Case studies

How Blinkist's Onboarding Uses Up a New User's Motivation

+20 XP

Case study

How Blinkist's Onboarding Uses Up a New User's Motivation

A reader installs Blinkist to get one book summary in 15 minutes, and runs into tracking prompts, habit quotas, odd numbers and off-topic recommendations before reaching it. Follow the onboarding step by step to see how each screen adds to or drains motivation, and how small redesigns keep it high.

6 min read +20 XP when you reach the end

What you will learn

  • Judge each onboarding step by the motivation it costs or earns
  • Frame benefits around the user's own goal
  • Delay optional asks until value has been delivered

Scroll to follow the story. The screen changes with you.

Based on the learnings from Growth.Design: One Simple Psychology Framework To Improve Your Onboarding, presented in our own format.

The first ask screen

Step 1 of 10

  1. The first ask screenTracking before value

    01

    The setup

    Before showing a single summary, the app asks to track the user across other apps.

    The reader wanted a quick summary of a long psychology book, searched for book summaries and installed Blinkist from an ad promising 15 minute reads from over 5,000 books. The very first thing on screen is a system prompt asking to track activity across other companies' apps and websites, justified only by a vague line about personalization.

    TakeawayTrust has to be built before you ask for data, and the reason for the ask has to be clear.

    Respect before dataAsking for tracking on first launch is like asking a stranger for their house keys. Growth.Design also cites Washington Post reporting from 2022 that many apps continue to track people even after they ask not to be tracked.

  2. A daily quota screenUnexplained commitment

    02

    Problem 1

    The next question asks for a daily learning commitment without explaining why.

    'How much time per day would you like to learn?' lists 10 to 45 minutes, each translated into books per week. The reader came for one 15 minute summary, and is suddenly being asked to sign up for a daily habit. Nothing on the screen says what the answer will change.

    TakeawayA question that imposes a new habit without a reason feels like work, not help.

  3. Original
    Fix 1: goals screenQuota question
    Redesign
    Fix 1: goals corrected screenPick a goal

    03

    Repair 1

    Ask what the user wants to accomplish, not how much time they will give.

    The redesign asks 'How do you want to use Blinkist?' with three answers: discover interesting books, review books read before, or build a learning habit. It reassures people that every feature stays available whatever they pick. The three options come from the top reasons people read summaries, according to research and user interviews reported by The Economist.

    What changed

    • Time quota replaced by a goal question
    • Three goals based on real reading motives
    • A note that all features stay available

    TakeawayStart from the job the user hired the product to do, and fit the flow to it.

    Progressive disclosurePeople feel less overwhelmed when complex features appear later. New users arrive with a specific goal, so the first job of onboarding is to find that goal and shape the experience around it, in line with the jobs to be done framework.

  4. Odd numbers screenUnbelievable number

    04

    Problem 2

    The benefit screens use comparisons that do not match why the user is here.

    First the app says the chosen time is six times more reading than most people, which is not a goal anyone mentioned. Then it claims the user will save 48 hours on reading this week. Almost nobody reads 48 hours a week, so the number feels unreal instead of motivating.

    TakeawayA benefit only persuades if the user can picture it in their own life.

  5. Original
    Fix 2: framing screenHours nobody reads
    Redesign
    Fix 2: framing corrected screenTied to the goal

    05

    Repair 2

    Anchor the benefit to the user's goal and a realistic baseline.

    The redesign says that this year the user will get through 20 times more books in the same amount of time, with a simple chart comparing 10 books without Blinkist to 200 with it. The comparison is tied to the reader's own goal of getting through more books, not to an imaginary 48 hour reading week.

    What changed

    • Time saved becomes books read per year
    • A before and after chart shows the gain
    • The baseline is the reader, not other people

    TakeawayFrame value around what the user already wants, measured against where they are today.

    Framing and anchoringThe same facts presented two ways can lead to different decisions. Frame the experience around the product's core value, and anchor the status quo, such as reading being slow, so the benefit is easy to see.

  6. Missed picks screenOff-topic pick

    06

    Problem 3

    After choosing topics, the user is shown recommendations that miss the mark.

    The reader picks psychology, technology and entrepreneurship. The first suggestions are a book on trauma, then a podcast episode about anger filed under sex and relationships, before 'Thinking, Fast and Slow' finally appears. A clear top five in psychology would have been the safe start. The Skip link at the top right is so small that the reader never noticed it.

    TakeawayIf you ask people for their preferences, the next screen has to prove you listened.

    Personalization sets expectationsAsking questions implies the experience will be tailored. Growth.Design, drawing on its own Airbnb case study, notes that personalization helps activation and retention, but personalization done badly is worse than none.

  7. Saved for later screenNow it is theirs

    07

    What worked

    Saving the right book to a personal library kept the user going.

    Once 'Thinking, Fast and Slow' is liked, the app confirms that the picks were saved to the user's library. Knowing the summary was waiting there is what kept the reader moving through the rest of the flow.

    TakeawayGive users something that feels like theirs early, and they will work to reach it.

    The endowment effectPeople value things more when they feel they own them, and that includes digital items. Combined with good personalization, it can encourage users to finish onboarding.

  8. Extra asks screenUnfamiliar jargon

    08

    Problem 4

    Optional requests keep arriving between the user and their summary.

    A notification prompt promises 'Free Blinks of the day', 'Shortcast show updates' and 'handy features', terms a new user has never seen. It is followed by a survey asking how they heard about Blinkist. Neither helps the reader get to the summary they came for.

    TakeawayDelay optional or hard tasks until after the user has received value.

    The motivation frameworkEvery interaction either adds to or takes away from a user's motivation, depending on the effort it asks for and how well it fits their goal. The total decides whether they act. A string of optional questions with little in return uses motivation up.

  9. Honest paywall screenReminder promised

    09

    What worked

    The trial paywall explains exactly what happens and when.

    Just when the reader worries about forgetting to cancel, the screen lays out a timeline: access today, a reminder on day 5, and the charge on day 7 with the exact date and the option to cancel before. The yearly price is stated plainly above the button.

    TakeawayRemoving fear at the moment of commitment is worth more than any clever wording.

    The impact of transparencyGrowth.Design reports that Blinkist tested this transparent trial screen and saw 23 percent more trial signups, 55 percent fewer customer complaints, and higher trial retention and revenue.

  10. First ask
    The result screenUnexplained ask
    Last ask
    The result corrected screenExplained ask

    10

    The result

    The user reached the end of onboarding, then gave up anyway.

    After the trial started, the home screen showed a wall of recommendations instead of the saved summary, and the reader closed the app. They found it the next day and liked the product, but the flow had spent their motivation before delivering value. Growth.Design sums it up in five checks: avoid needless friction, build motivation before the big ask, delay optional tasks, start from the user's needs, and use psychology ethically.

    What changed

    • Show the saved summary first on the home screen
    • Ask for tracking and notifications after value
    • Tie every question to the user's goal

    TakeawayOnboarding succeeds when the user reaches what they came for while they still want it.

Every takeaway, in one place

  1. The setupTrust has to be built before you ask for data, and the reason for the ask has to be clear.
  2. Problem 1A question that imposes a new habit without a reason feels like work, not help.
  3. Repair 1Start from the job the user hired the product to do, and fit the flow to it.
  4. Problem 2A benefit only persuades if the user can picture it in their own life.
  5. Repair 2Frame value around what the user already wants, measured against where they are today.
  6. Problem 3If you ask people for their preferences, the next screen has to prove you listened.
  7. What workedGive users something that feels like theirs early, and they will work to reach it.
  8. Problem 4Delay optional or hard tasks until after the user has received value.
  9. What workedRemoving fear at the moment of commitment is worth more than any clever wording.
  10. The resultOnboarding succeeds when the user reaches what they came for while they still want it.

Source: Growth.Design: One Simple Psychology Framework To Improve Your Onboarding

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