Five UX Writing Tips to Design a Powerful Experience
Not many UX designers write the content for user interfaces themselves. Even if they tried, it would be hard for them to focus on two things at once. UX writing is a specialized task that needs people who are skilled at doing this job. UX writers know their customers extremely well and intuitively understand how they want to view information, and what works for them and what doesn’t. With their ability to connect with people on a more emotional and human level, the role of a UX writer is important for design improvements.
For some reason, designers and writers are always in the same boat. Sometimes, designers take up the dual role of UX designing and writing, but it is rare in today’s digital businesses that prioritize customer experience above all else. In digital designs, we have seen how the roles are divided– a UX writer conducts user research to produce a user-centered copy while the designer adds visual cues to illustrate the product experience. A good design principle says — content should come first. But, there are companies that like to write content based on their design.
UX writing is a way to convey any useful information to the user about your product and services. It includes creating texts from small labels of buttons and icons to taglines, error messages, notifications, navigation prompts and instructions, guidelines, and so on. Don’t think that text is not as important as a visual representation. At times, when your graphics are not clear, the text is the only way a user can have a meaningful interaction with your product. It is a part of design and user experience and should be given equal importance in a UI/UX design project.
Let’s see some techniques you can use to improve your UX writing:
Be quick to integrate the content with the UI: The content you use for your design should be introduced as early as possible. Design is a step-by-step process, and your copy is a big part of it. You need to be aware of how to maximize the features on your site and make things look familiar to the user. If you are still experimenting going into the last stages about how you want to place the text, and what’s the proper layout, it is sure to put you in a tricky situation.
Many sites use the Lorem Ipsum format to give designers an idea how about how the text complements the layout. It may be a temporary thing, but using an imaginary text instead of the real content can have many disadvantages. You are always guessing whether the real copy to be used in the UI will be the same length, structure. What if it doesn’t fit? You don’t have the time to redesign the same thing over and over again.
Do highlight all the important stuff: The core message you want to give to your users should not be hidden from them. A user interacts with your products in a matter of seconds. When there is no time for the real interaction, you have to create one. The user wants you to catch his/her attention with compelling messages and well-designed graphics. They are looking to engage, but they are not ready to spend hours scanning your page for the right information. You have to make it easy for the user to find what he is looking for. Try to use numerals and mark out key elements of your design to catch the viewer’s attention. Numerals in the text format can be missed by the user. It is much better to use the number format from 0–10 to create a quick impact in the minds of users. Don’t forget to specify information with bold and italic fonts, word sizes, negative space, and different colors. Just don’t overdo it, or it might lose its effectiveness.
Be Concise, Clear, and Grammar-flexible: When you write for a UI, you need to come directly to the point and address the user. It is also not necessary to maintain grammar correctness at all times. Suppose you are writing for a button or a pop-up screen where the number of characters is less, you need to avoid complex sentences in the body of the text. Nielsen Norman Group posted the article sharing the list of cringe-worthy words and phrases that you would better avoid in UI texts, among which:
- 1. Very (and other intensifiers)
- 2. Utilize
- 3. Enable
- 4. We understand (in today’s fast-paced world…) and other blah-blah stuff
- 5. End-user
Make your users feel involved: It’s a long-drawn-out process to create a consistent-looking site for your users. You need to keep the dialogue between you and your customers focused on their requirements. The customer should always feel they are part of the design process and have a say in important decision-making. Without a user-friendly approach, it is hard to convince the customer to put their trust in your brands. A well-conceived copy that resonates with the users’ needs and expectations brings out the best designs that are intuitive and navigable while producing successful outcomes for the end-user.
Mind the testing phase: Testing is one of the most crucial phases in the design project. Like you do testing to check the layout, color, placement of a button, or other elements in the design, it is also recommended to analyze the text to prevent unwanted issues. For example, you don’t want to use industry jargon to describe something for an audience that is not tech-savvy. You simply communicate in the language they understand. This kind of situation is seen many times, and testing helps you to take any action before the problem becomes a major issue.
