UX Writing: The secret to drive User Engagement
I recently had an opportunity to attend a webinar on UX Writing (also called ‘UX Copy’) and its importance, while I learnt quite a lot from the webinar, I took some time to study & learn more about UX Writing with the hopes that it would greatly help in my profession as a UX Designer, it also peaked my interest. Now I have tried to write all I learnt about UX Writing.
What is UX Writing?
UX writing is a practice of creating and testing copies in UI (User Interface) that helps guide the users, hence making the experience engaging and intuitive through clear, concise and helpful text.
Examples of UX Writing would include notifications, have you seen the food delivery app; Zomato’s notifications? Those notifications are great examples of UX Writing/Copy, those UX copies connect with the user well and it seems like an actual person is communicating with you.
Other UX Writing examples include, titles in an app or website, CTA buttons, instructions on forms or input fields, etc.
You noticed I mentioned “UX Copy”? I had a question during the webinar: How is Copywriting different from UX Writing? I received quite some insights about the difference in the 2 forms of writing.
How does UX Writing differ from Copywriting?
While the 2 forms of writing are quite similar to each other, the difference lies within the focus or the outcome the 2 forms are looking to achieve.
As you may have read it in the very beginning of this article, UX writing focuses on improving the User Experience in digital products by writing clear, concise and user friendly content which guides the user through the tasks within the product.
While copywriting focuses on driving the sales and marketing by writing persuasive and attractive content to promote the product, which leads to the sale of the product.
Let’s say: Copywriting helps in briging new customers/ User for the product while UX Writing helps in engaging and keeping the existing users/ customers.
Why does UX Writing matter?
Avoid Confusion
UX Writing is important to ensure that digital products are easy to use and understand. Clear and concise language is essential to avoid confusion, which can make the user to stop using the product. A good UX Copy can give clear instructions which helps the user navigate through the product, which in turn reduces likely errors and the user knows what is to be done to complete a task and what is to be expected next.
Give Human-like experience
UX Writing can help create a human-like experience by using natural language and friendly tone. This type of UX Writing makes the product feel more approachable and relatable, which can lead to increased and better user engagement and loyalty. By using language that is friendly, approachable, and empathetic, UX Writing can help build trust and rapport with users, making them feel more comfortable and confident in their interactions with the product.
Just redesigning doesn’t help
Design and UX Copy are inter-connected, just redesigning the product without updating the UX Copy can lead to an un-easy user experience. A beautifully designed product with poor UX Copy can still confuse or mislead users, which will lead to errors. But, a product with a simple design but an excellent UX Copy can be very effective in helping and guiding users through the interface of the product.
How to write better UX Copies?
This webinar I attended gave me quite some insights on how to write better UX Copies, from what I learnt in the webinar and some digging around on the internet, there are a few key principles that will help in writing excellent UX Copies, called The 5Cs of UX Writing.
1. Clear
Use simple, everyday language that is easy to understand. Avoid jargon, technical terms, and abbreviations that may confuse users. Break down complex information into smaller, digestible chunks.
2. Concise
Use short, simple sentences and paragraphs. Remove unwanted words. Avoid repetition and reiteration of the same information. Use bullet points or numbered lists to present information efficiently.
3. Constructive
Provide users with clear guidance and purpose in the content. Offer valuable information that helps users understand what actions they can take to proceed effectively within a digital product.
4. Conversational
Use a friendly and approachable tone, engage users in a natural and relatable manner. Connect with the users and make the interaction pleasant. Do not use robotic statements.
5. Consistent
Maintain uniformity in language, tone and style throughout the interface, allowing the user to get used to it. Consistent terminology and messages will help users to navigate through the interface seamlessly.
Bonus Tips
Some more interesting insights on writing good UX Copies to help users interact with your app or website.
Don’t Confirm-shame the users
Don’t make the users feel guilty for the choices they make.
Use Numbers
Psychologically, numbers represent facts and logic. Numbers are also easy to read.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability
Widely used as measures of readability, higher your score on 0–100 scale the better, low score means the text is complicated to understand.
Thank You!
I tried putting all I learnt in this article here, hope this helps you understanding what UX Writing is, the importance and the principles: 5Cs of UX Writing.
