Through demo trading, simplified onboarding, and community engagement, a trading app raised first-trade conversion from 20% to 35% and doubled 30-day retention.
May 2, 2025
Background
A fast-growing trading app noticed that many sign-ups never made a first trade. Most dropped off at the funding stage or lost interest quickly.
Challenge
Onboarding friction: Long KYC forms and confusing financial jargon discouraged new users.
Low activation: Only 20% of sign-ups executed their first trade.
Engagement gaps: Users lacked confidence and community support.
Our Approach
Simplified KYC flows with tooltips and shorter forms.
Introduced demo trading mode to let users practice risk-free.
Launched triggered comms:
Push notifications promoting demo trading.
Emails offering 1-on-1 onboarding sessions for inactive users.
Built a community forum with weekly analyst insights and peer discussion.
Results (3 months):
Sign-ups to first trade conversion ↑ from 20% → 35%.
Demo traders showed 2× higher 30-day retention.
Community engagement nurtured loyal, high-volume traders who entered new loyalty tiers.
