Discover What New Users Expect
Interview users right after they sign up or create an account. Understand what they’re hoping to accomplish before they even start using your product.
Users sign up for products when they believe the product can solve an important problem. Understanding these motivations helps teams design onboarding experiences that match user expectations.
Common motivations include:
• finding a solution to a specific problem
• trying a product recommended by others
• replacing a tool that no longer works well
• testing a product after seeing marketing or content
• evaluating options before making a purchase decision
Understanding why users sign up helps teams design onboarding experiences that match their expectations.
Common Reasons Users Sign Up
Most Teams Don’t Know Why Users Sign Up
When a new user signs up, product teams usually see the event in analytics.
But analytics only shows what happened, not why.
Teams might know:
• which marketing channel brought the user
• which page they came from
• which device they used
But they rarely know:
• what problem the user hoped to solve
• what feature caught their attention
• what success looks like for that person
Without understanding user expectations, it becomes difficult to design onboarding and product experiences that deliver value quickly.
Key Moments to Ask New Users About Their Expectations
User expectations are easiest to understand right after someone creates an account.
Common moments to capture feedback include:
Account signup
Users create an account after seeing a product or marketing page.
First login
New users enter the product for the first time.
Before onboarding begins
Users are about to start setup or configuration.
Early product exploration
Users begin exploring features to see how the product works.
Each of these moments reveals what the user hopes the product will help them accomplish.
Capture Expectations Before Users Form Opinions
Instead of waiting until users drop off or churn, teams can learn from users right when they sign up.
For example:
User signs up
→ Invite quick conversation
→ Ask what they hope the product will help them do
→ Analyze patterns across responses
Because the user has not yet formed a strong opinion about the product, these conversations reveal:
• motivations
• expectations
• intended use cases
Understanding these expectations helps teams design onboarding experiences that lead users toward value faster.
Questions to Ask New Users After Signup
When speaking with new users after signup, focus on understanding their goals and motivations.
Examples include:
• What made you decide to sign up today?
• What problem are you hoping this product will help solve?
• What were you doing before trying this product?
• What would success look like for you?
• What feature are you most interested in trying first?
These questions reveal the expectations that shape how users evaluate the product.
What Teams Learn From New User Conversations
When teams capture feedback from new users right after signup, several patterns often emerge.
• the core problem users want to solve
• which marketing messages attracted them
• which features users expect to use first
• misconceptions about what the product does
• differences between user segments and use cases
These insights help teams improve onboarding flows, messaging, and product positioning.
“I started the setup, but I wasn’t sure what the next step was supposed to be.”
These insights often become clear when teams talk to users at the moment these events occur, while the experience is still fresh.
Turn Customer Moments Into Insights
Capture feedback at the moment key customer events happen.
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Product Event
Track key product events with a simple JavaScript snippet.
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Research Trigger
Use events from tools like PostHog, Mixpanel, Amplitude, or GA.
Quick voice conversation
Connect the event to trigger an invitation for a short voice chat with an AI researcher.
Themes & insights
Interviews are transcribed, analyzed, and summarized into themes.
