I'd start by being the first person they see using it — not pitching it, just using it visibly. Peer adoption follows social proof, not announcements.

Then I'd onboard 2-3 early adopters one-on-one, walk them through it personally, and let them become the ones who spread it. People trust their friend's experience more than any tutorial.

For the rest, I'd lower the first step to almost zero — one specific action: 'just sign up and do this one thing.' No overwhelming feature dumps. Once they're in and see one win, retention handles itself.

The kill switch is simple: if people sign up but don't come back after day 3, the onboarding failed, not the platform. I'd track that and fix the first-session experience first.

I wouldn't start with posters or mass messaging — that's noise. I'd identify the 5 most socially connected people in different circles: the sports guy, the fest organizer, the hostel popular kid. Get them using or talking about the brand first.

Then I'd create moments, not just content. A small event, a challenge, something people want to be seen participating in. On campus, identity drives behavior — if being associated with a brand feels cool, people promote it for you.

I'd also make it specific to our campus culture — inside jokes, local references, things that make students feel like this brand actually gets them rather than just marketing at them.

Metric I'd watch: are people sharing it without being asked? If not, the approach isn't working and I'd go back to one-on-one conversations to find out why.