What is an Onboarding Profile?
An onboarding profile is the customized signup experience that determines what questions new members see and how they're welcomed into your community. You can include custom questions, welcome videos, social links, code of conduct acceptance, and automatic intro posts.
If you have different access groups (e.g., free vs. paid members), you can create a unique onboarding experience for each.
When to Create Multiple Onboarding Profiles?
When to use multiple onboarding profiles:
- Free vs. paid members with different question sets
- Course cohorts with specific welcome videos
- Geographic segments with location-specific content
- Member types (students, professionals, leaders)
What you can customize per access group:
- Custom onboarding questions
- Welcome videos
- Automatic workflows
- Intro post settings.
How to Customize Your Onboarding
1. Access the Onboarding Builder
Head to:
Settings → Members → Onboarding
Heartbeat starts you off with a set of default questions. You can edit, delete, or add more depending on what you need.
2. Add & Customize Onboarding Questions
You can add any kind of question you want — open-ended, multiple choice, or group selection.
For each question, you have several options:
Make it required
Include the answer in the member’s bio
Keep it private (e.g. T-shirt size, dietary restrictions)
📌 Tip: Use 1–2 “human” questions like “What’s the best meal you’ve ever had?” to make introductions more fun and personable.
3. Use Access Groups to Unlock Content
Heartbeat lets you tie onboarding choices to Access Groups — so someone who selects “Beginner” might unlock a different set of channels or courses than someone who selects “Advanced.”
Just make sure those groups are created in advance (with the right content tied to each) and then select your group question inside the onboarding setup.
[See: How to Create Joinable Access Groups →]
4. Add an Onboarding Video
Use this video to reduce time-to-value. Point members to:
Your top 2–3 channels
A live event they can RSVP to
A course they should start first
This helps members get clarity on where to start and makes the community feel immediately useful.
5. Set Up the Intros Post + Bio
When the Intros Channel toggle is enabled, Heartbeat will automatically publish a welcome post for each new member inside your introductions channel using the info they just filled out. Private questions are *not* included.
For any questions where "Include answer in user bio" was select, those answers will appears in their bio automatically.
6. (Optional) Code of Conduct Agreement
You can select any existing Heartbeat document as your Code of Conduct. Every new member will need to agree to this as the final step in onboarding.
7. Toggle On Required Profile Info
We strongly recommend turning on:
Profile picture requirement (so people feel real)
Location sharing (helps power location-based groups down the line)
8. Add Follow-Up Emails
You can add onboarding emails under:
Settings → Workflows → Onboarding Template
We recommend:
Day 0 (5 min after signup): Reinforce next steps
Day 1: Highlight an event or community win
Day 2–3: Ask a question or invite engagement
9. Preview the Flow
You can preview the entire experience with the "Preview" button in the top right.
Try running through it yourself so you can make improvements and experience what new members see.