Introduction
We all know that measuring feature adoption can be a bit of a guessing game. Businesses make changes they think will improve the customer experience, but often fall short when it comes to measuring the impact of those features on the user experience.
Knowing if users are interacting with a feature, and how frequently, is such an important part of improving adoption and ultimately retaining customers. Take a look through these charts to get a baseline understanding of how to measure feature adoption and retention!
In-app dashboard template: Feature engagement & impact
| Name | Description |
| Active Usage | A user action that you use to define an active user when counting daily/weekly/monthly active users (choose “Session” if you define an active user as any visitor) |
| Feature Start | An event that captures the first step in a feature workflow |
| Feature End | An event that captures the last step in a feature workflow |
Chart 1: User Adoption %
What does it tell you?
Of users who have been active in the last 90 days, what % of those have used your feature?
How to interpret?
The goal here is to see a high ratio of A to B. This will indicate your active users are engaging with your key feature. The higher the percentage, the higher adoption of the feature among your most valuable user base – the active users!
Chart 2: Workflow Conversion Rate Compared to Previous Month
What does it tell you?
As users have engaged with the feature or improvements have been made, have you seen a change in completion rate?
How to interpret?
Here you can understand the baseline conversion rate of your feature usage by looking at the number of individual users who make it from your start event to your end event.
Chart 3: Repeat Feature Usage %
What does it tell you?
Of all users who have used a feature once, what percentage become repeat users (use the feature more than one time)?
How to interpret?
You want to see a high ratio from A to B. If high, this indicates users are continuing to come back. If this number is low, it may tell you that your users didn't find obvious value in your feature after trying it out.
Chart 4: Weekly Feature Users
What does it tell you?
Shows the number of unique users engaging with your feature week over week.
How to interpret?
Ideally, as this feature gets more widely adopted you will see this number rise over time. If it is static or declining, you may want to revisit the data around this feature to determine why its usage isn't growing. Is it not delivering value, is it difficult to use, is it difficult to discover, etc.?
Chart 5: Power Users
What does it tell you?
Shows the users who have used the feature most frequently.
Chart 6: Feature Retention
What does it tell you?
Do users who use your feature continue to use it over time?
How to interpret?
If you see a large dip at the start of your chart, don’t panic! This is normal, especially as users are becoming acquainted with your tool or site. The key here is seeing improvement over time and to have an upwards trend after any initial fall-off.
Chart 7: Which users are engaging with my feature?
What does it tell you?
Shows a breakdown of which users are engaging with your feature.
How to interpret?
Do you notice any surprising dips or spikes among user groups? Do these numbers align with any product changes or marketing efforts?
Measuring feature adoption is one of the primary goals of any product team. It is just as important to understand what your users are finding valuable as it is what they don’t find valuable.
Throughout each of these above charts, it will be important to look at the segments of users who are and are not interacting with certain features and adjust accordingly.
If you are finding there is little adoption of your feature, take a deeper look into where drop-off is occurring in the usage funnel, or even try to A/B test walk-through guides.
Then, keep measuring! This is an iterative process. Get the data, look for insights, take action, then go back to the data to measure the results of your work!
Adoption of a feature is one of the primary points of measurement for any business looking to ultimately retain its customers. Knowing if features are being adopted shows a continued value in your tool and ideally results in a lifelong customer base!