Data Onboarding

25+ Onboarding Statistics for User, Customer, and Data Onboarding

Across B2B software, onboarding statistics can cover a variety of areas, including user onboarding and data onboarding. 

Below we’ve rounded up the best statistics from studies conducted over the past few years, and we’ve also added in our own statistics from a recent survey which we compiled into a report entitled the 2020 State of Data Onboarding. The report addresses the challenges with importing data into software systems. Since most tools are useless without customer data, successful user onboarding hinges on smooth and easy data onboarding.

Keep reading for the top onboarding stats from the following categories.

Table of contents:

  • User onboarding statistics

  • Data onboarding statistics

  • Retention and churn statistics

User onboarding statistics

User onboarding is the process of getting a new software user up to speed, learning how to use the software and reaching the “aha” moment—when they achieve value from the product. 

Great user onboarding increases retention and reduces churn, thus contributing to revenue gains for your organization.

User onboarding matters (a lot)

  • It costs between 5 and 25 times more to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing one (Invesp).

  • 68% of customers are willing to pay more for the same thing to work with a company with a good reputation for customer service (Gladly).

  • Customers use help desk articles and knowledge libraries more than any other channel for self-service assistance (Forrester).

  • 74% of people will revisit your website if it's user-friendly, but 50% of customers will stop visiting your website if it isn’t (Think With Google).

  • 90% of customers think that companies could “do better” when it comes to user onboarding (Wyzowl).

  • Highly engaged customers buy 90% more often, spend 60% more per each transaction, and offer 3X the amount of annual revenue compared to unengaged customers (GrooveHQ).

Video is a top channel for user onboarding

  • 97% of customers say that video is an effective channel for welcoming and educating new customers (Wyzowl).

  • 87% of the time, B2B viewers watch videos on their desktop, so don’t be afraid to create detailed videos (Vidyard).

  • Webinars are the preferred format for video content, with 56% of business audiences choosing this format over shorter videos. Luckily, webinars make for great onboarding material (Vidyard).

  • 74% of users have watched a video to understand how to better use a software or mobile app (Wyzowl).

  • 69% of users say that more video should be utilized to improve software product onboarding (Wyzowl).

  • The human brain is hardwired to remember information from video, with 95% of information retained from video and only 10% of information retained from written content (Topyx).

Data onboarding statistics

Customer data onboarding is essential in order for new customers to use a software application effectively. After all, how can you use an inventory management system to manage your inventory without first importing your inventory data?

In this section, we explore both the importance and the challenges of data importing. 

Some tools require more frequent data onboarding than others. For example, marketing and CRM software tools need to import their customer's customer data in order work properly. Below are statistics from Flatfile's State of Data Onboarding report. 

Data imports happen frequently

  • 54% of survey respondents import data every single day.

  • 22% of respondents import data multiple times per day.

Data imports as part of the overall onboarding process can be problematic and time consuming

  • 23% of respondents report that it takes weeks or months to import data.

  • 96% of survey respondents have run into problems when importing data into a software application.

  • 27% of respondents import data manually into software tools and 38% use a combination of manual methods and internally build data importer.

  • Data formatting and data validation are the most commonly experienced issues with data onboarding, with 76% and 69% of respondents having experienced them, respectively.

  • 36% of software users want to solve data importing problems with better integrations, while 29% of software users wish that data import tools were easier to use, and 26% say that more automation is the solution to data import problems.

Flatfile's State of Data Onboarding Report

Learn how companies are tackling the data import challenge

Download now

Retention and churn statistics

Retention and churn are affected by user onboarding and data onboarding. 

If you need to communicate that connection to your team, use these retention and churn statistics to help garner support for your retention-boosting efforts.

Churn is an ongoing battle

  • Customers switching to a competitor costs US companies a combined $1.6 trillion per year (Forbes).

  • 66% of consumers have ended their relationship with a company due to bad customer service (Gravy).

  • After just one bad experience, 33% of US consumers will consider switching to another company (GetFeedback).

  • Customer churn can be reduced by 67% if companies are able to solve customer issues during the first customer support interaction (Gravy).

Customer retention deserves more investment

  • Loyal customers are five times more likely to purchase again from the same company and four times more likely to refer a friend to the company (Forbes).

  • For SaaS companies, an 8-week retention rate of 35% or higher is a smart goal, however for most SaaS companies their 8-week retention rate is between 6-20% (Mixpanel).

  • Satisfied customers are 87% more likely to purchase upgrades and additional services than unsatisfied customers (MyCustomer).

  • When you increase customer retention by just 5%, you can boost profits anywhere from 25-95% (SmallBizGenius).

  • 82% of companies report that retention is cheaper than acquisition (SmallBizGenius).

Onboarding statistics can help you understand and communicate the importance of an amazing onboarding experience. Onboarding is more than a first impression, it’s the foundation of a great relationship, whether that’s between your company and your employees, or your company and your customers.

Flatfile's State of Data Onboarding Report

Learn how companies are tackling the data import challenge

Download now