There is a crucial difference between UX writer and conventional copywriter. UX writer is involved in the design process, whereas conventional copywriter fills the space in the design with the texts. Copywriter is creating marketing and promotional content e.g. “20% sale on all selected goods”, or promoting the product itself. Oftentimes it’s the kind of content that people are usually filtering and do not pay any attention to. The role of the UX writer is to catch the eye of the user and make his experience as smooth as possible.
“The role of UX writer is to catch the eye of the user and make his experience as smooth as possible.”
UX writing is a new term in the world of design and creates a confusion inside and outside of the whole design community. In today’s world, in which people have to filter the most important information, writing has become a crucial part of the design process and it’s evolving ever since. People don’t have time to read and when they are not impressed by what they see either on their computer or smartphone, they will find it somewhere else. That’s exactly where UX writer comes to play. Googledefines UX writers as advocates of the Google design, who help to shape product experiences by crafting copy that helps users complete the task at hand.
What is UX writing?
Website or an app is basically a communication between your product/brand and customer/user. If a user or a customer doesn’t understand what your product or a brand is “talking about”, he will simply leave. The job of a UX writer is to guide the user through the product and help him to interact. He has to make communication between the user and your product as simple as possible. The simplified text has to answer all visitor’s questions. Every button, every item in navigation, error messages, terms and conditions, everything that has an impact on user experience is taken care of by UX writer. When the user’s first contact with your product isn’t his last, UX writer did his job.
“When user’s first contact with your product isn’t his last, UX writer did a good job.”
Since UX writer is a fairly new term, there isn’t a universal set of rules for them to follow. We have decided to share some tips to maximize the effectiveness of your product’s copy.
Tone and Voice
The very first step of creating a copy for any project is to define the voice and tone. Texts that are included throughout the project have to reflect brand voice. If you are funny, be funny. But if your brand represents serious business, don’t include a funny copy to your page. Be consistent. Define the words that you will use and will not.
User-Friendly
You don’t have to be friendly to be user-friendly. Use the defined tone and voice and user through your product. He uses it for the first time and he doesn’t know what to do or he doesn’t know what your product is about. Your text should grab his arm and show him the unknown place around. You don’t want the user to get lost or make mistakes. If he does, encourage him to move forward.
Speak their language
Developers know everything about different error codes. If you have very deep understanding of the product, you understand every jargon related to it. Most of your users don’t. Unclear copy can also result in user making a mistake. Use simple language, don’t make the user feel stupid.
Read more about 8 rules of UX writing on our blog.
