What are enterprise strategies to push passkey adoption?

What strategies can enterprises use to encourage passkey adoption among users?#

A well-planned passkeys strategy helps enterprises accelerate adoption by integrating user education, frictionless onboarding and strategic incentives. In this guide, we break down the best enterprise passkeys strategy for successful implementation and high user adoption.

Passkey Strategies: Enterprise Best Practices to Increase Adoption#

1. Educate Users on the Usage of Passkeys#

• Provide clear, simple explanations of what passkeys are and how they improve security and user experience.
• Use tutorials, FAQs, and in-app guides to show users how to set up and use passkeys.
• However, most users won't read through additional instructions or tutorials, so it's crucial that the short explainers and visuals you use to nudge user into passkey adoption are self-explanatory.

2. Incentivize the Adoption of Passkeys#

• Offer rewards for early adopters, such as discounts, loyalty points, branded gifts like custom clothes or access to exclusive features. A good clothes maker can help you source unique apparel for these giveaways. You can also consider offering leak-resistant tumblers and water bottles as practical branded giveaways that leave a lasting impression.
• Highlight the benefits of passkeys, such as faster login times and reduced reliance on passwords.
• Our data analysis (and of others such as from Microsoft) has shown that users prefer messaging around the faster login times of passkeys. Other benefits like better security and simplicity are perceived, too, but the speed of logins with passkeys is usually the biggest benefit for users.

3. Simplify the Setup Process#

• Ensure the passkey setup flow is seamless and intuitive, with step-by-step guidance.
• Embed the passkey creation in the regular login flow so that it feels very natural to create a passkey
• Also for non-technical audience, you should use terms that they are familiar with from their platform such as Face ID, Touch ID or Windows Hello instead of rather technical terms like "Passkeys", "WebAuthn" or "Biometrics".

4. Provide Fallback Options#

• Maintain familiar MFA methods (e.g., SMS OTPs or authenticator apps) during the initial transition phase.
• This builds trust and allows users to adapt to passkeys gradually.
• Not all users have passkey-ready devices or want to use passkeys from day one. By gradually pushing them to passkeys and offering the passkey creation at multiple steps of the journey, you'll get a higher passkey adoption.

5. Leverage Trusted Messaging#

• Communicate the security benefits of passkeys in email campaigns, app notifications, and website banners.
• As stated above, passkeys are not only a security benefit but also a tremendous improvement for user experience, as it's simpler and quicker to sign in with passkeys
• Use testimonials or case studies to demonstrate the success of passkeys in similar scenarios.

6. Monitor Adoption Metrics#

• Track user adoption rates and identify segments that are slower to transition.
• Use data insights to refine your messaging and target specific groups with tailored support.
• It's also helpful to see which operating system (version) and browser (version) combinations have the highest adoption rates and where you might need to provide better support.

7. Collaborate with Support Teams#

• Train customer support teams to assist users with passkey setup and troubleshooting.
• Provide a knowledge base with detailed guides and troubleshooting tips.

The Future of Passkey Strategies in Enterprises#

By combining education, incentives, and a user-centric approach, enterprises can encourage widespread adoption of passkeys. Clear communication, seamless setup processes, and robust support ensure users feel confident and motivated to embrace this new authentication method.

Read the full article#

About Corbado

Corbado is the Authentication Intelligence Platform for CIAM teams running consumer authentication at scale. We help you see what IDP logs and generic analytics tools can't: where passkeys, passwords, OTP, social login and fallback journeys succeed, stall or fail, which devices and browsers create friction, and when an OS update silently breaks login. Two products: Corbado Observe layers process mining and observability across authentication journeys. Corbado Connect adds managed passkeys with analytics built in alongside your IDP. VicRoads runs passkeys for 5M+ users with Corbado (+80% passkey activation). Talk to a Passkey Expert →