User Experience, also known as UX writing, is a critical field in the technological age. As customers and potential customers interact with more brands on digital touchpoints, more local brands need to grow resources and understanding of this area. After all, customers encounter UX writing on every app and website.

What is UX Writing?

“UX writing is the practice of designing the words people see and hear when they interact with software. It’s about designing the conversation between a product and its user,” explains Lisa Sanchez. While the area feels very technical, it’s ultimately writing. This means that the qualities that make writing good in general, still apply. These include:

• Clarity
• Consistency
• Precision
• Self-awareness
• Editing and revisions
• Context and relevance to your audience

How does UX writing work?

UX writing is specialised because of the context and environment it’s typically produced in. Software presents its own unique constraints. When a customer is on a brand’s mobile app, they need the content to be extremely concise while still communicating a lot of meaning. So it works together with visual design and the design of how the user will interact with the platform, to create a win-win for users and brands.

UX writing has to be very accessible to a wide range of people, and it must be inclusive. It’s best practice for it to be easily translatable too, allowing it to be localised. As many as people should have a great experience, whether navigating with eyes or ears, or working with a disability.

UX writing is typical in the context of software and tech companies, but every digital agency should be equipped with the skills.

Where does branding fit?

UX design doesn’t stand alone, and it’s not just marketing. It supports the big picture and must always reinforce who the brand says it is, and what it’s trying to achieve. This means it must always ask:

• Is the language, tone and voice in the writing correlating to the brand’s? Does it fit into the direction the brand is heading in? For example, the UX that suits a very traditional brand in the financial sector would differ from the approach to a youth-oriented platform.
• What are the needs, goals and concerns of the brand? Has the UX writing helped to address them for the benefit of what the brand is trying to achieve?
• Who are the stakeholders that would approve or contribute to any potential changes? What needs, goals and concerns do they have?

Always remember that credibility is the backbone of a strong brand reputation. This means it filters down to the smallest moving parts regarding all brand touchpoints.

Stephanie Taderera is a Content Executive at Magna Carta Reputation Management Consultants. To learn more about how we can help your brand’s reputation, contact us today.