By reading this article, you’ll boost the effectiveness of your product’s UX x10. Do you want to continue?
[YES!]
[DOUBLE YES!]
How a Perfect UX Copy Look Like
So, what distinguishes a really high-end microcopy?
#1 – Simple and Straightforward Language
Your user hasn’t to spend more than 5 seconds wondering where they need to navigate or what they should do. Simplicity is everything both in design and writing.
#2 – Conversational Tone
Using polite and common phrases humanizes your writing and fills it with emotions. Try using casual words like “wow”, “oops”, “awesome”. See how lightweight these phrases seem:
#3 – Brevity and Conciseness
Microcopy was named so not without a reason. Avoid using long sentences and expletive constructions.
#4 – Usage of Brand Phrases
Do you have some ideas from your marketing ads or maybe even your own slang words? Discuss that with the marketing department and see what you can add to the UX!
#5 – Scannability of Copy
No one will read a dense canvas of letters and words till the end. Add headings and lists with bullet points (just like we did that in this article)!
#6 – Сonsistency of Elements
If you have several elements on a list, check if they answer the same question. Generate several questions and try different options before approving the final version. Homogeneity will allow the user to quickly understand what they need to choose.
#7 – Images and Buttons
- Emphasize the title (heading) and button, if you need a user to perform an action. These elements are perceived by the eye first.
- For error pages and some other elements, you can add images to make the user experience not so frustrating. Google has done it by adding a small T-Rex game to their ‘No connection’ page, and many other sites just use fun images.
#8 – Concise Formatting
- Not to confuse your users, write UX copy uniformly. Decide whether you put a period after short UX phrases or not. Btw, you can do it if your copy consists of two or more paragraphs. If you have only one, omit periods.
- Prepositions and conjunctions should stand next to the word to which they refer. Be careful with hyphenation.
Key Steps of Creating Microcopy
Step 1. Use personas defined by research
With your UX copy, you have to reach out to the target audience. Otherwise, your effort will be lost like tears in rain. :) Who are those people? Which language do they prefer? Use appropriate style and tone of voice for those people.
Step 2. Focus on the product
Does it need writing at all? Such things as calendars, calculators, clocks don’t need it. What about yours? How much text will make it more effective, appealing and worth paying money, if you offer a subscription?
Step 3. Pick the tips from the previous part
Remember what we told you about a perfect microcopy? Be straightforward, brief, concise, and logical. Use brand phrases and conversational tone. Make your copy scannable and add images or buttons, if necessary. Keep in mind the 5 C’s of UX writing.
Step 4. Mention benefits, not features
The list of features never works as great as showing exact benefits to customers. Demonstrate which results they will achieve by using these features. List issues that will be solved by your product.
Step 5. Make it empathic
Appeal to emotions, while keeping a polite tone. Bring life into your text. For example, when writing about errors, don’t just state the facts. Explain the reasons for that and tell the user how you might help.
Step 6. Imagine that you’re a user
Is everything clear at the first glance? Where would you need help? If you are not sure, ask your colleagues or acquaintances to take a look at your copy and fix everything with what they have issues.
Main Mistakes of UX Copywriters
Do UX writers make mistakes? Sure thing! You’ll even recall some UX errors you’ve come across while reading our list:
Grammatical errors and typos
Sure, no one will die when reading “Clik the buton”, but the fact that the writer hasn’t checked the text before posting it will definitely be deposited in the user's head. This can affect the overall impression of the product, or worse, its reputation in the market.
Sounding like a robot
It’s not a disaster if you write “Click here to continue” or “Add to cart”. However, imagine how effective emotional phrases would be. For example: “I’m ready!” or “Take me there now!”
Using puzzle phrases
The ultimate goal of UX writing is simplifying the interaction with interfaces, not complicating it. We mean questions like: “Which option do you like?” followed by two buttons “Yes” and “No.” Users just won’t get what you want from them! Always double-check the lucidity of your microcopy.
Summary
We won’t repeat ourselves by saying once again that you should use understandable and brief phrases. Our final recommendations for you will be as follows:
- Open a document or take a notebook and a pen. If you have a ready-made design layout in Flowmapp, try writing UX copy there!
- Try to create the first phrases in a style you need to reach the target audience.
- Read them out loud and think whether they sound ‘human’.
- Continue crafting microcopy till the end using the same tone.
- Take a break and have a cup of coffee, talk to friends or family members, walk in the park nearby! Shift your attention to something else.
- Look through your content once more with a fresh glance. Does it make sense? Does it sound natural, emotional, and friendly?
- Ask your colleagues to assess your UX copy. Treat it like internal testing. :)
- After that, approve the copy with your team leader and pass it to a proofreader to make sure there are no mistakes.
Voila!
Your UX copy is ready to be tested with real users. You can even conduct A/B testing with two-three options to discover what works better for your product.
