Do you want to optimize the texts of your user interfaces and improve your web writing? Discover this new writing discipline adapted to the user experience: UX writing. How does this specific writing fit into digital interface design projects and what are its benefits? Explanations from Gwenaël Bony, independent UX designer, consultant and business trainer.
UX writing, for user experience writing, is integrated into the UX design process and constitutes one of the specializations of the profession. This approach consists of writing texts that support the user in their experience of a digital product or service. These texts, called microcopies, can be present on a website, a mobile application, a connected object or even a chatbot.
Here is a first difference with any content with a commercial or communication aim. The microcopies concern the entire screens and interactions that make up the digital system to be designed, with a myriad of small text elements, while the rest of the editorial content refers to the skills of marketing and journalism.
The objective? Guide the user and help them interact with the product or service in a fluid and intuitive way. To do this, UX writers must take into account the needs and expectations of users, while respecting technical constraints and marketing objectives.
It is a transversal and global work which will require creative processes and iterations. As uses and needs evolve, writing work must therefore be regularly re-evaluated and modified.
Practical case: UX writing at the service of user experience
To illustrate the benefits of UX writing, here is the case of a company which presents its catalog of products and services on an e-commerce site.
Web trends vary very quickly, a redesign of the site becomes urgent.
After the launch of the new site and its communication campaign, it is clear that the conversion rate is not there. Worse still, cart abandonment is high.
To understand this phenomenon, user tests are organized in order to understand when and for what reasons Internet users abandon their shopping cart along the way.
The test results are then clear: users are lost and frustrated by the new interface. They find the product sheets too complex and the navigation too unclear. In particular, they are bothered by ambiguous puns, incompatible with the habits of Internet users.
Faced with this negative feedback, the company decided to train its marketing and design teams in UX writing. This training allows teams to become aware of the importance of microcopies in the user experience.
The concrete application of UX writing
Following the training, the company's teams put in place an action plan to improve the UX writing of their e-commerce site. Here are some of the measures implemented.
The teams remove ambiguous puns, reserving them for pages more suited to the development of the brand universe, and use simple and direct language.
Likewise, the interface is supplemented with tooltips and clear texts in order to limit errors. For example, clicking a button by mistake because the wording of the CTA was poor and misled the user. This provides maximum autonomy and confidence to users.
As another measure, clear and concise messages are added to help users identify and resolve errors they may encounter.
Finally, messages inform the user of the status of their order or their interactions with the site. Here, humor adds the touch of humanity and closeness dear to the company.
Measures to improve UX writing
- Improved clarity of product sheets
- Prevention of error pages and messages
- Added messages for recognizing and resolving errors
- Feedback to reassure the user
Example of the Asphalte brand clothing e-commerce site
The use of clear and reassuring terms, coupled with a table, diagrams and concrete examples, limits the risk of errors while reassuring about the possibility of a free exchange. Other brands do even better by offering a refund.
The impact on corporate culture
UX writing training had a positive impact on corporate culture. It allowed marketing and design teams to become aware of the difference between their perception and that of customers.
Rule #1: You are not the user.
Teams also learned to work better together to create a smooth and intuitive user experience. They have developed a better understanding of the interdependence between UX, UI, SEO and marketing.
Every profession holds a part of the truth. A good user experience makes sense if there is a goal to achieve. Likewise, this objective must resonate with the needs and interests of the public.
Don’t neglect the place of form in your work. Your texts will remain silent if the interface design does not follow the recommendations in terms ofaccessibility and ergonomics.
What is UX design?
When you interact with an interface, product or service, you have an experience. This experience includes your feelings and emotions in the journey that takes you towards achieving your goals.
It is in this experience that trust between the user and the brand is built in order to move on to the act of purchase, commitment or loyalty.
To properly guide the design team in its choices, the UX designer must first understand the psychological mechanisms of the user, their environment, as well as their interests, needs and frustrations.
UX design meets the needs of utility, usability and desirability.
The unsuspected benefits of UX writing
In addition to the obvious benefits, such as improving conversion and customer satisfaction, UX writing can bring unsuspected benefits to businesses. Better understanding of customers allows companies to better understand the needs and expectations of their customers. This can be done through user tests, surveys or even data analysis. Likewise, UX writing requires close collaboration between marketing, design and development teams. This allows businesses to create consistency in the digital ecosystem. Finally, UX writing helps optimize SEO. Well-written microcopies optimized for search engines can help businesses improve their natural referencing.
What you should remember: thanks to the implementation of an action plan to improve the UX writing of its e-commerce site, the company noted a significant improvement in its transformation rate and a reduction in cart abandonments. It now offers a quality user experience, which meets the needs and expectations of its customers. Real added value for the company, UX writing training will be followed by new employees.
