When it comes to writing copy for your company’s website and marketing materials, you have two options: you can write SEO-friendly, attention-grabbing text that will get your message across to users and potential customers, or you can write bland, forgettable text that will do nothing to improve your site’s usability or conversion rate.
While there are plenty of elements that should go into a winning copywriting strategy, many businesses neglect to focus on the most important aspects. The Fundamentals of User Experience Copywriting is a guide to getting you started on the right track.
What is UX Copywriting?
If you’ve ever used a website, read a news article, or searched for something on Google, you’ve interacted with digital user experience (UX) copy. Basically, UX or user experience is the “sitting at the table” part of digital marketing. It’s the story your customers, clients, and users will tell themselves about how they wound up using your product. Why they need it. How they will benefit. It’s not just about the features and functions of your product, but also how people get those features and functions, and what their experience will be like if they choose to use your product.
In other words, you want your copy to get users excited about using your product, to get them as excited as they would be about using a new feature on their favorite product.
Why is UX Copywriting Important?
If your copy isn’t grabbing users’ attention, it’s doing nothing to help your SEO rankings, increase your brand exposure, or increase your conversion rate. In fact, if the words on your homepage aren’t inspiring, engaging, and inspiring your readers, they might wind up Googling something else entirely (or simply closing your browser altogether). Your copy is the foundation of your entire digital presence, and without it, your SEO will be far less meaningful, your brand will be far less memorable, and your users will be far less likely to come back to your site.
That means, first and foremost, that you need to be writing copy that is both useful and useful to your target users. This will require a level of empathy not often associated with business owners. You’ll have to remember that users are not just potential customers, but also individuals with busy lives, limited time, and complex problems.
Businesses have a tendency to become so focused on their product that they forget to write for humans. They forget to write for their audience, and end up writing for themselves, trying to talk to their audience as if they were talking to other business owners. Good copywriting, however, is not about you. It’s about your users.
How to Write UX Copy That Users Will Love
Copywriting is an art form, and like any art form, there are techniques you can use to improve your writing. But, as with any other type of writing, the foundation is truly important.
Your copy needs to be clear, direct, and easy to understand. It should be written in a style that is both conversational and formal. It should sound natural coming from a human and not from a computer.
In order to grab and hold the attention of your audience, you need to make use of all five senses. You need to make use of sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste.
Unfortunately, most people make the mistake of focusing only on the first three (sights, sounds, and touch), and ignoring the other two (smell and taste) altogether. You need to make use of each of these senses to effectively capture your reader’s attention and draw them into your world.
What to Avoid in UX Copywriting
While writing in a natural, conversational tone is important, there are a few things you should avoid entirely. These are, in no particular order, the copywriting sins that will sink your copy before it even has a chance to swim. Over-writing – Users will become tired of reading the same exact words and phrases being used over and over again on your site. Not only is this tiring, but it can also lead to users skimming past your copy and moving on to the next site.
Using unnecessary and cliché expressions – While you certainly don’t want to be vanilla, your copy shouldn’t be dripping with originality. After all, your users won’t be able to relate to your brand, and they certainly won’t be excited about using it.
Using poor grammar and syntax – Your copy should be easy to understand, and it should be written in a way that is easy to read and comprehend.
Using confusing or ambiguous language – Your readers should be able to easily figure out what you mean, even if they don’t agree with your points.
Remember: writing good content is literally all you need to do, regardless of your writing style or the type of content you’re writing. Now, while writing good content is important, and it is crucial to have a strategy in place for how you will promote and distribute your content, it is even more important to be writing great content that is useful and beneficial to your readers.
If you can nail down these basics, your copy will be great. And once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you’ll be able to introduce more creative elements into your content to further captivate and hold your reader’s attention.
Using confusing or ambiguous language – Your readers should be able to easily figure out what you mean, even if they don’t agree with your points.
Final Words: Going from Good to Great at UX Copywriting
Remember: writing good content is literally all you need to do, regardless of your writing style or the type of content you’re writing. Now, while writing good content is important, and it is crucial to have a strategy in place for how you will promote and distribute your content, it is even more important to be writing great content that is useful and beneficial to your readers.
If you can nail down these basics, your copy will be great. And once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you’ll be able to introduce more creative elements into your content to further captivate and hold your reader’s attention.
