CCleaner Health Check

Background

The feature

CCleaner’s most popular feature is Health Check, a quick scan that allows users to resolve multiple issues in the same flow. The feature was available to all users, although free users were only able to resolve the main issues, but not the advanced ones.

Target audience

Although it was a feature widely used by everyone, it was especially designed for those people that did not feel technically confident enough to use more advanced features such as Custom Clean. It was also widely used by users who were shown the features once, and then just kept using it in the same way over and over again.

The issues

• The initial screen of Health Check did not have very insightful information. Moreover, the onboarding was across 5 different screens, which was too much for people to click through without losing their focus.
• The cookies feature already allowed users to list websites that they didn’t want to clear cookies for. However, the feature was hidden in the sitemap and it was not clearly explained for non-technical users.
• The journey for free users did not highlight well the features that were locked for them (not many people opened those tabs).
• The free users’ journey was disrupted by very invasive advertising banners.

The design process

Solving the first problem: Introducing the cookies allowlist

1 - first mockup

I first created a prototype which forced first time users to go through a set up process. Part of this set up was about deciding which websites to add to the allowlist.

2 - test & iterate the prototype

After testing this first iteration it became really clear that users found this first step a little too intimidating. Moreover, it was slowing them down too much.

Working closely with developers, the UX copywriter and conducting more tests with users, I iterated the prototype a few more times.

3 - final flow iteration

The final iteration shortened the onboarding to 2 steps: the first step summarised the benefits of the feature and the second step advised users to set up a cookie allowlist. The user testing on the latest prototype was very positive, with great feedback from users.

4 - refine the cookies allowlist screen

Working closely with the copywriter, we tested different variations of the copy to obtain the clearest and least intimidating option.

Solving the second problem: Increasing conversion rates

1 - breaking down the journey

After having reviewed user research conducted on similar products, I decided to break down the journey into 2 steps. This would have helped highlight what free users were missing out on.

I created 2 different design options. One presented the high-level issues group (e.g. Privacy, Space). The other one showed a more detailed breakdown (Cookies, Download History, etc.).

2 - test & iterate the prototype

I tested the 2 options with 20 users and although 70% of them preferred option 1, they also said that they would have liked to be able to see the breakdown within each category.

So I designed a third option, which split Privacy and Space into 2 steps and it showed a breakdown for both. I tested this option and it had very positive feedback.

3 - refining the whole flow

After having identified the best layout for the main screens, I kept iterating the flow to improve the conversion opportunities, conducting another 2 rounds of user testing.

The logic I identified allowed us to prompt users to upgrade if they wanted to fix the advanced issues. If they declined, they were reminded that a free trial was available too. The final screen also recommended they set up a cleaning schedule. Again, they were reminded that the paid version also supported automated cleaning.

The result

Conversion rates increased by 132.27%

These changes led to an increase of 132.27% in conversion rates (i.e. people upgrading to the paid version of CCleaner). This was calculated based on the semester after launch, compared to the same semester the previous year.

The result was a flow that better highlighted what users were missing out on the free version. The design also looked fresher, to make the app look more modern.

No more surprises with deleted cookies

The onboarding flow was still straightforward and intuitive for non-technical users, but it also made it easier for them to set up a list of allowed websites. 7% of users were now setting up the allowlist, compared to the previous 3%. This resulted in a decrease in complaints to customer service.

The onboarding was now condensed into one screen, and the second screen allowed people to customise their allowlist.

Testimonials