UX Research & Design

Improving News24 App Retention Through Strategic Onboarding Design

Improving News24 App Retention Through Strategic Onboarding Design

Nadia Burger

Oct 10, 2025

Above from left to right: The existing experience when a new user downloads and opens the app for the first time, and the updated onboarding flow (Figma prototype)

Summary

When News24's business team raised concerns about app churn (we were losing 61-81% of users within 5 days), I initiated research to understand the root causes. Analysis revealed users were churning primarily because they didn't understand the app's value: they cited "I don't use it enough" as top reasons for leaving.

This challenge became urgent when Editorial decided to shift from 70% free to 30% free content and remove visual "For Subscribers" indicators. I designed an onboarding experience that proactively addressed both the existing churn problem and the upcoming change.

Result: Users who went through onboarding were 2.75x more likely to sign up for the free trial (55% vs 20%). This dramatic improvement meant far more users reached activation - the moment the user experiences the product's value, and the key driver of retention and paid conversion.

My Role: Product Designer (self-initiated)
Timeline: December 2023
Tools: Whimsical, Sketch, Invision, Maze, Google Analytics


Key Metrics

  • 81% of users opted into onboarding when offered

  • 35 percentage points improvement in trial conversion rate (20% → 55%)

The Challenge

The Existing Problem

News24's mobile app was hemorrhaging users, losing 61-81% within 5 days of install. This was particularly critical because the app was our primary paid subscriber channel (as opposed to mobile web or desktop).

I looked at the unsubscribe data from the past 3 months. 30% said it's too expensive, but as a designer, I couldn't change the pricing model.

Above: Unsubscribe reasons over a 3-month period. While 30.4% cited price, 24% said "I don't use it enough", suggesting users weren't discovering value before churning.

What caught my attention was the 24% who said 'I don't use it enough.' I thought about what might cause someone to feel that way, and I realized it could be several things:

  • Maybe they didn't know about features like audio articles or commenting

  • Maybe they never received clear communication about what premium gets them

  • Maybe the interface made it hard to discover these things

This was the design opportunity. If I could help users discover and understand these features earlier, e.g. through onboarding, they might realize they actually would use it enough to justify the cost.

So my hypothesis became: better awareness and communication could address both the 'don't use enough' problem directly, and indirectly impact the price perception too.


A Major Change That Would Make Things Worse

This challenge became critical when Editorial decided to shift content strategy:

Content Mix: 70% free → 30% free (far more paywalls)
Visual Change: Remove red "For Subscribers" tags (users would lose their primary access indicator)

Above from left to right: The News24 feed with subscriber tags indicating locked content, and after they were removed. Users would now tap on an article (with no tag - which used to mean it was free to read) only to discover it was locked, potentially creating frustration.

The perfect storm:

  • Existing 61-81% churn

  • Content becoming dramatically more locked

  • Visual indicators disappearing

  • Users about to lose clarity on what they could access

We anticipated substantial user complaints about surprise paywalls. Onboarding became critical not just for retention, but for proactively managing this business transition.


The Current Experience Offered No Help

  • No onboarding, users dropped straight into feed

  • Immediate push notification request (felt invasive)

  • No communication about content model

  • Users would discover changes through friction


The Business Case: A Leaky Bucket Problem

Customer acquisition costs 5x more than retention. Yet News24 was pouring ad spend into Facebook, Google, and display networks, driving users to our app (our most valuable channel), only to lose 70-80% of them within days.

We weren't just wasting acquisition spend. We were wasting it on our most important monetization path.

My Process

  1. Research

I approached this systematically, combining multiple research methods:


Competitive Analysis

Studied how leading news publications handle subscriber onboarding:

  • Washington Post

  • New York Times

  • Wall Street Journal

Key finding: While 87% of top news sites don't offer app onboarding, the 13% that do showed clear patterns:

  • Communicate value proposition early

  • Use visual storytelling

  • Offer guided tours but allow skipping

  • Prime users before asking for permissions (e.g. push notifications)


Above: Washington Post's Onboarding experience

Above: New York Times' Onboarding experience

Above: The Wall Street Journal's Onboarding experience

Internal Data Analysis

Analyzed existing usage data and user feedback:

  • Churn data showed 61-81% drop-off by day 5 (established urgency)

  • Unsubscribe reasons revealed "I don't use it enough" (24%) - validated need for feature showcase

  • Feature usage data showed commenting and audio articles were most engaged-with features (informed carousel prioritization)


The Strategic Insight: Economics of a Leaky Bucket

As I researched retention strategies, I discovered a critical insight: customer acquisition costs 5x more than retention. Yet News24 was pouring ad spend into Facebook, Google, and display networks, driving users to our app, our most valuable channel, only to lose 70-80% of them within days.

The opportunity: Fix retention first, and every rand spent on acquisition becomes 5x more valuable. The same ad budget delivers dramatically more subscribers.

This reframed everything. Onboarding wasn't just UX, it was a business imperative that could multiply acquisition ROI in our most important channel.

UX Best Practices & Activation Research

Identified key principles for effective onboarding:

  • Communicate your value proposition quickly and early

  • Allow users to skip (don't force engagement)

  • Keep flows short (3-5 screens maximum)

  • Incentivize first conversions

  • Celebrate key steps to create positive momentum

  • Use permission priming for notifications (explain benefits before asking) (Source)


Critical insight from retention research

Getting users to experience value as quickly as possible (activation) is the strongest driver of retention. Industry research shows users who experience core value in their first week retain at 3x higher rates than those who don't, and trial users who engage with features early convert to paid at 45-65% vs. 8-15% for those who don't (ProfitWell, "The Subscription Growth Playbook").

This shaped my entire approach: rather than just educating users about features, I needed to design onboarding that motivated trial signup; where users could experience the value that drives retention, not just read about it.

2. Designing the Solution

While the flagship brand was News24, my designs were done using our white label design system called NOVA.

Based on research insights, I designed three user flows to accommodate different user readiness levels:

Flow A (High intent): Full Onboarding → Trial Conversion
For users ready to learn about the app immediately. The trial will allow users to experience the full value of the product (activation) as quickly as possible - a key driver for subscription and retention

Flow B (Medium intent): Skip Onboarding → Register -> Explore limited features -> Trial
For users who want to explore before committing

Flow C (Low intent): Skip Everything → Browse with Context
For users who just want to browse, with persistent preview banner

Above: Flow diagram showing the three paths

Key design decisions

  • Direct Communication About Change
    The welcome message "NOVA is now a little different. Most of our content is now locked" specifically addressed the content strategy change

  • Permission Priming for Notifications
    Instead of immediate request on first open, trigger a custom opt-in modal after user reads their first article, with clear explanation of benefits

  • Visual Storytelling
    Use compelling imagery of prominent exclusive investigations to communicate the value proposition of quality journalism

  • Progressive Disclosure
    Show 3-4 key features, not everything (avoid overwhelming new users)

  • Persistent Preview Banner
    For users who skip onboarding, always show clear messaging: "You are previewing NOVA. Already a subscriber? Sign in"

  • Clear Skip Options
    Every screen offers "Maybe later" (respecting user autonomy builds trust)

3. Validation Through User Testing

User testing with 20 participants (South Africans, age 50+):

  • Group 1 (control): Current experience (no onboarding)

  • Group 2 (treatment): Proposed onboarding

Objectives: Do users want onboarding? Does it increase trial conversion? Do they better understand value and access model?

Solution

A 4-Screen Onboarding Experience with Feature Carousel

I designed a focused onboarding flow that communicates value quickly while respecting user time and autonomy.

Above: The full onboarding flow ending in a trial conversion, which will ultimately allow users to experience the full value of the product

Screen 1: Welcome


Reversing the commitment sequence

Unlike the previous experience where users were immediately asked for notification permissions, the onboarding flow demonstrates value first, then invites commitment.


Deliberately direct messaging

"NOVA is now a little different. Most of our content is now locked and requires you to subscribe."

This specifically addressed the content strategy change. Rather than users discovering the shift through frustration, onboarding set clear expectations upfront.


Rationale

  • "now a little different" acknowledges change

  • "Most of our content is now locked" sets honest expectations (30% free vs. previous 70%)

  • Front-loading reduces surprise and builds trust

CTAs: "Learn more" / "Maybe later"

Above left: When a user opened the app for the first time, they landed on the default newsfeed with an immediate prompt to allow push notifications. Above right: The welcome screen - from here they can either enter the onboarding flow or explore on their own, but at least now they will be aware of the content strategy.

Screen 2: Feature Showcase with Trial CTA

An autoplay carousel showing key features with user control.

Slide 1 - Value proposition: Premium content access, journalist imagery
Slide 2 - Most popular feature: Community engagement through comments
Slide 3 - 2nd most popular feature: Audio feature for multitasking
Slide 4 - Highlighting bottom navigation: Showing where to access content

Why carousel? Gives users control over pacing, reduces perceived commitment vs. forced linear flow.

Why these features? Based on "lack of feature awareness" data, prioritized understanding premium value, engagement options, convenience, and relevance.

Below the carousel: Persistent CTA offering free trial ("Enjoy a FREE trial!") with option to decline.

Why the trial matters: The Trial would allow users to experience value firsthand. Research shows that trial users who achieve meaningful value within their first 48 hours are 3× more likely to convert to paid plans (Klickflow).

Above: The 4 carousel slides showing key features (Figma prototype)

Screen 3 (after subscription): Thank You

  • Celebration and confirmation

  • CTA: "Start reading!"

Above: The Thank you screen - celebrating the user's successful subscription

Addressing the Removed Visual Indicators

Since the red "For Subscribers" tags users were used to had been removed, I designed an alternative:


Persistent Preview Banner

"You are previewing NOVA. Already a subscriber? Sign in"
→ Constant clarity without visual clutter

Trade-off: Rather than opposing Editorial's decision, I designed a complementary solution achieving user clarity with better aesthetics.

Above: A persistent banner reminds the user that the content they are seeing is a preview, i.e. not the full experience

Impact

Users Want Guidance

81% opted into onboarding when offered

Feedback:
"It looked exciting and I wanted to explore the app"
"I wanted to see what the site was all about"

This validated that well-designed, respectful onboarding is welcomed, not intrusive.

Understanding Value Drives Conversion

Metric

Without Onboarding

With Onboarding

Improvement

Trial signup

20%

55%

+35 points

Satisfaction

-

84% positive

Strong

Users who went through onboarding were 2.75x more likely to sign up for the free trial, indicating they understood both value and the access model well enough to commit.

Above from left to right: The existing experience when a new user downloads and opens the app for the first time, and the updated onboarding flow (Figma prototype)

Why This Matters for Retention

The dramatically higher trial conversion (not just awareness) is particularly significant because:


Trial users experience full product value

  • Access all premium content for 14 days

  • Discover features through actual use (audio, commenting, personalization)

  • Form habits and integrate into daily routines

  • Understand exactly what they'd be paying for

This directly addresses the root causes of churn. Users who cited "I don't use it enough" can discover valuable use cases during trial. Users with "lack of feature awareness" experience features firsthand.

Research shows that trial users who achieve meaningful value within their first 48 hours are 3× more likely to convert to paid plans (Klickflow). By dramatically improving trial conversion through onboarding (20% → 55%), we're not just improving awareness, we're getting users to the experience that drives long-term retention.

The complete path
Onboarding → Understanding → Trial → Experience → Habit Formation → Paid Conversion → Retention

Business Impact

Transforming Acquisition ROI

The 2.75x improvement doesn't just mean better onboarding, it transforms acquisition economics.

The same ad budget now delivers 2-3x more subscribers. Cost per retained user drops 63%.

By fixing the leaky bucket, we turned acquisition from a money pit into a growth engine.

Key Learnings

1. Design Can Bridge Business Changes and User Needs

Rather than just implementing Editorial's content shift, I used onboarding to proactively manage the transition through transparent communication.

2. Transparent Communication Builds Trust

The direct message "Most of our content is now locked" could have felt negative, but users appreciated transparency, validated by 2.75x conversion improvement.

3. Experience drives retention more than education

The 14-day trial approach proved more effective than feature explanations alone. Users who experience value retain better than those who just read about it.

4. Research De-Risks Development

Testing with 20 users before building validated the approach and created stakeholder confidence at a fraction of the cost of building the wrong solution.

5. Choose proxy metrics strategically

While I couldn't measure long-term retention in testing, trial conversion was the right leading indicator. Trial users retain significantly better than those who never experience full access.

What's Next

Recommended validation steps post-implementation:

  • Track Day 5, 30, 90 retention rates

  • Monitor change in unsubscribe reasons (especially "I don't use it enough")

  • Measure support complaints about content access (expected to decrease)

  • Track notification opt-in rates with permission priming

  • Measure trial-to-paid conversion rates to validate retention impact

Skills Applied

Strategic Problem-Solving • Cross-Functional Collaboration • User Research • Competitive Analysis • UX/UI Design • Prototyping • Usability Testing • Data Analysis • Change Management • Stakeholder Communication