Building generative prompts from onboarding surveys

Building generative prompts from onboarding surveys is a great way to gather data and create tailored experiences for users or customers. These prompts can be used for various purposes, including personalizing user experiences, driving engagement, and even collecting valuable insights for product or service improvement. Below are some key strategies and ideas for generating effective prompts from onboarding surveys.

1. Understand the Purpose of the Onboarding Survey

The first step in creating effective prompts is understanding the purpose of your onboarding survey. Is it to gather information about the user’s preferences, demographics, or needs? Or is it focused on assessing their familiarity with your product or service? The responses to these questions will help you define the scope of the prompts.

2. Collect Essential User Information

Start by asking basic questions that will help tailor the generative prompts. For example:

• Demographic Information: Age, location, job role, etc.

• Interests and Goals: What the user hopes to achieve with your product or service.

• Challenges and Pain Points: What obstacles the user is hoping to overcome.

• Skill Level: Are they a beginner, intermediate, or expert?

These responses will allow you to design prompts that are contextually relevant to each user.

3. Create Contextual and Personalized Prompts

Once you’ve collected the data, use it to generate prompts that feel personal and relevant. Here are some examples:

a) Personalized Welcome Prompt

If a user indicates they are new to the product or service, you could generate a friendly prompt that makes them feel comfortable:

“Welcome, [User’s Name]! As a beginner, we recommend starting with a guided tour of our platform. Ready to get started?”

Or, if the user has prior experience with a similar product:

“Hey [User’s Name], we see you’re an experienced user! How about diving into advanced features right away? You can also access quick tutorials if you need.”

b) Goals-Oriented Prompts

If the user mentioned a specific goal during the survey, create prompts that directly tie into those goals:

• “You mentioned that you’re hoping to [achieve a specific goal]. Here are a few resources to help you get started.”

• “Great, you’re looking to [overcome a particular challenge]. We’ve prepared some tips to tackle that right away.”

c) Problem-Solving Prompts

If users mention challenges or pain points in the survey, offer solutions through prompts:

“It seems like you’re facing [problem]. Here’s a helpful guide to resolve this issue in no time.”

4. Design Dynamic Prompts Based on Survey Answers

You can also build more dynamic and intelligent prompts based on the complexity of your onboarding survey. For example:

a) Simple Logic-based Prompts

Use basic logic to drive more relevant suggestions. If the user says they are a beginner and looking for training, the prompt could be:

“Since you’re new here, how about a quick 5-minute walkthrough of the basics?”

But if they select “advanced user” in the survey:

“Awesome, you’ve got experience! Want to jump right into customizing your experience?”

b) Progression-based Prompts

As users make progress in completing the onboarding steps, you can generate prompts that encourage them to continue:

• “You’re almost done! Just a couple more steps, and you’ll be fully set up.”

• “You’ve completed 75% of the setup. Need any help with the remaining steps?”

5. Use Feedback Loops to Refine Prompts

Your onboarding survey can also collect feedback on the prompts themselves. After providing a few prompts, you could ask users if they found them helpful or if they would prefer different suggestions. For example:

• “Was this tip useful for you?”

• “Would you like to see more personalized recommendations based on your needs?”

This will help refine the generative prompts and improve user engagement over time.

6. Incorporate Multimodal Prompts

Instead of just using text-based prompts, consider incorporating images, videos, or even interactive elements based on survey responses. For example:

• If a user is interested in learning about advanced features, you could present them with a short explainer video right in the prompt.

• A user who is more visual might prefer an infographic or chart to help them understand certain features or functions.

7. Consider Emotional Tone and Context

Use the onboarding survey to gather information about the user’s emotional state or preferences in terms of tone. Some users may prefer a professional, straightforward tone, while others might appreciate a more casual, friendly approach. For instance:

• If a user expresses frustration in their responses, try generating a more supportive, encouraging prompt: “Looks like you’re feeling stuck. No worries—we’re here to help you every step of the way.”

• If a user is excited or positive, you can generate a more enthusiastic prompt: “You’re on fire! Ready to dive even deeper into everything we offer?”

8. A/B Testing Your Prompts

Once you’ve created a set of generative prompts, it’s a good idea to A/B test them to see which ones perform the best. For instance, you could test two different approaches:

• A direct prompt: “Click here to complete your profile.”

• A more conversational prompt: “Almost there! Just a few more things to finish up before you’re ready to go.”

By comparing engagement rates, click-through rates, or completion rates, you can figure out which type of prompt works better.

9. Automate and Iterate

Once you’ve gathered enough data from your onboarding surveys, set up an automation system to generate these personalized prompts dynamically. You can use tools like chatbots or marketing automation platforms to trigger specific prompts based on survey responses. Over time, use user interactions and feedback to refine and optimize your prompt generation.

Conclusion

Building generative prompts from onboarding surveys is an effective strategy to engage users from the very beginning of their journey. By understanding their preferences, goals, and challenges, you can create highly personalized, contextually relevant prompts that drive engagement and improve the overall user experience. The key is to be dynamic, responsive, and always open to iterating based on feedback.