Growth experiments — SaaS playbook (e5)

Practical experiments and tested UX patterns to lift activation, onboarding conversion, and early retention for software products. Lightweight, measurable and tailored for B2B SaaS.

  • Focus: Activation, First-value, Time-to-Aha
  • Approach: Rapid hypotheses, cohort measurement, UI/UX variations
  • Delivery: Design assets, experiment specs, success criteria
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Growth funnel visualization

Experiment framework

1. Hypothesis

Clear statement tying change to expected metric movement.

2. Design variant

Mockups, user flows and implementation notes for engineers.

3. Measurement

Primary KPI, sample size, confidence, and guardrails.

UX sketch
When to run experiments

Run quick UI/UX changes early for activation and medium-duration flows for retention. Use feature flags to reduce rollout risk.

Top experiments (accordion)

Click each experiment to reveal hypothesis, design notes and expected KPI.

Hypothesis: A step-by-step checklist reduces time-to-first-value and increases day-7 retention by 12%. Design notes: progressive disclosure, contextual tips, skip option. KPI: Day-7 retention, activation conversion.

Hypothesis: Immediate positive feedback after first core action increases repeat actions. Design notes: subtle toast, CTA to next meaningful step. KPI: Repeat action rate within 48h.

Hypothesis: Contextual customer logos and short outcomes increase upgrade intent. Design notes: lightweight carousel, avoid interrupting flow. KPI: Trial to paid conversion lift.

Case study: Onboarding checklist (SMB SaaS)

Overview

We launched an in-app onboarding checklist that highlighted 3 core actions. Experiment ran for 6 weeks on new sign-ups.

  • Variant: Checklist with progress and skip control
  • Result: +18% activation, +11% day-14 retention
Request the full case
Checklist mock

Metrics & playbook

Key metrics we track per experiment and quick playbook items for each outcome.

Primary metrics
  • Activation conversion (Day 0–3)
  • Time-to-Aha (median minutes)
  • Retention (Day 7 / Day 14)
Playbook
  1. Stop or iterate if *** lift at 95% CI
  2. Scale rollout with feature flags and monitoring
  3. Document learnings and update onboarding flows
Downloadable checklist

Compact experiment setup and metrics sheet.

View template

Team & lead

Lead designer face
Ava Morgan
Head of Growth Design

Ava leads cross-functional experiments and designs measurable UX interventions for product-led teams.

Connect
How we work with product teams

We embed with PMs and engineers for short sprints, deliver Figma-ready variants, and provide clear success criteria so A/B results are actionable.

FAQ & quick links

Common questions

Q: How long to see results?
A: Small UI experiments often show signals within 2–3 weeks; larger flows need 4–8 weeks.

Q: Do you implement experiments?
A: We deliver designs, specs and can support implementation with partner engineers.

Q: Are results shareable?
A: Yes — we provide exportable reports and playbook updates.

Resources
UX Redesign SMB Brand Guidelines Tech Start an experiment