Writing Loading Messages

No one likes waiting. Even in the ultra-fast tech world, patience wears thin. Jakob Nielsen noted that a waiting time of 0.1 seconds feels instantaneous, while just 1 second of loading is a noticeable delay. If a screen takes 10 seconds to load, the user’s already left.

To wait is to give up control. It is the doctor who holds the power to call you back, the website that disperses information, the politician who makes a statement by showing up late. It’s never pleasant, even if we’re waiting for something good.

In the world of UX, designers and developers have implemented a lot of “solutions” for wait time. If the time itself can’t be shortened, the user needs to know that what they’re waiting for is actually happening and, in longer cases, how long they’ll need to wait. If the wait will last awhile, they should have the ability to perform other tasks in the interval.

But what about when the wait is only a few seconds: enough to be noticed, but not enough to change the flow? Enter the loading spinner.

Though varying in design, they almost always are accompanied by text. Some websites just let us know what’s happening (“Loading…”) while others provide direction (“Please wait…”). Others give estimates (“This should take less than 1 minute”).