Sell on Etsy Reader

Sell on Etsy Reader New Feature Onboarding

On this occasion, I thought it would be interesting to look at an example of an app introducing existing users to a new feature. I’ve spoken several times about building first time user experiences as a means to provide continued education over time. Here, Etsy’s seller-focused app attempts to inform existing sellers about their new payment reader, with the goal of getting those sellers to sign up for a free one.

The good bits:

  • This new feature on-boarding is focused. The app update that introduced the Sell on Etsy Reader included other new features and updates, but the app designers only interrupted existing users to inform them about this one, important feature. 
  • Although it involves an intro tour, the copy is very tactical (answering sellers’s top questions) instead of marketing-focused.
  • There is a clear call to action at the end of the intro tour. The app achieves this by spotlighting the “Sell Now” button at the top of the screen. Tapping this button initiates a first-time opt-in flow during which sellers are encouraged to get a free payment reader. After sellers opt-in, this button becomes the go-to destination for running sales through said payment reader.
  • The app leverages the concept of a free sample–here, sending the seller a free payment reader so she can try out new functionality.

To be improved:

  • The images associated with the intro tour copy are comparatively abstract. Since the intro tour is explaining the steps involved in processing sales with the Etsy Reader, these images could be more helpful if they directly represented the copy (for example, the image associated with “Sell from existing listings” is fairly vague while its copy is describing two specific actions).