is too slow to deliver value, that can be a huge problem. Customers are more likely to stay loyal if onboarding is simple and valuable. That’s why faster value equals fewer tickets.
To help customers get value faster, guide them to accomplish something meaningful right away. Keep the onboarding process free from clutter so the steps stay focused on core features, not every option. You can create a thorough knowledge base for every option that users can search through on their own later. It also helps to create in-app messages to acknowledge completed steps.
4. Layer support resources into the product experience
Customers don’t want to dig to get help. Embedding help resources into the product reduces friction and support requests. And since most people want to resolve issues on their own before contacting support, it’s a win-win.
Use in-app tooltips as contextual guides to support users at the moment of frustration. A simple tooltip can make a world of difference. If you have a searchable knowledge base and FAQ section, make that content easy to access within the product. Don’t make users visit your website and search for help.
5. Train customers proactively
Don’t wait for tickets to show up in the queue. Train customers before issues appear. Proactive education is a game-changer. You can do this by running onboarding webinars for new users, sending drip emails that deliver tips and tutorials, and highlighting advanced features later down the road.
6. Measure success
You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Start tracking ticket volume along with customer satisfaction to get a better idea of how your onboarding process is working. Track trends like overall ticket reduction and a reduction in specific requests that used to be common.
If you haven’t started measuring your Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) and Net Promoter Score (NPS) scores, now is a great time to start. CSAT measures customer satisfaction, and NPS measures your overall relationship with your customers. Higher scores indicate higher customer confidence and satisfaction. Your scores should increase as you improve your onboarding process.
Fewer tickets mean happier customers
Support tickets are important, but too many of them indicate a weak onboarding process. By taking a proactive approach to improve customer onboarding, you can reduce tickets by up to 80%. GrowthMentor proved it by reducing its support tickets by 83% with Userpilot.
At the end of the day, happier customers result in lower costs, fewer tickets, and more scalable growth.
