# Achieving a Seamless User Experience: What to Consider Before Mandating Registration

- Link: https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/
- Published: 2022-06-21T08:52:06+01:00
- Author: Sameer Ginotra

![](https://phiture.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Achieving-a-seamless-user-experience_-
what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration-scaled.jpg)

The onboarding experience is one of the most important steps in an app’s long-term
retention performance. It sets the tone for the ongoing relationship with the user
and should be considered similar to entering a store for the first time. Any unnecessary
friction can adversely affect user experience as users are highly sensitive when
entering an unfamiliar space. When to mandate user registration is therefore a key
question for retention practitioners. 

An app which has a value proposition based on something other than the user’s identity
can undermine user experience by mandating the registration process in the onboarding
journey. Therefore it is vital for app developers to design the onboarding journey
while keeping in mind the app’s core value proposition and being wary of any unnecessary
friction that may lead users to churn. 

In this guide, we address the role registration plays towards an app’s retention
and long-term success, what to consider when mandating sign-up process, and, finally,
some cheeky ways to integrate the account sign-up to ensure a smooth user experience.

 

Table of Contents

 * [What is the purpose of signing up for an app?](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/#what_is_the_purpose_of_signing_up_for_an_app)
 * [Long-term retention begins with sign-up](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/#long-term_retention_begins_with_sign-up)
 * [What happens if registration is mandatory for all users? ](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/#what_happens_if_registration_is_mandatory_for_all_users)
 * [Which factors determine the need for mandatory sign-up? ](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/#which_factors_determine_the_need_for_mandatory_sign-up)
 * [How to integrate sign-up into a smooth user experience](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/#how_to_integrate_sign-up_into_a_smooth_user_experience)
 * [Wrap up](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/#wrap_up)
 * [Before You Go](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-to-consider-before-mandating-registration/#before_you_go)

## **What is the purpose of signing up for an app?**

Andy Carvell describes the purpose of registration in his article [_user accounts: pros and cons_](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/user-accounts-pros-and-cons-for-mobile-growth-42847cb10f4c)
as a system that allows the user to create an account with an app to uniquely identify
with the product. Signing up allows permanence across devices and ensures continuity
in experience by signing the user into their account across desktop as well as mobile.
Moreover, a user account functions as a digital locker to store progress and bookmarked
content such as favorites. 

Once a unique account with user information exists, it’s typical for app developers
to leverage that information to personalize the user’s experience within an app.
This can positively impact how users perceive the app as its core value is now even
more relevant to them, thereby reducing the reasons to abandon the app.

Before we get to this point, the sign-up experience is a crucial step for user onboarding
as it is where we ask the users to provide their personal information without them
yet knowing if the app solves their purpose or not. It becomes important for app
developers to design the experience so that only the absolute must-have information
is asked to ensure a smooth onboarding flow. That said, there are some apps whose
core functionality is not affected by user credentials. Therefore forcing users 
to sign-up in the onboarding journey can obstruct them from getting to the end value
quickly. According to the [report published by Targeting Mantra](https://www.marketingprofs.com/chirp/2016/29100/mapping-a-mobile-app-users-journey-from-discovery-to-purchase-infographic),
68% of the total respondents answered “complicated registration process” as the 
reason for immediately uninstalling the app right after downloading. Therefore, 
it is necessary for app developers to strike a balance between business needs and
user needs while designing the registration experience.

 

## **Long-term retention begins with sign-up**

Onboarding starts the moment a user downloads the app. Every step in the onboarding
journey represents an opportunity for the app developer to gather information from
the user to enhance their experience around the core value proposition. Most of 
the users who sign up and make it past the onboarding stage flow to the activation
phase where they’re activated by experiencing the core value of the app. Out of 
these activated users, the ones who are now convinced by the core value of the app
and have been using it regularly, flow to the habit stage. The proportion of these
retained users to all users who downloaded the app determines the long-term retention
rate of the app. 

 

![](https://phiture.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/image6-3-300x144.png)

 

## **What happens if registration is mandatory for all users? **

This generally increases friction among users who are reluctant to share their details
without knowing if the app solves their purpose, thus leading them to churn. 

One way to illustrate this is by imagining you are looking for a shared apartment.
You receive an open house invitation to visit a spacious apartment in a desirable
location. Unsurprisingly, there are other interested visitors who leave their credentials
with the owner to be contacted later, However you are disappointed that the apartment
wasn’t suitable to _your_ requirements _(can’t play instruments or host friends)_.
You decide not to leave your credentials as it’s not for you and leave. Unlike the
experience at the open house, downloading a free app from the digital store mostly
mandates the users to leave their credentials i.e., sign up.

The implementation of a mandatory sign up process should instead be centered around
the ‘aha moment.’ If the app’s core value is built around the user’s identity (for
example, Facebook or Instagram), registering users should be mandated to sign up.
Otherwise, if the app’s purpose is not centred around identity, users should be 
allowed to temporarily skip logins during the onboarding process so they can see
if the app solves their purpose. 

 

## **Which factors determine the need for mandatory sign-up? **

There are certain factors that influence the need of mandating the sign-up process.

### **Trust/Security**

Certain apps require users to create an account to ensure data security and control
over information. In such cases, a registered account helps the user trust the product
to store sensitive information and integrate it with their daily life. Mobile banking
apps such as N26 or Revolut mandate their users to register to ensure safety with
regards to financial transactions and other personal information. 

 

![](https://phiture.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/image4-4-300x154.png)

_Example of N26 value proposition when creating account to ensure data security 
and protection_

### **Personalization **

Apps such as Facebook/Instagram have a universal sign-up process, which is similar
across multiple users but the app’s core value (feed posts) differs drastically 
for all the users. This is mostly because Facebook/Instagram’s core value thrives
entirely on personalization as it promises to deliver unique value to its users 
based on their preferences, interests, and community. In such cases, an app requires
its users to create an account to personalize their experience based on their friends’
activities, groups they might be interested in, trending hashtags etc. 

 

![](https://phiture.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/image2-5-300x156.png)

_Example of Facebook’s value proposition based on user’s friends _

 

### **Commitment**

The process of creating an account requires an investment of effort. The core value
of certain apps revolves around users committing to a certain behavior to achieve
the goals in the app. Apps such as Headspace mandate their users to create an account
to monitor progress in achieving their goals as part of the app’s unique value proposition,(
in Headspace’s case, meditation).

### **Consistency**

Most of the apps that we see on the app stores are designed to imitate the functioning
of a physical product/service in a digital environment. Hence, it is necessary to
maintain the user’s experience to be as consistent as possible with the offline 
world so as to enhance acceptance and drive usability. 

For example, consider going to buy groceries at the supermarket. You step inside
the store, choose your items, pay and exit. Nowadays they also have a self check-
out counter where you no longer have to interact with the checkout operator and 
can personally scan the product barcodes, pay and exit. Now, for a grocery app to
be successful and to be widely accepted across different user groups, it needs to
provide a buying experience similar to that of a self checkout,  that’s efficient,
frictionless and less intimidating. 

### **Buying frequency **

For a product or service that a consumer is unlikely to demand frequently, such 
as a mattress, there will be resistance among users who don’t wish to invest the
effort in registering to order, and, as a result, will churn immediately. For such
products or services, an option to skip registration and checkout as a guest can
reduce friction in the purchase process and help users convert faster. Apps such
as Ikea allow their users to checkout as a guest to complete an order. 

### **Core value proposition**

For some apps, the end value can only be experienced when the data is explicitly
provided by the user. Mobile wallet apps such as Stocard allows its users to add,
store, and organize all their loyalty and reward cards in one place. All users have
to do is to create an account, scan their card’s barcode, and the app will create
digital copies of their loyalty cards that can be redeemed later. 

 

![](https://phiture.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/image1-7-300x154.png)

_Example of Stocard value proposition based on user’s loyalty/reward cards_

 

## **How to integrate sign-up into a smooth user experience**

Kevin Indig in his article “[Why product market-fit is so important for Growth Marketing](https://www.kevin-indig.com/why-product-market-fit-is-so-important-for-growth-marketing/)”
compares an aha moment to “meeting an attractive person and realizing you’re attracted
towards them_”._ When comparing this moment to a product, attractiveness can be 
conceptualized as the app’s core value, and thus it becomes important for a growth
marketer to design the sign up process in a way such that the app’s attractiveness
is unaffected. Here are some clever ways to make users sign up while ensuring a 
smooth aha experience:

 1. **Rewarding user actions to complete signing up:** For apps supporting virtual 
    currency, rewarding users to complete sign up can drastically enhance conversion.
    Apps such as Habitca reward their onboarded users with the chance to win virtual
    points that can later be used to access premium features in the app, when they 
    update their profile.
 2. **Providing clear utility to sign up:** Users are reluctant to share personal information
    in an app unless there’s an immediate pay off. Providing clear reasons for signing
    up such as exclusive discounts can enhance conversion and ensure users understand
    the value of creating an account within the app. Food delivery apps such as Doordash
    offer their registered mobile users 50% off on their first order + 0$ delivery 
    fee, giving their users an incentive to sign up instantly.
 3. ** Using social logins for quick sign up:** Using social logins facilitates a leaner
    signing up experience and eliminates the hassle of remembering multiple passwords
    for the app. This also benefits app developers as it provides access to more user
    data points that can later be used as levers to segment user groups. Apps such 
    as Canva allows its users to login socially with Google, Facebook etc. to jump 
    start their onboarding and get to designing graphics in just two clicks. 

 


_Example of social logins for quick sign up to get started with Canva_

 

4**. Moving sign-up process to later in the user journey:** The concept of gradual
engagement has become quite trendy recently in the app’s ecosystem. According to
the concept, the sign-up process can be postponed after the user has experienced
the aha moment and is convinced that the app solves their purpose. Language-learning
app Duolingo does this perfectly by allowing the user to complete a language lesson
without prompting them to register. 

 

 .      .

_Example of Duolingo allowing users to complete a lesson before signing up to save
progress_

 

 5. ** Having users sign up to access exclusive features:** There are apps that allow
    users to experience the core value without asking them to sign up but restrict 
    their access to limited features in the app. This gives the user an opportunity
    to explore the app and sign up only to access other features. Apps such as Tiktok
    allow users to experience its feed, while restricting certain features to account
    holders only.
 6. ** Guest checkout:** Mostly suitable for lower frequency products, guest checkout
    reduces the friction involved in the purchase process and increases order conversion
    rate. As mentioned, Ikea speeds up the checkout process with a guest option and
    allows its users to make a purchase without creating an account. 

 

## **Wrap up**

To summarize, mandating the registration for users depends entirely upon your business
model and how you would like to shape your app’s core value experience. If your 
app’s core value depends highly on user information, it’s recommended to sign up
users early in the onboarding journey otherwise sign up can be delayed or tweaked
later in the user journey if the app’s ‘aha moment’ is not affected by users’ personal
information. 

This is first in a series of three articles that will be released later in the year
about rethinking the onboarding process from a retention point of view. The next
article will cover the principles of bias and heuristics that influence users’ psychology
to sign up. 

 

## Before You Go

 * [Check out our complete guide to kick-ass onboarding](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/kick-ass-mobile-app-onboarding/)
   by Andy Carvell. This succinct overview gives a breakdown of the key concepts,
   best practices, and a handy onboarding checklist.
 * Onboarding is just one element of [the Mobile Growth Stack](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/what-is-the-mobile-growth-stack-426c6e474329/),
   a must read for all mobile marketers. This is a framework that helps marketers,
   founders and growth practitioners develop and evolve a strategy for growing the
   user base of a mobile product or product portfolio.
 * [Sign up to the Mobile Growth Stack newsletter](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/)
   for regular news and insights from the world’s leading app marketing agency.

 

 

**References**

Andy Carvell, [_User Accounts: Pros & Cons for Mobile Growth_](https://phiture.com/mobilegrowthstack/user-accounts-pros-and-cons-for-mobile-growth-42847cb10f4c/).

Kevin Indig, [_Why product market-fit is so important for Growth Marketing _](https://www.kevin-indig.com/why-product-market-fit-is-so-important-for-growth-marketing/)

Jarski, [_Mobile-Mapping a Mobile App User’s Journey From Discovery to Purchase_](https://www.marketingprofs.com/chirp/2016/29100/mapping-a-mobile-app-users-journey-from-discovery-to-purchase-infographic)