Marvel Internet Group blog

Users on free trials will quickly dismiss an application when they are presented with a problem they cannot figure out for themselves. They do this because the only investment they have made by using a free trial is time, and the thought wasting more time is too much for most.

For most developers, they solve this issue by writing how-tos and FAQs. FAQ pages are one thing I have never quite understood… if a question is being asked frequently, why isn’t it explained where the client first needed the answer?

Anyway, the approach to help / training that we find works:

• Build a simple, easy-to-use application in the first place.
• Fill your sales copy with print screens and screen casts of the actual application. This way the user is becoming familiar with the interface before they have even signed up.
• Add a small ‘?’ icon with a brief help text on mouse over, next to every input box. They are easily accessed and indentified by confused users, and ignored by others.
• Create a screen cast walkthrough of the entire system; present it to new users when they login for the first time.
• In the early days, look at every support request as if it is a FAQ; tweak the ‘?’ texts and screen casts where needed.

All the steps above can never completely replace the need for a good old contact page; but they can sure reduce its need.