If you’ve used almost any type of software, you’ve seen an in-app guide, tutorial, or modal.
Whether it’s a checklist walking you through key actions to take as a first-time user, or a tour of a new feature, these in-app tools provide contextual, relevant information to help you better use the product.
A 2024 Forrester study, commissioned by Intellum, found that in-app education is the top content format education teams are prioritizing.
So let’s talk about what in-app education is, where it fits into the customer education content mix, and how to get started.
What is In-App Training?
In-app training is content and guidance layered directly on top of your product’s user interface.
Rather than requiring your users to navigate to another destination to receive timely information, they can access it where they already are, in your product.
Why Use In-App Education?
In-app education provides just-in-time learning for users. Instead of requiring them to sift through a help article, attend a webinar, or take a course, it allows them to self-serve information when they need it and where they need it.
This self-serve approach serves the entire user journey—from learning the product during onboarding, to discovering new features during adoption, to troubleshooting. It also decreases the strain on your customer support team while improving the user experience—a true win-win for both the user and your internal teams.
Where Does In-App Education Fit Into Customer Education?
In-app education can undoubtedly be a beneficial component of a well-rounded customer education program—but it’s only one channel!
When you’re developing your customer education program, it’s helpful to think about what you’re trying to achieve and what’s the best way to do that.
For example, if you’re trying to build deep competency in your product, a certification might be the best route. But if you’re trying to provide contextual guidance, in-app education might be a better approach.
There’s no one-size-fits-all education content strategy, so find what works for you, your audience, and your goals!
Examples of In-App Training
Let’s look at some common examples of in-app training.
1. Product tour.
A product tour provides an overview of key features and functions in your product.
It might be helpful to think of a product tour in a tangible context. Imagine you’re hosting a dinner party and inviting people into your home–when your guests arrive, you’d give them a tour to point out the kitchen, bathroom, etc. Your product tour functions the same way.
2. Interactive walkthroughs.
An interactive walkthrough is a step-by-step guide of how to use specific features. These flows are much more targeted, and teach the user how to get started with a particular feature. They’re especially valuable during onboarding, as they help users become familiar with core product functionalities. By breaking down complex processes into manageable steps, interactive walkthroughs help users build confidence and avoid feeling overwhelmed.
Check out a great example of an interactive tooltip walkthrough from Typeform here.
3. User checklists.
Let’s be honest: Is there any better feeling than checking something off a list? We all love the feeling—and there’s actually psychology behind using a checklist as part of your user onboarding process.
In-app checklists direct users to take specific actions to get to know your product. These are usually activities that set customers up for success—and help them reach that “aha” moment as quickly as possible!
Many digital adoption platforms offer the option to create a checklist overlay for your product. Check out how Gusto has done this:
4. In-app modals.
In-app modals are pop-up windows that allow you to surface important information directly within the product interface. They’re an effective tool for announcing feature updates, showcasing what’s new in the product, or running targeted expansion and awareness campaigns.
Modals ensure users see key messages without having to leave the product or search for information elsewhere. Just be mindful about how frequently you use modals and how soon they appear—you don’t want to disrupt the user’s experience on a regular basis or have them become immune to the information you're trying to share!
5. Video tutorials.
Video tutorials guide users through specific tasks or features within your product by offering a visual, step-by-step demonstration. They’re especially useful for more complex activities that may be harder to explain in text alone, providing clarity and reducing user frustration. By seeing visual cues along with directions, users can more easily take the same action. These videos can be embedded directly in the product interface or shared within an in-app overlay, allowing users to access help exactly when they need it.
6. Self-serve resource centers.
Self-serve resource centers offer users an on-demand library of helpful content, so they can find what they need, when they need it. If you’re using other types of in-app training (like tutorials or walkthroughs), you can include triggers to those flows and help users take action at any point in time.
These centers empower users to explore answers at their own pace and find solutions without needing to contact support. By housing a wide range of resources in one easily accessible location, users are empowered to troubleshoot issues, learn new features, and maximize their use of the product—ultimately driving faster adoption and reducing reliance on external help.
7. Smart tips.
As Vicky Kennedy shared in her LinkedIn post, in-app training can be helpful for surfacing best practices.
But how often should this be done? Many digital adoption platforms (DAPs) allow you to build tooltips and modals with timely reminders and tips. These smart tips can also be triggered by user behavior and provide personalized recommendations based on how customers are interacting with the product. By delivering this guidance contextually, users are more likely to follow through on best practices and get the most value from the platform.
3 Tips for Creating In-App Education
Interested in adding in-app education to your content mix? Here are three tips from Emily Ressler, Customer Education Lead at Zip, based on her experience standing up in-app education at a previous company:
1. Get buy-in from your product team.
If your company currently has a digital adoption tool for in-app education, it’s likely owned by the product team.
Emily noted, “This is often an area the product team doesn’t have the bandwidth to prioritize. Despite acknowledging that, they might not feel comfortable fully passing off in-app education to customer education.”
Her recommendation? Build trust with your product leaders by consulting them when building out in-app education and including them in the review process.
2. Test various types of content.
Just like there’s no one-size-fits-all content strategy, there’s no one right way to implement in-app education. It will depend on your audience, products, and goals.
Emily recommends experimenting with various types of content—both in terms of topic (how-to, onboarding checklist, best practices, etc.) and medium (video, text, walkthrough, etc.).
DAPs typically have built-in features that make it easy to segment users and set up A/B tests. “Try to collect as much information as possible in the beginning before developing too much of one type of untested content,” Emily advised.
(Pro Tip: Looking for ideas and inspiration? Bookmark GoodUX as a resource.)
3. Keep your business objectives in mind.
Your customer education efforts should be tied to the larger goals of your company—and that includes in-app education.
Emily suggests an A/B test: Pilot in-app onboarding content for a few months where half of new customers see it and the other half do not. Then look at product adoption rates to see if there’s a statistically significant difference between the two groups. Combine this with survey feedback and user interviews to narrow down what’s working and help you figure out how to iterate.
Experiment and Iterate
If one of your goals is to increase product adoption or reduce support tickets, in-app education could be a great strategy for you.
Just remember: There’s no silver bullet in education. You have to pilot, test, and iterate to find what works best—and the same is true for in-app education.
