“If the content is concise, it’s not considerate; if it’s informative/helpful, it might become long and convoluted.”
Most UX writers (myself included) find themselves in this conundrum when writing UX content. I like to call these ‘content usability principles’.
Please note:
- The industry standard and expectation for UX content is clarity, concision, and helpfulness. The above set of principles is a standard I’ve set for myself.
- This is just a glimpse into the 10-20% of my work, focusing purely on the writing process. The missing bits include going through existing user research, brainstorming with the team, conversation mining, and testing.
- I learned this approach from Strategic Writing for UX, an amazing foundational book by Torrey Podmajersky, President of Catbird Content and ex-UX manager at Google.
Problem statement
I’m choosing the prompt below to showcase my UX content writing process:
Base content (the skeleton)
First off, I lay down the groundwork. Think of it like a lighthouse that doesn’t let my inner poet override the UX writer.
As per the prompt, the guidelines are:
- Core message: inform the user of the cancellation and refund policy
- CTA: offer the option to (request) a refund
If the team works in silos, this is also how I prefer to receive content directions in the wireframes/screens.
Base content Title: Trip cancelled Message: Request a refund. Our team can help. CTAs: Refund | Support
If the product doesn’t have a style guide, then style notes like tone of voice, punctuation, capitalisation, verbosity and word choice are also mentioned. For this prompt, style notes would be direct, humble, informative, helpful, compassionate and also, neutral (Flight cancellation is not anybody’s fault, and there’s no need for the product to share/accept that blame).
Constraints and considerations
Constraints are unavoidable in UX content. Mostly, it’s character space. In this case, considerations are the age and literacy level of the user.
I’d also try to get the devs on board for adding a text-to-speech functionality.
1st draft: Fleshing out the skeleton content
Title: Trip cancelled Message: Your trip was cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions. You can request a full refund for your trip. Our team can assist. CTAs: Request refund | Contact support Link: Cancellation & Refund Policy
Transparency ✅ (Reason for cancellation + what % of refund + link to policy)
2nd draft: Purposefulness, Helpfulness and Accessibility
My approach:
- Inform the user about the incident, the reason and what they can do next for resolution (title and message)
- Offer more than one way to arrive at the resolution (self-refund, via customer support)
- Share resources for further information and help (link to policy, customer support)
- Use simple words from common parlance, plain language, no metaphors or slang, and consistent terminology. Keep a neutral yet conversational tone.
- Use as many words as required to convey the complete message.
- Link’s text’s font size and colour to be visible and large enough to be clicked (Will share my perspective and try to get the designers on board for this)
Copy explorations & rationale
Title: ⚠️ Your trip was cancelled Message: Your trip, unfortunately, was cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions. We're here to support you during this time. You can request a refund. Our team is ready to assist. CTAs: Request a refund | Contact support Link: View Cancellation & Refund Policy
Rationale
- Emoji grabs attention
- Doesn't share or accept the blame for the situation
- Delivers the complete message in the most to least important order
- Uses commonly-used words
Title: Important: Trip Cancellation Message: Your upcoming trip has been cancelled due to COVID-19 travel restrictions. We understand this might be disappointing. You have the option to request a full refund. Our team is here to help. CTAs: Request refund | Get help Link: Learn more about our Refund Policy
Rationale
- Impersonal title
- Conveys an understanding of the user's emotions
- Stays on the topic of 'refund'
- Shows the support team's eagerness
Title: 🚫 Trip Cancelled: COVID-19 Update Message: Unfortunately, your trip had to be cancelled due to ongoing travel restrictions from COVID-19. We understand the challenges this brings. You can initiate a refund for your booking amount. We're here to provide guidance if needed. CTAs: Start refund process | Need more support Link: Check our Cancellation & Refund Policy
Rationale
- Informs about the incident and its cause in an impersonal title
- Conveys an understanding of the user's emotions
- Indicates 'refund' will be a process (no instant)
Title: Action Required: Trip Cancelled Message: Your travel plans have been impacted by COVID-19 restrictions. We're here to make things easier for you. To resolve this, you can request a refund for your booking. Don't hesitate to reach out if you need more information or assistance. CTAs: Get a refund | Ask for help Link: Read our Cancellation & Refund Policy
Rationale
(apart from the above rationale points)
- Begins with the need for action
- Affirms the control is still in the user's hands
I’ll pick one or maybe create another from the phrases that make the most sense to me.
Purposefulness ✅
Helpfulness ✅
Accessibility ✅
Being mindful of the user’s emotional state, age, and literacy level, presence of heart (considerations for the user) is also covered. So…✅ to that too!
3rd draft: Brevity and Clarity
My approach:
- Stay within the character limit without compromising clarity, helpfulness and information.
- Use simple words
Copy explorations
Graphic: ⚠️ Title: Trip Cancelled Message: Due to Covid-19 restrictions, your trip stands cancelled. You can ask for a refund. Contact our team for support. CTAs: Request refund | Contact support Link: View Cancellation & Refund Policy
Graphic: ⚠️ Title: Trip Cancelled: Covid-19 Update Message: Your trip is cancelled due to Covid travel restrictions. To get a full refund, simply request it. We're here to assist if needed. CTAs: Request refund | Contact us Link: Refund Policy
Title: Important: Trip Cancelled Message: Trip cancelled due to Covid-19. You can request a full refund. Our team is here to help. CTAs: Request refund | Get help Link: Cancellation Policy
Title: Trip Cancelled: Action Required Message: Covid-19 affected your trip. Request a full refund. Contact us anytime. CTAs: Refund please | Need help Link: Read Cancellation Info
Title: Trip Cancelled due to Covid Message: Request a full refund or contact us for help. CTAs: Give me refund | Need help? Link: Read the refund guide
Graphic: 🚷 Title: This trip was cancelled Message: Your trip is off due to Covid-19. You can request a full refund. Contact our support team for assistance. CTAs: Refund request | Seek help Link: Refund Guide
Brevity ✅
Clarity ✅
The copy can be used at this stage too. However, I strongly advocate for empathy. Hence, the 4th draft.
4th draft: Add empathy, if missing
My approach:
- Step into the user’s shoes—connect what’s just happened with the same incident I faced or similar, like failed plans, loss of control, a mix of shock and despair, etc.
- Don’t throw in humour or try to be cheeky—the user is elderly and might not understand the humour or feel offended.
Side note: I was really tempted to use phrases like score a full refund, our crew, break no sweat, we’re all ears, Covid chaos, pulled the plug on your plans, got your back, hit us up, etc. But, the guidelines I set for myself (my approach) brought me back to sanity.
Copy explorations
Graphic: ⚠️ Title: Trip Cancelled Message: Due to Covid-19 restrictions, unfortunately, your trip was cancelled. We understand this must come as a shock. Don't worry! You can request a full refund. Contact our support team for help. CTAs: Refund please | Contact support Link: View Cancellation & Refund Policy
Graphic: ⚠️ Title: Trip Cancelled Message: Covid-19 restrictions disrupted your plans. We understand the challenges this brings. Worry not! You can get a full refund. Contact us if you need help. CTAs: Refund please | Need help Link: View Cancellation & Refund Policy
Graphic: ⚠️ Title: Unforeseen Twist: Trip Cancelled Message: Covid-19 has unexpectedly twisted your plans. We know it can be frustrating. To make things easier, we're offering a full refund. For help, our support staff is a message away. CTAs: Get refund | Message support Link: View Cancellation & Refund Policy
Graphic: ⚠️ Title: Trip Cancelled Message: Due to Covid-19 restrictions, your trip stands cancelled. It's disappointing, we know. But don't worry! You can request a full refund. Our support staff is here if you need guidance. CTAs: Request refund | Need guidance Link: View Cancellation & Refund Policy
Out of these, I’ll choose two that I find most appropriate (info + empathy).
Empathy ✅
Presenting the top dogs to my team
I present…
- Base content (skeleton)
- Fleshed-out first draft (what ought to be there)
- Winning 3rd draft (If they like it snappy…and cold.)
- Two favourites from the 4th draft and why they rock
Then I let the team decide for itself. 70% of the time, there’s no pushback. When there is, I share my entire editing process and get the team’s perspective. If there’s a tie, we leave it to the experiments.
Even if a copy is a winner, I still push to test it with real users and tweak it accordingly.
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