There’s nothing more infuriating than spending time on a website or app that is unintuitive and confusing to navigate. How do I go back to the previous page? What does ‘error: invalid data’ mean? Why do they need both my phone number and my email? Given the negative experience, it is very unlikely you will return and may even switch providers to avoid the convoluted mess that isn’t worth your time and patience at all.
Conversely, you may have had a more positive experience with other websites. Getting from A to Z was a clear, smooth journey and you knew exactly what was going on, and what you needed to do next, every step of the way. You gained confidence in the brand, and became more agreeable to completing extra steps such as providing personal information in exchange for a free trial or a newsletter signup.
Both experiences are built on research, content strategy, and design. Although it may seem like some platforms were dreamt up and implemented in a drunken stupor, the entire process is geared towards getting the user to complete a specific task or action. With the right words and design in place, users are left satisfied, and brands can reap the benefits in the long run and consistently hit their business objectives.
If you are looking for ways to increase conversions and generate leads, focusing on the microcopy of your website or app is a good way to start. These bits of text are essentially signposts and guides for your users that exist in the notifications, error messages and tool tips of your website (just to name a few!) and as they act as a bridge between the product and the consumer.
Microcopy is often ignored in the re-design process, but it is an effective and low-cost way of motivating action, increasing engagement and ultimately improving the ROI of your business.
Good microcopy pays off
Done correctly, microcopy can make or break a user’s experience on your website or app. Improving the microcopy of your site is a cheap and effective way to give your sales a boost. It costs much less than designing a new UX or developing a new functionality. It is also cheaper than hiring more sales reps to hit your KPIs and to provide user support.
For a low cost, microcopy can have a major positive impact on your business. Here’s how:
Eliminating fear and uncertainty during product experience. Many products have a learning curve that may be tricky for some users to navigate. Giving them a helping hand with clear messaging and reassurance can make the product experience a successful one.
For example, signing up for a Stripe account includes the option to receive emails about product updates.
Knowing that they can unsubscribe at any time is an assuring thought for the user, if they are curious about learning more about the company without committing to it. This may make users more likely to trust the sign up process and complete it.
Empathising with the user. Good microcopy isn’t just helpful. It is the end product of a thoughtful design process that thinks about the user at every step of the way.
Tumblr’s sign up form comes with a helpful pop up, reassuring the user that they can always change their usernames later down the line. Anticipating their questions and phrasing them in a friendly, conversational way makes for a smooth user experience.
Humanizing the product. Giving your product its own brand and voice is a good way to engage with your users, as the entire experience becomes highly interactive.
Food and drinks company Rude Health nails this by injecting a fun and informative voice in all their product descriptions and website.
When done well, humour is a great way to bond with your users and make them more agreeable to take action, whether that is signing up for a newsletter or recovering a password.
Driving engagement and increasing sales. Sometimes, hitting your business objectives is just a case of changing 2-3 words around. Google saw that users who arrived at this screen were still not ready to commit to making a reservation for a hotel room – they were just casually browsing. “Book a room” therefore didn’t speak to them. After changing it to “Check availability”, the engagement increased by 17%.
The challenges of microcopy
Great microcopy can’t deliver results on its own. Diving straight into writing great words is like trying to decide what paintings to hang on the wall of a new house before the foundations are even built.
To get the most out of it, be sure to pay attention to the entire UX design process, and allow content to play a big role from the start.
Some points worth taking note of:
Don’t re-educate the user
Explain your products and services in clear and conversational tones. If you have to use technical terms, be sure to include a tool tip or explanatory copy to avoid throwing the user off. The key here is to ensure things are said in an approachable and friendly manner that makes it easy for your users to relate and connect.
Translation and Localization
When it comes to translation, be sure that the design is pliable enough to accommodate various language. The same word or phrase may take drastically less or more space in one language than another. Keep an eye out for metaphors and humour too – we want to ensure the meaning is translated clearly with the exact context and intention.
Find your copy solution
Whether you are working alongside a professional writer or completing it inhouse, working on your site’s microcopy is an often-overlooked way of optimising your products and services. Making the experience a smooth and engaging one for your users will help increase brand loyalty and conversion. Your revenue and ROI will go up, especially since it was all done by microcopy which we know is extremely cost-effective.
So start looking at how competitors are faring with their microcopy game. What can you learn from them, and how can you improve?
Need expert advice on your site’s microcopy and design process? We’d be happy to help!