Remember, Facebook asking you ‘What’s on your mind?’ to update your profile. Or the search bar on the Airbnb website saying ‘Try “Lisbon”‘.
The word ‘try’ has a fun and adventurous connotation to it. It’s not just about searching for something, but rather about experimenting and exploring new possibilities. Although it’s a small word, it provides all the encouragement you need to begin your journey.
(UX) writing is about using words to facilitate the best user experience possible. Even if you’ve never heard of it, you’ve seen it before.
Lets understand why is ‘UX Writing’ is important?
UX writing is sometimes overlooked within the broader UX design process as designers we should be aware of the pitfalls of poor UX writing. In this article, I’ll share some design strategies for improving UX writing that I’ve personally implemented in my designs, helping users to successfully achieve their goals.
Know yourself
Every online interaction is a conversation between the interface and its users. But users won’t want to continue the conversation if they don’t like you. That’s why you need to know who you are. Is your brand formal or informal?
Know your audience: Before we build anything, we need to know:
•who the users are
•what they’re trying to do and why
•how they want to do it
Empathise with users
Empathy is about understanding the emotions of other people and reflecting their emotions in the way you interact with them. A message as simple as One moment please… can go a long way toward instilling patience in users who are waiting for a process to complete or a screen to load. The same goes for a trust-forming message, such as one that says, Don’t worry, we’ll never share your data with anyone.
Humanize
UX writing helps bridge the gap between human and machine, forming a bond between them that is far stronger than those that users form with merely mechanical user interfaces. An excellent example of a design that adds a human touch is the mascot of the DuoLingo language-learning app.
Engage and Improving Conversions
Although designers sometimes get carried away in trying to create a friendly, conversational interaction with users, if the end goal of a user interface is conversion, being overly chatty can have an adverse effect. Concise, clear UX writing can centre the focus of an entire interaction on a particular goal, making users more productive.
Clear Communication = Seamless Interactions
Users are far more receptive to feedback that they receive through the medium of text than via any other means of communication. For a real-world example, we need look no further than setting a password for a new account. A red outline suggests that the user’s password doesn’t fit the requirements.
Use Conversational Language
Using technical or robotic language creates a barrier between the user and the experience. The easiest way to circumvent this barrier is to assess a user interface’s UX writing and endeavor to give it a more casual, conversational tone.
Provide Context
Contextualizing every user interaction can be a great tactic for implementing more effective copy. If an application must keep users waiting, tell them why they’re waiting. If users get stuck, help them out by telling them what to do next. While avoiding getting overly technical.
The F-shaped scanning pattern
It’s worth studying the F-shaped scanning pattern that studies have revealed is how most people skim long pages of text. The strategic use of stylized text—such as bold or italics—to highlight key information can draw the user’s eye, without being intrusive.
Reinforce brand Tone
UX copy can be a great opportunity to expose your target audience to your brand, in a much deeper, more meaningful manner. For example, if you’re designing a financial product, try to reinforce the trust factor of your brand by providing affirmations in your copy.
No UX writing is not an island
UX writing is an integral part of the design process. UX writers need to be sociable: they work closely with designers, developers and researchers to make sure user-centred design is considered at every step of the process.
Remember, As user experience continues to grow, I feel positive that this specialty will also grow. So much is at stake. The worst consequence of the use of poor UX copy is losing credibility with the user. Therefore, every UX designer should not only be comfortable with writing appropriate UX copy but a master of UX writing.
What do you think ?
