This section covers:
Methods of representing complex multi-step tutorials
More subtle methods of onboarding by using hints and affordances
Onboarding is a term that refers to the process of communicating information, actions, or concepts to a user to ensure their success in experiencing the product
Why it’s important
This is arguably one of the most important aspects of an experience to be designed with the most consideration. It dictates a user’s first impression of the experience. It’s also a very delicate aspect to design, for many users will interpret the concepts of an experience very differently. If an onboarding process is too minimal and quick, users may find the experience confusing. If an onboarding experience is too thorough and long, then users may find the experience to be obtrusive and tedious. The best onboarding experiences are often those that don’t feel like onboarding experiences. In these cases users are introduced to concepts simply through hints and affordances, however these can often be very difficult to achieve when dealing with more complex and arbitrary concepts.
In this short example you can see what a user looks like when their first impression of an experience was complete confusion.
recorded by jacksepticeye of Google Earth VR
Considerations
When designing the onboarding experience:
- Be sure to user test it with a wide range of users with different experience levels with VR to test if the concepts and goals are understood
- Consider which aspects truly require explanation through complex onboarding methods and which are intuitive enough for users to figure out independently
- Consider which concepts actually require thorough onboarding experiences and which concepts are low priority or intuitive enough for users to discover on their own