Appcues makes it easy to create, deploy, and manage in-product Experiences, but there are still a few things that you should consider before you start using Appcues. Read our pre-requisites checklist below and know what steps you need to do to plan your first experience with Appcues.

Pre-requisites Checklist

🤔 Basic understanding of your user journey

A high-level map of your user journey helps you decide where guidance will have the most impact. Identify the key milestones new users should reach, such as account creation, first content created, or an integration connected. Note common friction points where people get stuck or drop off and consider how Appcues can help you solve those problems.

Note that you do not need a perfect journey map to start. A simple list of steps and goals is enough to choose features or areas to highlight, write relevant copy, and measure success. You can refine the journey as you learn from analytics and feedback.

🎯 Access to user data and other tools

Appcues becomes more powerful when you can target and measure with real user data. Plan to send basic identifiers and attributes to Appcues, such as user ID, role, plan, and key events. This enables precise audience targeting and personalized experiences without overloading users.

Ensure you can view product analytics to validate impact like activation rates, feature usage, and conversion. If you use tools such as Segment, Heap, Amplitude, or Mixpanel, confirm you have access and that events you care about are tracked consistently. With clear data and visibility, you can iterate quickly and show what’s working.

💻 Engineering resources to help install Appcues

While it's an easy process, initially you’ll need help from your engineering team to install Appcues. Your developers are also involved in sending the required user data to target experiences correctly, so make sure you think about this beforehand to prevent setup blockers at a later point. 

Planning your first experience

🚀 Identifying your primary use case

Start by picking one high‑impact problem to solve with Appcues, such as onboarding new users, announcing a feature, or nudging trial users to activate. Keep it specific. For example, “Help new users publish their first checklist” is clearer than “Improve onboarding.” A focused use case keeps your first experience simple to plan, target, and measure.

Validate this choice with quick data points. Look for pages with high drop‑off, frequent support tickets, or strategic priorities for your team. With a single, concrete outcome in mind, you can design a short flow that guides users to success without adding noise.

🎯 Mapping user personas and goals

Identify who should see your experience and what they’re trying to achieve. Common personas might include first‑time creators, admins, or viewers. Write a one‑sentence goal for each, like “First‑time users should invite a teammate and upload a file”. These goals shape tone, timing, and the specific UI elements you highlight. Translate personas into simple targeting rules. Use attributes such as role, plan, or key events to reach only the relevant users. 

🌈 Including your app's branding

Design your visual theme to match your brand. With Appcues, you can show content in a way that feels native to your app. Think about the typography, colors, button styles, and corner radiuses so every experience looks consistent and professional. Create a few reusable components like headers or footers to speed up future builds.

✅ Setting success metrics

Define success before you build. Choose 1–2 metrics tied to the use case, such as completion of a checklist, first feature use, or trial conversion. Pair a leading metric (click‑through, step completion) with an outcome metric (feature enabled, goal achieved) so you can optimize both engagement and impact.

Establish a baseline and a time window to evaluate results. For example, “Increase first‑flow publish rate from 12% to 20% within 14 days of signup". With AB testing and control testing, experiment with your content and iterate quickly on copy, targeting, and timing based on where users engage the most. Clear goals make it easy to learn, improve, and share results with your team.