Plotline onboarding: six directions
Six first-run screens that differ in layout, tone and density, each with the tradeoff it makes
Plotline is a project tracker for small agencies. The first-run screen appears right after sign-up and has one job: get a new user to their first real project. The six directions below are deliberately far apart. Each card states the tradeoff it is making, then its layout, tone and density, then a wireframe.
The six directions
1. One Pass
Tradeoff: fastest to finish and easiest to build, but it looks like paperwork.
- Layout: one column, every field visible at once
- Tone: terse and neutral ("Set up Plotline")
- Density: high, 6 inputs on one screen
+------------------------------+
| Set up Plotline |
| Name [______________] |
| Role [______________] |
| Team size [______] |
| Work email [_____________] |
| Found us via [___________] |
| [x] I agree [ Create ] |
+------------------------------+2. Guided Wizard
Tradeoff: collects clean profile data and feels supportive, but it delays the product by four screens.
- Layout: centered card, stepper at the top, one decision per step
- Tone: warm and conversational ("What kind of work do you do?")
- Density: low, about 2 inputs per step
+------------------------------+
| (1)--(2)--(3)--(4) |
| |
| What kind of work do you |
| do? |
| ( ) Agency ( ) In-house |
| |
| Back [ Next ]|
+------------------------------+3. Checklist Dashboard
Tradeoff: no gate before the app, but a user can ignore the checklist and never reach value.
- Layout: the real app shell with a pinned progress panel
- Tone: task-oriented ("2 of 5 done")
- Density: medium, 5 actions visible with progress
+------------------------------+
| Welcome, Sam. 2 of 5 done |
| [########-----------] 40% |
| [x] Create your first project|
| [x] Add a client |
| [ ] Invite a teammate |
| [ ] Connect your calendar |
| [ ] Send a first update |
+------------------------------+4. Personalization Quiz
Tradeoff: strongest tailoring and a playful first impression, but six screens before any product.
- Layout: one big question per screen, large tap targets, full bleed color
- Tone: playful and chatty ("How do you run your Monday?")
- Density: very low, 1 question and 2 to 4 answers per screen
+------------------------------+
| 3 / 6 |
| How do you run your |
| Monday? |
| +-----------+ +-----------+ |
| | Lists | | Boards | |
| +-----------+ +-----------+ |
+------------------------------+5. Template First
Tradeoff: near-instant time to value, but a user with an unusual workflow sees nothing that fits.
- Layout: gallery of 6 starter projects, a single click starts one
- Tone: minimal, almost no copy
- Density: medium, 6 visual tiles and one escape hatch
+------------------------------+
| Start from a template |
| +-------+ +-------+ +------+ |
| | Brief | |Launch | | Audit| |
| +-------+ +-------+ +------+ |
| +-------+ +-------+ +------+ |
| |Retain | |Pitch | | Event| |
| +-------+ +-------+ +------+ |
| [ Start blank ] |
+------------------------------+6. Sandbox Tour
Tradeoff: teaches by doing and needs no setup, but it is the most work to build and keep current.
- Layout: a populated sample project with coach marks over the real UI
- Tone: instructional ("This is a task. Drag it to Done.")
- Density: high, a full board plus one tooltip at a time
+------------------------------+
| Sample: Acme Rebrand |
| +-----------+ |
| | To do|Done| (1) This is a|
| | [ ] [ ] | task. Drag it|
| +-----------+ to Done. |
| [Skip tour] [Use my own 1/5]|
+------------------------------+Side by side on the three axes
| direction | layout | tone | density | best when |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. One Pass | single column | terse | high | users arrive with intent, such as invited teammates |
| 2. Guided Wizard | stepper card | warm | low | you need profile data to route the user |
| 3. Checklist Dashboard | app shell plus panel | task-oriented | medium | the product explains itself in seconds |
| 4. Personalization Quiz | full-bleed questions | playful | very low | the audience is mixed and engagement is the risk |
| 5. Template First | tile gallery | minimal | medium | common workflows cover most of your users |
| 6. Sandbox Tour | coach marks over sample data | instructional | high | the product is unusual and needs demonstrating |
What each costs the user
Estimated effort before the user reaches their first project.
Data
| direction | seconds |
|---|---|
| 1 One Pass | 75 s |
| 2 Guided Wizard | 140 s |
| 3 Checklist | 20 s |
| 4 Quiz | 95 s |
| 5 Template First | 30 s |
| 6 Sandbox Tour | 45 s |
| direction | seconds | fields | screens |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 One Pass | 75 | 6 | 1 |
| 2 Guided Wizard | 140 | 7 | 4 |
| 3 Checklist | 20 | 2 | 1 |
| 4 Quiz | 95 | 6 | 6 |
| 5 Template First | 30 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 Sandbox Tour | 45 | 0 | 5 |
low → high
Data
| direction | fields | screens |
|---|---|---|
| 1 One Pass | 6 | 1 |
| 2 Guided Wizard | 7 | 4 |
| 3 Checklist | 2 | 1 |
| 4 Quiz | 6 | 6 |
| 5 Template First | 1 | 2 |
| 6 Sandbox Tour | 0 | 5 |
How to choose
One path through the questions below lands on each direction.
- Need profile data on day one? → Do users arrive with intent?: yes
- Need profile data on day one? → Is the product obvious in 30 seconds?: no
- Do users arrive with intent? → 1. One Pass: yes
- Do users arrive with intent? → Is personalization the hook?: no
- Is personalization the hook? → 4. Quiz: yes
- Is personalization the hook? → 2. Guided Wizard: no
- Is the product obvious in 30 seconds? → Do reusable starting points exist?: yes
- Is the product obvious in 30 seconds? → 6. Sandbox Tour: no
- Do reusable starting points exist? → 5. Template First: yes
- Do reusable starting points exist? → 3. Checklist: no
DECISIONSVC
Recommendation
- Ship 3. Checklist Dashboard as the default: it never blocks the user and costs the least to build.
- Prototype 5. Template First as the challenger, since it has the shortest path to a populated first project.
- Keep 2. Guided Wizard only if sales needs team size and role on day one.