{"id":4380,"date":"2020-06-29T09:00:45","date_gmt":"2020-06-29T13:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/ux\/?p=4380"},"modified":"2020-06-27T17:57:10","modified_gmt":"2020-06-27T21:57:10","slug":"the-poetics-of-product-copy-what-ux-writers-can-learn-from-poetry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.mozilla.org\/ux\/2020\/06\/the-poetics-of-product-copy-what-ux-writers-can-learn-from-poetry\/","title":{"rendered":"The Poetics of Product Copy: What UX Writers Can Learn From Poetry"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Excerpts: \u201cThis Is Just To Say\u201d by William Carlos Williams and a Firefox error\u00a0message<\/p><\/div><\/figure>\n

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Word nerds make their way into user experience (UX) writing from a variety of professional backgrounds. Some of the more common inroads are journalism and copywriting. Another, perhaps less expected path is poetry.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a UX content strategist, but I spent many of my academic years studying and writing poetry. As it turns out, those years weren\u2019t just enjoyable\u200a\u2014\u200athey were useful preparation for designing product copy.<\/p>\n

Poetry and product copy wrestle with similar constraints and considerations. They are each often limited to a small amount of space and thus require an especially thoughtful handling of language that results in a particular kind of grace.<\/p>\n

While the high art of poetry and the practical, business-oriented work of UX are certainly not synonymous, there are some key parallels to learn from as a practicing content designer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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1. Both consider the human experience closely<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Poets look closely at the human experience. We use the details of the personal to communicate a universal truth. And how <\/em>that truth is communicated\u200a\u2014\u200athe context, style, and tone\u200a\u2014\u200areflect the culture and moment in time. When a poem makes its mark, it hits a collective nerve.<\/p>\n

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\u201cTired\u201d by Langston\u00a0Hughes<\/p><\/div><\/figure>\n

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Like poetry, product copy looks closely at the human experience<\/strong>, and its language reflects the culture from which it was born. As technology has become omnipresent in our lives, the language of the interface has, in turn, become more conversational. \u201c404 Not Found\u201d messages are (ideally) replaced with plain language. Emojis and Hmm<\/em>s are sprinkled throughout the digital experience, riding the tide of memes and tweets that signify an increasingly informal culture. You can read more about the relationship between technology and communication in Erika Hall\u2019s seminal work, Conversational Design<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

While the topic at hand is often considerably less exalted than that of poetry, a UX writer similarly considers the details of a moment in time.<\/strong> Good copy is informed by what the user is experiencing and feeling\u200a\u2014\u200athe frustration of a failed page load or the success of a saved login\u200a\u2014\u200aand crafts content sensitive to that context.<\/p>\n

Product copy strikes the wrong<\/em> note when it fails to be empathetic to that moment<\/strong>. For example, it\u2019s unhelpful to use technical jargon or make a clever joke when a user encounters a dead end. This insensitivity is made more acute if the person is using the interface to navigate a stressful life event, like filing for leave when a loved one is ill. What they need in that moment is plain language and clear instructions on a path forward.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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2. They make sense of complexity with\u00a0language<\/h2>\n

Poetry helps us make sense of complexity through language. We turn to poetry to feel our way through dark times\u200a\u2014\u200athe loss of a loved one or a major illness\u200a\u2014\u200aand to commemorate happy times\u200a\u2014\u200anew love, the beauty of the natural world. Poetry finds the words to help us understand an experience and (hopefully) move forward.<\/p>\n

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Excerpt: \u201cToad\u201d by Diane Seuss<\/p><\/div>

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UX writers also use the building blocks of language to help a user move forward<\/strong> and through an experience. UX writing requires a variety of skills, including the ability to ask good questions, to listen well, to collaborate, and to conduct research. The foundational skill, however, is using language to bring clarity to an experience. Words are the material UX writers use to co-create experiences with designers, researchers, and developers.<\/p>\n

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Excerpt of a screen for Firefox users to report an issue with a browser extension. The flow enables the user to report an extension, troubleshoot issues, and remove the extension. Co-created with designer Philip Walmsley<\/a>.<\/p><\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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3. Words are selected carefully within a small\u00a0canvas<\/h2>\n

\u201cPoetry is your best source of deliberate intentional language that has nothing to do with your actual work. Reading it will descale your mind, like vinegar in a coffee maker.\u201d<\/em>\u200a\u2014\u200aConversational Design, Erika Hall<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Poetry considers word choice carefully. And, while poetry takes many forms and lengths, its hallmark is brevity. Unlike a novel, a poem can begin and end on one page, or even a few words. The poet often uses language to get the reader to pause and reflect.<\/p>\n

Product copy should help users complete tasks. <\/strong>Clarity trumps conciseness, but we often find that fewer words\u200a\u2014\u200aor no words at all\u200a\u2014\u200aare what the user needs to get things done. While we will include additional language and actions to add friction to an experience when necessary, our goal in UX writing is often to get out of the user\u2019s way. In this way, while poetry has a slowing function, product copy can have a streamlining function.<\/p>\n

Working within these constraints requires UX writers to also consider each word very carefully. A button that says \u201cOkay!\u201d can mean something very different, and has a different tone, than a button that says, \u201cSubmit.\u201d Seemingly subtle changes in word choice or phrasing can have a big impact, as they do in poetry.<\/p>\n

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Left: Early draft of a recommendation panel for the Firefox Pin Tab feature. Right: final copy, which does not include the descriptors \u201ctap strip\u201d or \u201ctab bar\u201d because users might not be familiar with these terms. A small copy change like using \u201copen in a tab\u201d instead of \u201ctab strip\u201d can have a big impact on user comprehension. Co-created with designer Amy Lee<\/a>.<\/p><\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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4. Moment and\u00a0movement<\/h2>\n

Reading a poem can feel like you are walking into the middle of a conversation. And you have\u200a\u2014\u200athe poet invites you to reflect on a moment in time, a feeling, a place. And yet, even as you pause, poetry has a sense of moment\u200a\u2014\u200ametaphor and imagery connect and build quickly in a small amount of space. You tumble over one line break on to the next.<\/p>\n

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Excerpt: \u201cBedtime Story\u201d by Franny Choi<\/p><\/div>

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Product copy captures a series of moments in time. <\/strong>But, rather than walking into a conversation, you are initiating it and participating in it. One of the hallmarks of product copy, in contrast to other types of professional writing, is its movement\u200a\u2014\u200ayou aren\u2019t writing for a billboard, but for an interface that is responsive and conditional.<\/p>\n

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The installation flow for the browser extension, Tabby Cat, demonstrates the changing nature of UX copy. Co-created with designer Emanuela Damiani<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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5. Form is considered<\/h2>\n

Poetry communicates through language, but also through visual presentation. Unlike a novel, where words can run from page to page like water, a poet conducts flow more tightly in its physical space. Line breaks are chosen with intention. A poem can sit squat, crisp and contained as a haiku, or expand like Allen Ginsburg\u2019s Howl<\/a> across the page, mirroring the wild discontent of the counterculture movement it captures.<\/p>\n

Product copy is also conscious of space, and uses it to communicate a message. <\/strong>We parse and prioritize UX copy into headers and subheadings. We chunk explanatory content into paragraphs and bullet points to make the content more consumable.<\/p>\n

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The introductory note for the Firefox Notes extension uses type size, bold text, and bullet points to organize the instructions and increase scannability.<\/p><\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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6. Meaning can trump\u00a0grammar<\/h2>\n

Poetry often plays with the rules of grammar. Words can be untethered from sentences, floating off across the page. Sentences are uncontained with no periods, frequently enjambed.<\/p>\n

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Excerpt: \u201c[i carry your heart with me(i carry it in]\u201d by E. E.\u00a0Cummings<\/p><\/div><\/figure>\n

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In product writing, we also play with grammar. We assign different rules to text elements for purposes of clarity\u200a\u2014\u200afor example, allowing fragments for form labels and radio buttons. While poetry employs these devices to make<\/em> meaning, product writing bends or breaks grammar rules so content doesn\u2019t get in the way <\/em>of meaning\u200a\u2014\u200aexcessive punctuation and title case can slow a reader down, for example.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile mechanics and sentence structure are important, it\u2019s more important that your writing is clear, helpful, and appropriate for each situation<\/em>.\u201d\u200a\u2014\u200aMichael Metts and Andy Welfle, <\/em>Writing is Designing<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Closing thoughts, topped with truffle\u00a0foam<\/h2>\n

While people come to this growing profession from different fields, there\u2019s no \u201cright\u201d one that makes you a good UX writer.<\/p>\n

As we continue to define and professionalize the practice, it\u2019s useful to reflect on what we can incorporate from our origin fields. In the case of poetry, key points are constraint and consideration. Both poet and product writer often have a small amount of space to move the audience\u200a\u2014\u200aemotionally, as is the case for poetry, and literally as is the case for product copy.<\/p>\n

If we consider the metaphor of baking, a novel would be more like a Thanksgiving meal. You have many hours and dishes to choreograph an experience. Many opportunities to get something wrong or right. A poem, and a piece of product copy, have just one chance to make an impression and do their work.<\/p>\n

In this way, poetry and product copy are more like a single scallop served at a Michelin restaurant\u200a<\/strong>\u2014\u200abut one that has been marinated in carefully chosen spices, and artfully arranged with a puff of lemon truffle foam and Timut pepper reduction. Each element in this tiny concert of flavors carefully, painstakingly composed.<\/p>\n

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Acknowledgements<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thank you to Michelle Heubusch and Betsy Mikel<\/a> for your review.<\/p>\n

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