I tapped this link on my iPhone. There’s nothing that says create account. It says I have to download an app called Element. But you said it was called Matrix.
This is the level of technical ability that you need to be targeting.
This is the level of technical ability that you need to be targeting.
Re "you said it was called Matrix": fair, but I wouldn't send people to "matrix" / the protocol for any system with multiple implementations. I'd send them a link to one of the user-friendly apps (i.e. Element). Similarly, you wouldn't tell someone to join XMPP, you'd send them to the Google Hangouts or MSN Messenger or Playstation apps.
This is a friction-filled experience for someone coming from WhatsApp
Also, search still doesn't work in encrypted rooms.