When it comes to **user experience survey questions sample** for SaaS onboarding, asking the right things at the right time makes all the difference. Whether you’re capturing those **first impressions** or surfacing what drives true “aha moments,” great questions go hand-in-hand with thoughtful timing and context.
This article covers high-impact survey prompts for key onboarding milestones: the user’s first session, empty-state experiences, and those breakthrough points where the value clicks. You’ll also see how smart targeting, automated follow-ups, and context-aware delivery turn feedback into real product insight.
Let’s break down each critical onboarding moment, with practical examples you can use and adapt for your product.
First-session questions: capturing initial impressions
Nailing that opening encounter is essential—**76% of customers are likely to keep using a service if they have a positive onboarding experience**. That first session sets expectations and gets users talking, which is why targeted surveys right after login or guided tours offer goldmine insights[1].
Initial expectations: “What did you hope to accomplish in your first visit?”
Helps you compare preconceptions with actual experience, showing if your messaging aligns.Setup clarity: “Was anything confusing about getting started today?”
Surfaces pain points in onboarding steps and setup flow.Feature discovery: “Did you find everything you were looking for?”
Reveals if users know where to start and what’s hard to locate.First impressions: “How would you describe your first experience with [Product] in a word or two?”
Gives a rapid snapshot of the emotional tone at the gate.
When you use Specific, you can precisely trigger these questions 5–10 minutes into a user’s first session for the highest completion rates—right around when initial engagement (or frustration) peaks. See more about survey timing in our in-product conversational survey guide.
Example AI follow-up prompts dig into points of friction:
“Can you tell me more about what was unclear?”
“Was there a feature you couldn’t find, or one that didn’t work as expected?”
Question Type | Surface-level questions | Deep insight questions |
|---|---|---|
First Session | “How was your signup experience?” | “What almost stopped you from getting started today?” |
Feature Discovery | “Did you find your dashboard?” | “What would make it easier to discover new tools?” |
Adding these layers transforms feedback from simple ratings to actionable data, and helps explain why **91% of SaaS users appreciate active feedback during onboarding**[2].
Empty-state questions: understanding early barriers
Empty states—where users haven’t uploaded, created, or engaged with content—are crucial moments. People often feel stuck here, and **89% of customers who have a poor onboarding experience will turn to a competitor**.[3] Getting feedback when users are idle can reveal your most hidden UX traps.
Motivation gap: “What stopped you from adding your first project today?”
Instruction clarity: “Is it clear how to get started from here?”
Perceived value: “What would make you want to take your first step?”
Support needs: “Is there anything missing or unclear in this setup?”
Follow-ups can gently probe why users are holding back:
“Did you feel unsure about what happens after your first upload?”
“Was something missing that would have given you confidence to start?”
For high-capture rates without being intrusive, I recommend targeting users who remain in an empty state for set periods (e.g., 24 hours, three sessions without activity). Use frequency controls to avoid repeatedly showing the same survey—Specific lets you nail this with time-based logic.
Example prompt for analyzing empty-state feedback:
“Summarize the top three reasons users gave for not creating a project after signup. What language do they use that signals confusion or hesitation?”
If you want to see how to analyze and chat about trends instantly, check out Specific’s AI survey response analysis.
When you use a conversational survey at this tricky moment, you give users a chance to vent and guide product improvements, instead of simply quitting. This approach turns potential abandonment into insight by letting the user steer the conversation where they feel friction the most.
Aha-moment questions: finding what clicks
An “aha moment” is that instant when someone finally understands your product’s value and can’t imagine going back. Hitting this point is essential for retention—**companies that prioritize onboarding and utilize surveys see a 10% increase in user adoption rates**.[4]
Feature use: “When did [Product] first feel genuinely useful to you?”
Outcome realization: “Describe the moment you realized this tool could help you achieve your goal.”
Surprise delights: “Was there anything you discovered that exceeded your expectations?”
Obstacles overcome: “What made you stick with it through challenges?”
Value recognition: “If you recommended [Product] now, what would you highlight to a friend or teammate?”
For each of these, you can use dynamic AI follow-ups to zoom in on context:
“What had you tried before that didn’t work?”
“Was there a particular workflow that made things click?”
Triggering questions right after those “aha” actions—like completing a workflow or unlocking a new feature—captures raw, emotional feedback while it’s still fresh. See how automatic AI follow-ups dig for that context in real time.
Think in terms of different types of **aha moments**:
Feature discovery: Using a core function for the first time
Workflow completion: Getting through a multi-step process without giving up
Value realization: Achieving the user’s actual goal—not just completing a task
Example prompt for generating an aha-moment survey:
“Draft a conversational survey that identifies when users first realized the value of [Product], and asks what triggered that feeling.”
Conversational formats make it easy to sense excitement, relief, or ongoing friction—something static forms just miss. When you catch those emotional highs (or lows), you learn how the product really lands with users and what stands out in their stories.
Implementation tips for onboarding surveys
Smart delivery is just as important as smart questions. Here’s my take:
First-session: Trigger after 5–10 minutes or on task completion, but only for new users.
Empty-state: Wait until the user has stalled for a set period, then check in sparingly (once per lifecycle stage).
Aha-moment: Fire a survey right after a milestone event, with cool-down timers to avoid pestering.
Survey Type | Optimal Timing | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
First-session | 5–10 min after signup or first key action | Once per new user |
Empty-state | After 1+ day with no activity | Once per stuck period |
Aha-moment | After milestone completion/event | No more than once per user journey stage |
Set a global recontact period so even power users aren’t over-surveyed by different flows. If your onboarding UI has a distinctive look, use custom CSS with Specific’s survey editor to keep surveys feeling on-brand.
You can also spin up multiple analysis chats to dig into feedback by segment—brand new users, trialists, early payers, power users. This lets you spot exactly where friction or delight clusters by audience, and you can chat directly with the AI for instant breakdowns.
Remember: even the most thoughtful survey questions need tailor-made follow-ups. It’s those unscripted, conversational probes that surface genuine insight and help you stay ahead of the competition.
Turn onboarding insights into action
Well-timed **user experience survey questions sample** at critical onboarding moments boost retention and satisfaction. Start asking great questions and uncover what really matters—create your own survey today.