Educating Customers on How to Use a Product’s Features Effectively

2. Send targeted email messages for onboarding and to introduce features.

Different product features appeal to different customer segments. Some customers might prioritize ease of use or advanced filtering options, while others might find real-time data analytics or Gantt-chart views useful. To deliver real value, send targeted email messages on the most relevant features for each market segment.

Take Canva as an example. Individual users and small business owners typically use this tool to create social-media posts and marketing materials, as Figure 2 shows. In contrast, larger teams leverage Canva for asynchronous design projects, presentations, and branding efforts through brand kits and team folders. This reflects a “one tool, multiple use cases” mindset that is mirrored in how Canva structures its product-education email communications. For example, they might showcase features such as real-time collaboration for large-scale teams, which enables multiple users to work on the same design simultaneously.

Individual users might receive email messages explaining how to quickly create beautiful social-media content using predesigned templates—a simple yet helpful approach that is shown in Figure 3. Canva newsletters that incorporate GIF images stand out and engaging copy appeals to everyone.

Email messages are also helpful in onboarding new customers and guiding them through their initial setup. Include quick links to essential tools such as your Help Center or a video walkthrough that helps them get started immediately. To deliver an enhanced interactive experience, consider incorporating dynamic QR codes that you’ve created with a QR code generator, providing seamless mobile access to these resources.

3. Offer interactive product tours and demos.

If you want to build a beneficial product-education database, step-by-step guides are only the beginning. Research shows that 56% of customers prefer video for self-service tools that facilitate learning and help customers stay engaged. Thus, creating interactive tutorials or in-app walkthroughs lets customers embark on self-guided journeys through your product during onboarding. This approach helps them to understand the capabilities of core features by using them.

For example, when creating a Figma account, users are first asked what they want to do—for example, design with Figma, build a whiteboard in FigJam, or present with Figma Slides. If the user chooses the first option, Figma displays demo content on the main dashboard instead of an empty state, as shown in Figures 4, 5, and 6.

Five dynamic ToolTips appear, explaining how to use key features as the user hovers over or interacts with different parts of the user interface. They also provide contextual assistance as the user tests out features.

In this way, users receive the information they need about a feature when they need it, but aren’t overwhelmed by receiving too much content upfront. In a nutshell, in-app walkthroughs help customers feel comfortable using a product from the start, reducing their reliance on your team.

In addition, you should produce dynamic video demos for each feature. These could include animations or recorded sessions during which a team member explains everything. You can place such demos on your resource hub where customers can access and view them easily.

4. Create spotlight videos on features and post them on social media.

Today, customers use social media for much more than entertainment. They make decisions based on the content they see on LinkedIn, Bluesky, Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram. So you can use social media to raise awareness about your product’s unique capabilities.

For example, you could create a string of bite-sized walkthroughs that spotlight one function or feature at a time. Aim for videos that are under two minutes in length to capture customers’ attention quickly while delivering the appropriate information. To further humanize your brand, consider incorporating personalized videos, which can help build stronger connections with your audience by making the content feel more authentic and relatable.

Head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, frequently shares updates about the platform across his social-media accounts, as shown in Figure 7. His videos discuss new feature rollouts or shifts in the algorithm, helping to improve the performance of content.

Show how your product addresses users’ particular painpoints, invite customers to share their success stories, or have them join you for a demo, highlighting the benefits they’ve received.

5. Provide quick-access chats for support.

Make it easy for customers to get the help they need without exiting your product. For example, a pop-up chatbot can offer real-time support on basic setup and troubleshooting, while providing the option of connecting with a human support agent for more detailed assistance.

Zendesk’s Answer Bot provides an excellent example. It leverages machine learning (ML) to respond to customers’ queries using content from its knowledge base. As support tickets come in, the chatbot identifies which Help topic best answers specific questions concerning subscription changes, order statuses, or product specs.

Image source: Zendesk Support

Integrating contact-center artificial intelligence (AI) software can further optimize customer-service operations by automating ticket routing, analyzing customer sentiment, and providing agents with actionable insights. This ensures that you address customers’ queries promptly and accurately, enhancing the overall support experience.

In addition to integrating a chatbot into your operations, it’s vital to ensure that your support agents and Customer Success team are on the same page. You can train them to use AI meeting notes to automatically summarize internal discussions. This ensures that key decisions and product updates are well documented and accessible for reference when they’re handling customer queries.

6. Encourage community-driven learning or forums.

Community forums are a great way for customers to discuss product features, share use cases, and solve common challenges without going through the Customer Support team.

For instance, WordPress has a thriving online community in which users can share installation best practices, accessibility concerns, and design ideas. Figure 9 shows some of the available topics.

Such forums are valuable because they’re moderated by those who have experienced the product firsthand. Starting one can be as simple as setting up a group on LinkedIn or Facebook.

Your team members must participate in a forum periodically to keep the discussions vibrant and helpful. You don’t need to supervise every conversation, but having product managers or specific team members jump into critical conversations can make your customers feel heard.

7. Provide a knowledge base comprising self-paced learning modules.

Organize your knowledge base well so customers can easily search for information. File the assets under different categories and use subcategories to organize the content further.

Help Scout, for example, has a resource hub called Support Toolkit that offers free tools, templates, and courses. It gives customers immediate access to best practices for using the platform in different formats.

In addition, build self-paced video modules that walk customers through the product in stages, with options to track their progress and provide feedback. When introducing new features or updates, provide side-by-side visual guides to help users understand the changes, enabling them to explore and compare them independently. Lastly, ensure that your knowledge base is up to date so your customers can always access the most current and reliable information.

8. Include education in your customer-support interactions.

Train your support team to educate customers about product features while addressing their inquiries. For example, when resolving a common issue, they could guide customers through using an underutilized feature that might prevent the same problem in the future. Plus, your team should include links to tutorials, guides, and videos in their responses.

When customers contact HubSpot’s support team, they’re directed to the knowledge base, community discussions, or a status page to learn how to solve their issues or use the learning platform more effectively.

By providing such assistance, you can transform a reactive inquiry into a proactive learning moment and improve the user experience.

Make Your Customers Self-Sufficient in Using Your Product

In a marketplace that’s more competitive than ever, relying solely on the strength of your product’s design is not a good idea. Customers need to feel empowered to independently navigate and fully utilize your product’s features, so a product-education strategy can help. When customers completely understand what your product can do for them, they’re far more likely to maximize its value to them.

Kickresume’s AI-based tools provide good examples: The Career Coach and Career Map provide tailored guidance that helps users visualize their goals and independently explore their next steps, while taking advantage of support when necessary. As a result, their customers are more satisfied, more inclined to leave positive reviews, and more likely to renew their subscriptions.

Plus, loyal customers share their positive experiences with others, bringing you new customers through word-of-mouth marketing. Ultimately, loyal customers lead to strong business outcomes and sustained growth for an organization. Isn’t that your goal?