If you’re building a SaaS product, you already know onboarding is a big deal. Users bail if you ask too much, too soon—or if your onboarding flow feels like a tax form. This guide is for anyone setting up multi-step onboarding in Formsort, a form builder that’s flexible without being a pain. Whether you’re a product manager, designer, or a developer tired of gluing together React components, you’ll get a clear, honest walkthrough—plus warnings on what to skip.
Why Multi-Step Onboarding Matters (and When It Doesn’t)
Multi-step onboarding breaks up information into digestible chunks. Instead of dumping 10 fields at once, you guide users through a series of smaller steps. This isn’t about being fancy; it’s about reducing friction, making sure users don’t get overwhelmed, and helping you collect cleaner data.
But here’s the thing: not every SaaS needs a complex flow. If your product is dead simple, or you only need an email and a password, a single screen works fine. Multi-step makes sense when:
- You need to segment users (e.g., “Are you a freelancer or a business?”)
- You collect info in stages (profile, preferences, integrations, etc.)
- You want to personalize the experience based on early answers
If you’re doing it just because everyone else is, don’t. More steps mean more places for folks to drop off.
Step 1: Map Out Your Onboarding Flow Before Touching Formsort
It’s tempting to jump into tools, but you’ll save hours by sketching your flow first. Grab a whiteboard, or just scribble steps on paper:
- What’s the minimum info you need to get someone started?
- What can you ask later, once they’re invested?
- Where could users branch into different paths?
- Which steps are truly required—versus “nice to have”?
Example flow for a SaaS analytics tool: 1. Account basics: Email, password 2. Company details: Name, size, role 3. Data source: Connect integration or skip 4. Personalization: Choose dashboard layout 5. Confirmation: Done!
Pro tip: Ruthlessly cut any step that doesn’t help users get to their first “aha moment.” You can always ask for extra info later.
Step 2: Set Up Your Project and Flows in Formsort
Once you’ve mapped things out, log into Formsort and create a new project. Here’s how to structure your onboarding flow:
Create a Flow
- In Formsort, a “flow” is basically your multi-step form.
- Name your flow something obvious—like “User Onboarding”—so your team isn’t guessing later.
Add Steps (Formsort calls them "Stages")
- Each major page or question group is a “stage.” Don’t cram too many fields into one stage.
- For each stage, add your questions (Formsort calls these “fields”).
- Use the drag-and-drop builder for layout, but don’t obsess over pixel-perfect design yet.
What works: Keeping stages focused. One theme per stage (e.g., “About your company”).
What doesn’t: Making a stage with 8+ questions. That’s just a long form in disguise.
Step 3: Use Conditional Logic for Smarter, Personalized Flows
One of Formsort’s strengths is conditional branching—showing or hiding stages based on earlier answers. This is where things can get powerful (and complicated).
Examples:
- If someone says they’re an “Agency,” show a step about client management.
- If they skip an integration, jump straight to the dashboard setup.
How To Do It:
- In the stage settings, add branching rules based on previous answers.
- Keep logic simple at first. Complex conditions can break easily, and are a pain to debug.
Pro tip: Draw your logic on paper before setting it up. Visualize: “If A, then B. Else, skip to C.” If you need a PhD to follow your own flowchart, it’s too much.
What to ignore: Over-personalization. If you’re adding branches just to feel “dynamic,” you’ll end up with a mess that’s hard to maintain.
Step 4: Design for Clarity, Not Flash
Formsort lets you style your flow, but resist the urge to get fancy. Most users want to get through onboarding quickly.
Keep It Simple:
- Use plain language for questions (“What’s your company name?” not “Please provide your organization’s formal registered entity”).
- Progress bars are good—they help users know how much is left. But don’t fake it. If you have 3 steps, don’t show a 5-step progress bar.
- Show helpful error messages. “This field is required” is better than nothing, but “Please enter a valid work email” is even better.
What works:
- Minimal branding to match your app.
- Large, tappable buttons—especially for mobile users.
- Autofocus and keyboard shortcuts (Formsort supports both).
What doesn’t:
- Spinning animations between every stage.
- Walls of text, tooltips everywhere, or “clever” placeholder text.
Step 5: Validate, Test, and Preview Relentlessly
You’ll catch most issues by testing as a real user would.
Checklist:
- Use Formsort’s preview mode to step through the entire flow.
- Test all branches: Do the “If Agency, show this” rules actually work?
- Try weird inputs, leave required fields blank, and see what breaks.
- Get someone outside your team to try the flow. Watch where they hesitate or get annoyed.
Pro tip: Start with fake data in a test environment. You don’t want to pollute your production database with lorem ipsum.
What to ignore: Don’t waste time over-optimizing before you’ve seen real users go through it. Let actual usage guide your tweaks.
Step 6: Integrate With Your Backend (Without Losing Your Mind)
Formsort can send data to your API or tools like Segment, Zapier, etc. Here’s what to know:
- Use webhooks or direct API integrations for real-time data.
- Map field names in Formsort to your backend schema. Double-check for typos—this is where silent errors happen.
- Only send what you actually need. Privacy matters, and over-collecting data is a liability.
Reality check: Integrations are rarely “plug and play.” Plan for at least an hour of fiddling, especially if your backend expects data in a weird format.
Step 7: Launch Small, Then Improve (Seriously)
Don’t wait for a perfect, 12-step onboarding flow. Ship something basic, see where folks drop off, and iterate.
How to get feedback:
- Use analytics (Formsort has basic tracking, or wire up Segment/Amplitude).
- Add a “Was this helpful?” survey at the end. Keep it optional.
- Watch your completion rates. If 50% of users vanish before step 2, something’s off.
What works: Small, fast changes. Move a tricky question later, or split a stage in two.
What doesn’t: Shipping a huge, untested flow and hoping for the best.
Pro Tips, Pitfalls, and Things to Ignore
What’s worth your time: - Short, focused stages (1-3 questions each) - Clear error messages and guidance - Testing all paths and edge cases
What’s not: - Custom CSS for every button (unless your brand team will actually notice) - Asking for everything up front “just in case” - Overengineering logic for rare user types
Watch out for: - Branching logic that’s impossible to follow later - Fields that don’t map to anything in your backend (someone will ask “Why are we collecting this?”) - Forgetting to test on mobile—at least 30% of users will sign up there
Keep It Simple, Keep Iterating
Multi-step onboarding in Formsort isn’t rocket science, but it’s easy to overcomplicate. Start with the basics, get real users through, and refine as you go. The best onboarding is the one people don’t remember—because it just worked.
Ready to get started? Sketch your flow first, then jump into Formsort and build only what you actually need. Everything else can wait.