@lmpcopywriter Hello, CopyCon19 Laura Parker, UX Writer 

@lmpcopywriter UX writing and copywriting • Similar, but a different purpose 
 — Copywriting is writing to sell
 — UX writing is writing to inform • UX writing helps people interact with a product or service
 — UX copy includes buttons and menu labels, error messages, security notes, terms and conditions, instructions. • UX writers are also similar to content designers and technical writers 
 — We’re all working to solve the same problem…
 

@lmpcopywriter Problem: how do you make software human and relatable? 

@lmpcopywriter https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ui-copy/ 

@lmpcopywriter Keep a beginner’s mind Don’t assume the user knows anything 

@lmpcopywriter What’s a beginner’s mind? • We create new things all the time 
 — But we forget what it's like to be a new user. • A new user might be anxious about using your product 
 — Give them everything they need and nothing more. • We know too much (curse of knowledge) 
 — the more you know, the further you are from the beginner’s perspective. • Users have existing expectations and behaviours
 — Don’t assume users will find your product intuitive if they do the same thing differently on other apps/websites. 
 

@lmpcopywriter A note about user anxiety • User anxiety is when you don’t understand how to use something • Writers can help users feel less anxious by 
 — being obvious (keep a beginner’s mind)
 — using plain language 
 — avoiding jargon (but if it’s useful, leave it in)
 — writing consistently (do we say ‘click’ or ‘tap’) Monzo spending alert 

@lmpcopywriter It helps to know how we read • Our cognitive load (mental effort) increases 11% for every 100 words • We prefer high frequency words over low frequency words (use forums to discover audience vocabulary) • Your eyes miss 30% of text on a page • We guess what words mean by the shape of them, it’s called a saccade rhythm (use words readers can skip using their natural saccade rhythm) • Most people can recognise 15,000 words — Jakob Nielsen, How Do Users Read — Sarah Richards, Content Design 

@lmpcopywriter Our eyes don’t see every letter in a word or every word in a sentence. Our eyes skip along the text in small jumps called saccades. After each saccade, our brain takes a snapshot and arranges the letters into words. Those pauses are called fixations. — Jost Hochuli, Detail in Typography 

@lmpcopywriter Empathy v humour Writing with flavour 

@lmpcopywriter — Slack — Trello — MailChimp 

@lmpcopywriter Accessibility: writing with empathy • Average UK reading age is 9 years • Roughly 11.9 million people are living with a disability (1 in 5 people or 20%) • Poor internet connection • Busy people • Physical injuries “Getting to the point quickly has less to do with intelligence and more to do with time and respect.” — Sarah Richards, Content Design 

@lmpcopywriter Not all disability is visible 

@lmpcopywriter github.com/ UKHomeOffice/posters 

@lmpcopywriter microsoft.com/en-us/ accessibility 

@lmpcopywriter http://actiondeafness.org.uk/product/deaf-awareness-posters/ 

@lmpcopywriter Brands play it safe with their humour, and not safe enough with their empathy. If your writing is genuinely funny, go for it. But do it with all users in mind. 

@lmpcopywriter Balancing empathy and humour • Have a moment with the reader 
 — Use empathy to find when a user is having a moment, and be a part of it. • Keep a beginner’s mind
 — Skip the what and go directly to the why. Focus on why your product is useful. • Use simple, everyday language 
 — It helps everyone, especially those with a visual impairment, dyslexia or anxiety. • People don’t find the same things funny
 — Humour is risky. 

@lmpcopywriter — Andrew Schmidt, Slack 

@lmpcopywriter Clients do this 

@lmpcopywriter Working with designers Your most important working relationship 

@lmpcopywriter Because… • You share the same problems 
 — “I need answers to this, this and this before I can start.” • You ask (roughly) the same questions
 — “Who am I writing/designing for? What’s the purpose? Brand guidelines?” • And, you make things together
 

@lmpcopywriter Most designers have never worked with a writer. It’s down to us to get the ball rolling. 

@lmpcopywriter How to work with designers • Give them your copy in advance 
 — Don’t leave it till the last minute to send your copy. Think about the design deadline too. • Send copy in a text file, Pages, or anything else but MS Word
 — Ever watched a designer try to open a Word doc? Most designers don’t use MS Word. • Ask for feedback
 — Hoo boy, time to let go of the ego. Feedback can only improve your work. • Celebrate their moments of copy greatness 
 — A designer wrote some of my favourite copy, don’t be jealous. 
 

@lmpcopywriter Solving “the design or copy first” riddle 

@lmpcopywriter Design or copy first? • Lead with copy first but don’t get ahead of yourself 
 — It frees up creativity for you and the designer. It gives writers freedom to write without thinking of space and set the context for design. • Work in sprints
 — Agree on sprint stages to avoid disruptive changes in the final draft. • Sometimes, I’m wrong 
 — Why shouldn’t a writer come up with a great visual idea, or a designer think of a brilliant headline? It’s okay to be wrong.
 

@lmpcopywriter Done is better than perfect 

@lmpcopywriter Problem: how do you make software human and relatable? 

@lmpcopywriter Answer: write honestly using simple language 

@lmpcopywriter • Keep a beginner’s mind
 — What’s obvious to you won’t be the same for your audience.
 — Make your audience feel less anxious by using high frequency words. • Be empathetic and cautious with humour
 — People with autism might not understand metaphors or idioms.
 — Don’t risk simplicity for the sake of a joke. • Work better with designers 
 — It’s not them and us, we’re in it together.
 — work in short stints and communicate. 

@lmpcopywriter UX copy tips • Use specific verbs 
 — ‘Connect’ or ‘save’ are more meaningful than ‘set up’ or ‘manage’. • Avoid showing all details up front
 — Too much information can quickly overwhelm users, reveal detail as needed. • Use ‘today,’ ‘yesterday’ or ‘tomorrow’ instead of a date
 — People don’t use the date when they refer to the day before the present day. • Avoid long blocks of text
 — Look at your work on a mobile to check spacing.
 

@lmpcopywriter People to follow
 Andrew Schmidt (senior product writer at Slack): https://www.andrewschmidt.net 
 Jared Spool (UX genius): https://www.uie.com @jmspool
 Craig Wright (tech writer): https://straygoat.co.uk
 Erika Hall (designer): https://muledesign.com @mulegirl
 Caio Braga ([product designer) https://caioab.com @caioab
 Paul Boag (UX expert): https://boagworld.com @boagworld Links to click 
 Readability Guidelines: https://readabilityguidelines.myxwiki.org
 Web Content Accessibility Guidelines: https://www.w3.org
 Rules of Effective UX Writing: https://uxplanet.org/16-rules-of-effective-ux-writing-2a20cf85fdbf
 The Unusable podcast: https://podcast.theunusable.com
 Content Design London: http://contentdesign.london
 Microsoft accessibility kit: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-gb/style-guide/welcome/
 UK Home Office accessibility posters: https://github.com/UKHomeOffice/posters/blob/master/accessibility/
 UX Collective: https://uxdesign.cc
 UK disability facts and figures: http://www.craigabbott.co.uk/accessibility-is-not-an-edge-case Cartoons by webcomicname.com 

@lmpcopywriter Thanks! 

@lmpcopywriter Web
 lauramarieparker.com
 
 Email
 [email protected]
 
 Twitter
 @lmpcopywriter