Activation & onboarding review

To: Onboarding Squad Subject: Fixing Our Activation Funnel: Priorities & Action Plan

Where We Are Losing People

Our biggest drop-off occurs at Step 5–8 (Connect Data): 59% of signups leave without connecting a data source.

We are asking PMs and marketers for database ports, SSL modes, and passwords they do not possess. 41% of our support tickets are “I don't have credentials,” followed by 18% for failed syncs. Furthermore, requiring a 20-minute, open-tab sync kills momentum.

Because Week-2 retention jumps from 11% to 62% once a user builds their first chart, our sole objective is getting non-technical users to that "aha!" moment in under two minutes.

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What to Fix (In Priority Order)

#### 1. Add “Explore with Sample Data” & a Clear “Skip” Button (Step 5) * What: Let users bypass database connection entirely using a fully populated e-commerce or SaaS demo dataset. * Why: This is the highest-leverage fix. It immediately unblocks the 59% who drop off at Step 5 and the 41% who lack DB credentials, giving them an instant path to create a first chart and experience the product’s value on Day 1.

#### 2. Introduce “Invite a Data Teammate” at Connection (Step 6) * What: Add a 1-click option: “Don't have credentials? Send an invite link to your data lead to connect your warehouse.” * Why: Replaces a dead end with collaboration. The PM stays in the app using sample data while the engineer handles credentials asynchronously.

#### 3. Make Syncing Asynchronous (Step 8) * What: Run syncing in the background. Notify users via email/in-app alert when ready instead of forcing them to keep a 20-minute tab open. * Why: Directly addresses our second-biggest support issue (18% sync failures/cancellations) and eliminates the drop-off caused by tab abandonment.

#### 4. Pre-Populate the Dashboard; Kill the Blank Canvas (Steps 9 & 10) * What: When a user selects a template, generate it automatically with 3–4 standard charts instead of dropping them onto an empty canvas. Prompt them to tweak one existing chart. * Why: Bridges the 8% drop-off between connecting data (41%) and creating a first chart (33%). Editing an existing chart is far lower friction than building from scratch.

#### 5. Defer Email Verification and Profiling Questions (Steps 2, 3, & 4) * What: Move verification to a non-blocking banner at the top of the app, and cut or defer the role/team-size questions until after the user creates their first chart. * Why: Every barrier before core value reduces trial-to-paid conversion. Let users reach the product before demanding administrative tasks.

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Next Step

Let’s implement Priority 1 (Sample Data) this sprint. It requires zero infrastructure changes to our warehouse sync logic and directly targets our biggest activation leak.

MEMO To: Onboarding Squad From: Product Leadership Subject: Fixing the Onboarding Funnel

Team,

Looking at the last 90 days, the story is clear: getting users to their first chart is everything. Week-2 retention jumps from 11% to 62% once a user builds a chart.

Right now, we are losing 59% of signups before they ever connect data, and another 8% before they build that first chart. Why? Because our signups are PMs and marketers, yet we are forcing them through a data-engineer onboarding flow.

Here is where we are losing people and what we need to fix, in priority order:

1. Add a “Send to an Engineer” flow & Sample Data (Screens 5–6) * The Problem: 59% of users drop off before connecting data, and 41% of support tickets are “I don’t have database credentials.” PMs and marketers don't have Postgres passwords or understand SSL modes, and a 14-page guide won't help them. Because there is no skip option, they hit a hard wall. * The Fix: Add two buttons to Screen 5: “Explore with Sample Data” and “Invite an Engineer to connect data.” Let the PM experience the "aha" moment immediately with a sandbox dataset while their engineer handles the credentials in parallel. This also instantly fixes our low 9% teammate-invite rate by giving users a real reason to invite a colleague early.

2. Make data syncing asynchronous (Screen 8) * The Problem: We lose 8% of our total signups (nearly 20% of those who actually manage to connect data) between connecting a source and building a chart. A 20-minute progress bar that cancels if you close the tab is a conversion killer, and it's driving 18% of our support tickets. * The Fix: Move syncing to the background. Let users close the tab (or play with sample data) and email them the moment their data is ready. Also, replace the raw list of every database table (Screen 7) with smart defaults so non-technical users aren't overwhelmed.

3. Eliminate the "Empty Canvas" (Screens 9–10) * The Problem: A user picks a dashboard template on Screen 9, only to be dropped into a blank chart builder on Screen 10. Blank canvases cause analysis paralysis. * The Fix: Make the templates on Screen 9 actually populate pre-built charts on Screen 10 using their data (or the sample data). Give them a working chart immediately that they can tweak, getting them across that 62% retention threshold automatically.

4. Remove pre-value friction (Screens 2–4) * The Problem: We pause the flow for email verification and ask two CRM-style profiling questions before the user has seen the product. Every step here costs us momentum. * The Fix: Let users into the product immediately and require email verification later (e.g., before they can share a chart). Cut the “team size” question entirely, and only keep “role” if we use it to auto-select their dashboard template in Step 9.

Let's scope Item #1 for this sprint.

To: Onboarding squad Subject: Fix access and sync before optimising chart creation

Our biggest measured loss is before data connection: 59% of signups, roughly 7,300 people, never connect a source. We ask PMs and marketers to complete a database setup that many cannot do themselves, then make a lengthy sync depend on keeping a page open.

Another 8 percentage points disappear between connection and first chart: about 20% of those who connect. Teammate invitations fall to 9% of signups, but we should establish whether collaboration is necessary for value before treating that as our next bottleneck.

First-chart users have much higher week-2 retention, 62% versus 11%. That makes chart creation a promising activation milestone, but does not prove that pushing everyone through a chart will cause better retention.

Fix in this order

1. Give users a route forward without database credentials. Offer a clearly labelled sample-data experience and make CSV upload a prominent alternative.¹ Add a setup hand-off that lets users ask a colleague to connect the source, then resume when it is ready. Replace the generic setup guide with short, source-specific instructions.

This addresses the largest measured loss and the strongest support signal: missing credentials account for 41% of onboarding tickets. That is a share of tickets, not signups, so we cannot yet quantify how much drop-off it explains. Sample data should demonstrate value while preserving a clear path to the user’s own data.

2. Make syncing durable and recoverable. Run syncs in the background so closing the page does not cancel them. Show meaningful status, explain failures and allow retries without repeating setup. Notify users when their data is ready.

A 20-minute foreground wait is a fragile requirement. Sync failures generate 18% of onboarding tickets and can waste the effort users have already invested.

3. Turn connected data into a useful first chart. Help users identify relevant tables instead of presenting every table equally. Use their chosen template to produce an editable chart from compatible data, with guided choices where mapping is needed. Do not finish template selection with an empty canvas.

This targets the roughly one in five connected users who never reach a chart. Measure whether they produce something useful, not merely whether a chart renders.

4. Remove avoidable preliminary work. Defer role and team-size questions unless their answers immediately improve setup. Review whether email verification must block exploration, retaining verification where required for account security.

These steps add friction before value, but we lack evidence that they drive the main loss.

Measure alongside delivery: instrument each screen, connection method, error and return visit. Test changes against first charts using customers’ own data, week-2 retention and trial-to-paid conversion. Track sample-data charts separately. Revisit invitations once we understand whether users need collaboration to succeed. To: Onboarding squad Subject: Fix access and sync before optimising chart creation

Our biggest measured loss is before data connection: 59% of signups, roughly 7,300 people, never connect a source. We ask PMs and marketers to complete a database setup that many cannot do themselves, then make a lengthy sync depend on keeping a page open.

Another 8 percentage points disappear between connection and first chart: about 20% of those who connect. Teammate invitations fall to 9% of signups, but we should establish whether collaboration is necessary for value before treating that as our next bottleneck.

First-chart users have much higher week-2 retention, 62% versus 11%. That makes chart creation a promising activation milestone, but does not prove that pushing everyone through a chart will cause better retention.

Fix in this order

1. Give users a route forward without database credentials. Offer a clearly labelled sample-data experience and make CSV upload a prominent alternative. Add a setup hand-off that lets users ask a colleague to connect the source, then resume when it is ready. Replace the generic setup guide with short, source-specific instructions.

This addresses the largest measured loss and the strongest support signal: missing credentials account for 41% of onboarding tickets. That is a share of tickets, not signups, so we cannot yet quantify how much drop-off it explains. Sample data should demonstrate value while preserving a clear path to the user’s own data.

2. Make syncing durable and recoverable. Run syncs in the background so closing the page does not cancel them. Show meaningful status, explain failures and allow retries without repeating setup. Notify users when their data is ready.

A 20-minute foreground wait is a fragile requirement. Sync failures generate 18% of onboarding tickets and can waste the effort users have already invested.

3. Turn connected data into a useful first chart. Help users identify relevant tables instead of presenting every table equally. Use their chosen template to produce an editable chart from compatible data, with guided choices where mapping is needed. Do not finish template selection with an empty canvas.

This targets the roughly one in five connected users who never reach a chart. Measure whether they produce something useful, not merely whether a chart renders.

4. Remove avoidable preliminary work. Defer role and team-size questions unless their answers immediately improve setup. Review whether email verification must block exploration, retaining verification where required for account security.

These steps add friction before value, but we lack evidence that they drive the main loss.

Measure alongside delivery: instrument each screen, connection method, error and return visit. Test changes against first charts using customers’ own data, week-2 retention and trial-to-paid conversion. Track sample-data charts separately. Revisit invitations once we understand whether users need collaboration to succeed.