Mailbox betacoin: the experience
For anyone that has gone through the little ‘betacoin’ experience for Mailbox OSX (beta) …
They could have sent a link or simple code — but no —they send you this little guy. An animated access token. (See here for full onboarding experience and some great notes.) They made the process fun, delightful, and filled with personality. It’s a great example of people in our industry innovating in the least expected way. What used to be a stale experience has now become interactive, relatable, and somewhat* intuitive.
*I hesitate to claim it’s super straight-forward for novice users, but that’s not who Mailbox is targeting in beta (I’m guessing). With some education, this approach can become something quite usable and quickly understood for those who are ‘less comfortable with technology’. (Think touch devices!!)
It seems as though the Mailbox team takes it all in to consideration. From getting people into their system all the way to celebrating inbox zero. Even pre-populating an email to share betacoins with others. They’ve become the precedent for stirring up that special excitement for a product. Whether it’s revealing what position you have in the waiting line or presenting you with a magical-sparkle-token that grants you access to their beta, they gracefully dangle that item (access) in front of you. They leave you to want more, to check back and see where you stand, to request invites, to start using their product with a smile. They set the bar as to what kind of experience you’ll have — beginning with the installation.
THAT is designing for emotion. THAT is user experience design.
Props to @jmhobbs for dissecting the approach and also creating a way to customize your betacoin .gif, if you’re in to that sort of thing.
I’m Jonathan — a designer that helps startups and organizations build products. If you’ve enjoyed this post, keep up with what I’m writing by following me on twitter.
