Meta VR

Unlocking growth with improvements to onboarding for families.

Nearly half of VR users are sharing accounts instead of creating personal profiles. I led the design and strategic planning for a 3-phased initiative to address significant drop off and streamline onboarding for families with cross-device profile management solutions.

org

Engagement / Family

Engagement/Family

role

Senior Product Designer

year

2025

Experimentation

Interaction design

Product strategy

Prototyping

Onboarding

Visual design

What we achieved

+18k

Monthly active users

increase in top-line monthly active users post-experimentation.

+108k

Monthly active users annually

increase in top-line monthly active users in 2025 (projected).

increase in top-line monthly active users in 2025.

+126

Headsets added daily

multi-user headsets with multiple monthly active users. (projected).

multi-user headsets with multiple monthly active users.

Challenge

Nearly 50% of VR users share profiles in headsets because onboarding is complex, sharing apps is confusing, and they're unsure if personalized profiles are necessary. This behavior hinders growth, personalization, and the social graph in VR.

Business impact

We're losing growth opportunities because families don't understand how or why to create individual profiles.

51%

share accounts to share apps and purchases.

44%

say it's easier than adding accounts.

43%

weren't aware they could switch accounts.

Approach

Three phases, three platforms—building a scalable onboarding system

Three phases, three platforms: building a scalable onboarding system

Led design for a cross-platform experience simplifying onboarding across VR, mobile, and web. We tackled three key themes through iterative phases:

Unclear how to use profiles = Misunderstanding the intended profile mental model.
Onboarding friction = Complexity adding new profiles, cross-device set-up friction.
Discoverability & awareness = Unintuitive entry points, unclear communication of benefits.

PHASE 1

Fixing critical friction in 3 weeks

The strategy
Analyzed the funnel with Data Science to identify drop-off points, then ran a brainstormed to identify solutions with Engineering, ranging from quick fixes to ambitious ideas. Prioritized with PM based on impact.

What shipped in the first 3 weeks

Added switch user panel for easier profile switching

Contextual messaging encouraging users to switch after successfully adding a profile

Removed unnecessary, blocking security requirements

Impact
Reduced friction at key points while we began to build a more comprehensive cross-platform solution.

PHASE 2

Mobile profile management
One-tap invites to drive VR adoption

Strategy
Build a net new profile management system entirely on mobile to drive growth and leverage network effects. Users can manage headsets from their phones and send invites instantly, removing friction from the critical moment of adding themselves, family, and friends in VR.

What shipped

• Share-to-invite links

• One-tap invites for supervised profiles and family

• One-tap invites for people you've shared headsets with

• One-tap invites for people you've played with

Design decisions

One-tap to add, two-taps to accept in app
Headset owners add family members with a single tap. Invited users accept via in-app notification or SMS instead of email — keeping the flow native and reducing friction.

Evolved device page for discoverability
Surfaced "Manage profiles" as a clear entry point on the mobile device management screen.

PHASE 3

VR Welcome Screen
Establishing the multi-user mindset

Strategy
Make "Add profile" the first thing users see on the headset. Profiles become a core feature, not a hidden setting.

What we're testing

Add profile as primary CTA: Prominent "+" button with avatar identification signals that multiple profiles are expected.
Age-based categorization: Adult/teen vs. child profiles differentiated upfront for age-appropriate experiences.
Supervised profile flow: Parents add kids without leaving VR — safe login and profile creation in one flow.
Suggested profiles: One-tap adds for family members and recent players.

Strategy
Make "Add profile" the first thing users see on the headset. Profiles become a core feature, not a hidden setting.

What we're testing

Add profile as primary CTA: Prominent "+" button with avatar identification signals that multiple profiles are expected.
Age-based categorization: Adult/teen vs. child profiles differentiated upfront for age-appropriate experiences.
Supervised profile flow: Parents add kids without leaving VR — safe login and profile creation in one flow.
Suggested profiles: One-tap adds for family members and recent players.

Design decisions

First screen in headset
Avatars for quick identification when switching profiles. Prominent "Add profile" CTA makes it immediately clear more profiles can be added.

Age category first
Categorizing by age upfront ensures age-appropriate experiences and sets the right mental model for families.

Add profile CTA
Simple icon-based button modeled on Netflix's profile setup for instant familiarity.

Suggested profiles
One-tap adds for family members — the single biggest driver of MAU growth.

OUTCOME

Transforming how families use VR

Transforming how families onboard and use VR

Beyond the numbers, this work fundamentally shifted how Meta thinks about the VR experience. Profiles went from a buried setting to a core part of the platform, setting the foundation for future multi-user features and establishing VR as a naturally shared device.

Beyond the numbers, this work shifted how Meta approached the VR onboarding experience. Profiles went from a buried setting to a core part of the platform, to fully manageable on mobile, and setting the foundation for future multi-user features and establishing VR as a naturally shared device.

Burning the midnight oil, nice

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