Fewer Screens, Better Conversion? Not Always

This is a UX redesign case study from exmox, a rewarded gaming platform company, aimed at improving Install-to-Registration conversion. It challenges the common UX intuition that “fewer screens always mean better conversion.” The version that added trust-building and guidance screens during onboarding achieved a higher registration conversion rate (+6.38%) than the single-screen version.

• Problem: A large share of users dropped off after installing the app and did not continue to registration.
• Initial trial and error: The team first redesigned the visual treatment of the welcome screen, but it did not change conversion.
• User research findings: The main reasons users hesitated to register were doubts about the app’s value and earning potential, trust and security concerns, and fear of spam.

To address the root causes, the team added value communication and trust proof, then tested two registration approaches: Separate Auth and Combined Auth.

• Variant 1 (Separate Auth): Users first saw three carousel onboarding screens explaining value, earning proof, and social proof before reaching the registration screen. This added steps.
• Variant 2 (Combined Auth): A single screen combined the pitch and registration form. This reduced steps.

• Winning version (Variant 1): The Separate Auth version, which gave users enough space to read trust-building content first, won with a +6.38% lift in registration conversion versus the baseline.
• Increase in logins: The share of returning users who authenticated also increased by 12.87%.
• SSO conversion: Moving social login buttons to the top raised the share of registrations through SSO from 41% to 84%, helping with account security and reducing support burden.

• Core lesson: Reducing screens or steps is not always the answer. Providing the necessary information around value and trust before asking users to register can play a more decisive role in improving conversion.