How to build a user operation system?

Whether it is offline training or online classes, the issue that parents and students are most concerned about is the learning effect. Especially for most parents, online education is relatively new. Their lack of understanding and trust in the learning effects is not conducive to the acquisition and conversion of new online education users, and will also hinder the retention and renewal of old users, directly affecting the user growth of online education.

The core of online education is still to provide good course products and services, polish the learning loop of "teaching, practice and evaluation", and truly enable users to achieve good learning results. In addition, users should be able to see and perceive the effects better, enhance user trust, and induce user payment and growth.

"Allowing users to better see and perceive the effects" is the externalization of effects. As course products and services become more homogenized, the importance of externalization of effects to online education becomes more and more prominent. This article will discuss with you in detail the externalization of the effects of online education. The full text is quite long and the content structure is as follows. I hope it will be inspiring to you.

Externalizing cognitive effects: visible learning effects

Let’s first clarify what is effect externalization? Externalizing the effects means displaying the learning effects externally, allowing users to perceive the learning effects more clearly, thereby enhancing their recognition and trust in educational products.

Effect externalization can be broken down into "effect" and "externalization":

1. The “effect” is that academic performance has improved, and the “externalization” is that test scores have improved;
2. “Effect” is that study habits have improved, and “externalization” is taking notes/completing homework on time;
3. The "effect" is that English proficiency has improved, and "externalization" is the ability to communicate in English on a daily basis.

What role does effect play in online education?

First, enhance users’ recognition and perception of educational products, promote users’ continuous payment for courses, and increase users’ life cycle value; second, leverage user recognition and externalized effects to guide sharing and dissemination to attract new users, increase the number of new users, and reduce the cost of acquiring new users.

Externalizing design effects: Improving user perception of effects

Step 1: Focus on the product and determine the externalization focus

The content of externalized effects, also known as the object of externalized effects, is the learning effect expected by users and is also the user value contributed by online education products and services. Common effect externalization content can be divided into three categories:

For different online education products, users have different expectations for learning outcomes and focus on different externalized content. Online education products at the K12 stage can be divided into four categories according to user stage and product services. The key externalized contents are as follows:

1. The externalized content of learning enlightenment education products represented by Zebra and Spark Thinking focuses on learning habits, quality and ability;
2. The externalized content of primary, middle and high school education products represented by Yuanfudao and Zuoyebang focuses on learning outcomes and learning habits;
3. For language education products represented by VIPKID and 51talk, the externalized content focuses on quality and learning outcomes;
4. For interest-based education products such as Artbao and Walnut Programming, the focus of externalized content is on quality abilities and learning habits.

Pay attention to the content classification of effect externalization, and determine the priority of externalized content based on product and user characteristics to guide subsequent targeted effect externalization design.

Step 2: User perspective, draw a learning map

After determining the key content of effect externalization according to the product type, the next step is to sort out the user's learning scenarios and paths, and determine the nodes and carriers for effect externalization from the user's perspective. The method is to refer to the user experience map (UJM, user-journey-map) and draw a user learning map for online education products.

The learning map mainly includes four parts:

1. Stage scenario: The stage division of the user's learning process: before class, during class, and after class;
2. Learning objectives: The learning objectives and demands of users in each learning stage scenario: learning knowledge, applying knowledge, and achieving good results;
3. User behavior: the specific behaviors and processes of users participating in learning at each learning stage: preview, review, and homework;
4. Learning output: The output results of users’ learning in each learning stage scenario: preview reports, test assignments.

From these four perspectives, we sort out the main learning process content of user learning and form a user learning map:

The learning map focuses on describing the user's typical single learning process. Single learning process occurs frequently. Combining learning goals, user behavior and learning outputs, and externalizing the results can give users immediate feedback. In addition, attention should also be paid to the cycle stages and key nodes to cover the user learning cycle.

Step 3 Externalize the design and form an externalized system

Starting from the product type, the externalization content and focus are determined. Starting from the user process, the externalization stages and carriers are sorted out. The last thing to do is to consider the appropriate externalization form type and layout the appropriate externalization content at the appropriate stage node.

Choosing the right form of effect externalization is particularly important for effect externalization design. The technology and experience advantages of online education also provide more diverse and rich forms of effect externalization: low-cost visual graphics, intuitive and vivid videos, and instant product interactions, providing a variety of form options for effect externalization.

There are three main types of design effect externalization: result-oriented, application-oriented, and participatory. The three types of externalization focus on different contents and forms:

Result type

The cost of externalizing result-oriented effects is low, and the positive learning data or results generated by student users during the learning process are directly displayed and fed back, so that parents and student users have a clear perception.

Result-based externalization includes test scores, class rankings, study reports, etc., which use intuitive data content to display learning outcomes, as well as awards, certificates, honorary titles, grade badges, etc., which use symbolic recognition and rewards without specific data to display student learning outcomes.

Study reports are a common form of externalization of results. The following figure is a study report from Gaotu Classroom:

Application

The externalization of applied effects pursues "applying what you have learned" and selects or creates appropriate learning application scenarios, which can not only strengthen the review of learning knowledge, but also demonstrate students' ability progress and learning outcomes.

Common externalization of application effects include in-class tests, after-class exercises, quizzes and exams, which directly transfer offline learning scenarios and behaviors to online. In addition, it is more flexible to create application scenarios for externalization, such as English video collection, hand-made work selection, programming work display, etc.

The following picture shows the effect of CodingCat, which mainly uses children’s programming games:

Participatory

Participatory effect externalization focuses on changing the learning attitudes and habits of student users. Students feel the fun and value of online learning and are willing to participate in online learning, which is an excellent externalization of effects.

Common participatory externalization is to guide children to develop good learning habits through guidance and rewards, such as previewing and reviewing, and taking class notes, and to better present these contents to students and users. Another way is to make children willing to participate in learning through motivational and gamification-based learning interactions and gameplay.

Uncle Kai uses the gamification of answering questions to guide children to participate in learning, and uses the points level to provide feedback:

After understanding the forms and types of effect externalization, you can design and layout specific effect externalization based on the externalized content focus and user stage process, and form an effect externalization system covering each stage cycle:

Externalizing application effects: Promoting user operation growth

The most basic and important function of externalizing results is to allow users to see the learning effects, improve user experience, and then enhance their recognition and trust in the platform and courses, promote users' continuous purchase of courses, and increase the life cycle value.

At the same time, the externalization of effects that are effective for old users will also have a positive impact on new users. Reaching new users through externalization of effects can enhance new users' understanding of the platform's courses and effects and improve conversions.

The new user growth activities of online education are mainly based on old users bringing in new users/referrals (old users can get rewards by inviting new users to purchase courses). This type of activity lacks the motivation for old users to participate and the means to convert new users. The sharing and new user growth activities combined with the externalized content of the effect make up for these deficiencies:

There is a lot of room for growth sharing activities that use externalized effects. Common ways to play include:

1. Users who share externalized content can get gift rewards, and can also connect with old customers bringing in new customers/referral activities;
2. The focus is on creating and sharing content with externalized effects, combined with voting/selection/support/gamification mechanisms to attract new users.

When designing effect externalization sharing activities, we need to focus on strengthening external rewards and internal motivations for old users, and guide users to a higher sharing rate; while new users are receiving effect externalization content, we should focus on guiding users to experience core functions, that is, guiding them to the courses and completing the conversion.

Let’s look at two sharing activities based on performance content:

The first is Zebra’s Zebra-themed photo shoot, which combines subject-related knowledge and abilities to collect children’s theme videos, and awards prizes based on likes, creativity, etc., to guide users to share and spread the content.

The second is Yuanfudao’s “I am a Little Teacher” sharing activity, which combines the videos of children lecturing after class to guide the generation of video posters for sharing and dissemination, and provides direct gift rewards. After scanning the code, new users can view the children’s lecture videos and the corresponding recommended courses to attract new users, thereby converting them into new users.

Of course, the sharing and new customer acquisition activities based on externalized effect content are a supplement to the old-customer-new customer acquisition/referral activities, and cannot replace the more efficient new customer acquisition/referral activities. However, there is still a lot of room for exploration of externalized effect activities, and they have the function of promoting brands and learning effects that other activities do not have.

Finally, although K12 online education has developed rapidly, criticism of its excessive marketing and commercialization, as well as doubts about its learning outcomes, have become obstacles to the healthy and long-term development of online education. Externalization of effects is an effective supplement to course quality and learning experience, which helps to achieve sustainable user retention and acquisition in online education, and will certainly receive more attention and investment.

Author: Wu Yijiu

Source: Wu Yijiu