Help the newbies without slowing the pros

Daniele Catalanotto
Aug 13, 2022


A Service Design Principle to find a good mix of speed, ease and pro features.
This principle is inspired by a story shared by community member Guy Martin.

I’m creating a new account for a new client on an app. The app assumes I’m a new user. So it shows me the full onboarding tutorial. The app forces me to go through it. It kind of pisses me off...

It’s weird that our most loyal customers or users have to go through stuff they don’t need (1).

Sure it helps those unfamiliar with the service. But it would be nice not to slow the power users. So, for example, it’s nice when power users can skip information they already know quickly, for example, in the onboarding process.

The opposite is also true. We should empower the power users without overwhelming the newbies. The hidden menus or options at Starbucks, McDonald’s (1) and so on are good examples of this idea. The newbie sees a selection of coffee on the big screens. But the power user knows he can mix and match.

So let me ask you this.

How can you make the life of people, both pro users and newbies, easier without slowing or overwhelming the other group?

Footnotes

(1) Thanks to Guy Martin, who inspired this principle through a story he shared with the co-creator community.

(2) See the principle “Create Primary and Secondary Choices” from the book Service Design Principles 101-200 for another take on this idea.


Daniele's personal notes

  • This is the first draft of this Service Design Principle.
  • Once adapted, even more, this principle could be part of the book "Service Design Principles 201-300"
  • As always, feel free to share comments, feedback or personal stories to improve this principle.


Like
Deirdre Malone
Oct 13, 2022
To answer your question Daniel....Include in the app a way to detect experienced users and a bypass the tutorial button or "Skip Intro" like Netflix does
Daniele Catalanotto
Oct 15, 2022
Love the « skip intro » button. So simple and so effective. 
Daniele Catalanotto
Oct 19, 2022

The second version of this Service Design Principle

In an app, I’m creating a new account for a client. Unfortunately, the app assumes I’m a new user. So it forces me to watch the full onboarding tutorial I already know. It pisses me off...

Often our most loyal users have to go through stuff they don’t need (1). Sure it helps those unfamiliar with the service. But it would be nice not to slow the power users. So, for example, it’s nice to have a “skip intro” button that doesn’t slow down power users.

The opposite is also true. We should empower the expert users without overwhelming the newbies. The hidden options at Starbucks or McDonald’s (1) are good examples of this idea. The newbie sees a selection of coffee or meals on the big screens. But the power user knows he can mix and match.

So let me ask you this.

How can you help experts and newbies without slowing or overwhelming one group?

Footnotes
(1) Thanks to Guy Martin, who inspired this principle through a story he shared with the co-creator community.

(2) See the principle “Create Primary and Secondary Choices” from the book Service Design Principles 101-200 for another take on this idea.

Daniele’s notes

  • This is the second draft of this principle.
  • I’ve reduced the length of this principle by 12% compared to its first draft.
  • I've used Deirdre's wording of the "Skip intro" to clarify my example. Thanks, Deirdre.
Daniele Catalanotto
Oct 31, 2022

The third draft of this Service Design Principle

I’m creating a new account for a client in an app. Unfortunately, it assumes I’m a new user. So it forces me to watch the full onboarding tutorial I already know. It pisses me off!

Often our most loyal users have to go through stuff they don’t need (1). Sure it helps those unfamiliar with the service. Something like a “skip intro” button would be nice feature to not slow the power users.

The opposite is also true. We should empower the expert users without overwhelming the newbies. The hidden options at Starbucks or McDonald’s (1) are good examples of this idea.

The newbie sees a selection of coffee or meals on the big screens. But the power user knows he can mix and match.

So let me ask you.

How can you help experts and newbies without slowing or overwhelming one group?

Footnotes

(1) A big thank you to Guy Martin for sharing the service experience that inspired this principle with the co-creator community.

(2) The newbie sees a selection of coffee or meals on the big screens. But the power user knows he can mix and match. See the principle “Create Primary and Secondary Choices” for another take on this idea. — Daniele Catalanotto (2021). Service Design Principles 101-200. Swiss Innovation Academy. Available at https://extra.swissinnovation.academy/zulZ accessed 20 October 2022.