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UX Writers Weekly Issue #4:
Mom, I’m a UX Writer
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| In this week’s heart warming issue, we’re giving you a letter addressed to your mom explaining what a UX Writer is. Hope you won’t need to break out the Kleenex.
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Dear Mom,
It’s December now, so you know what that means—one
big family dinner behind us with more on the way. As much as I love seeing everyone and all the yummy food, our last gathering was a bit of a struggle for me as I tried to explain my career. So I wanted to write you this letter to try and set the record straight. Mom, I’m a UX Writer.
Like every Mom, you probably used to think about what your kids would become: a life-saving doctor, a brilliant lawyer, maybe a genius nuclear physicist. I didn’t turn out to be any of those things, but I want to let you know that my profession is important and has the potential to impact the daily
lives of millions of people, which is pretty cool, right? By the end of this letter I hope you’ll be able to proudly explain to all the ladies at the hair salon exactly what it is that I do.
You know how your smartphone has all those apps on it? Gmail for emails, Spotify for music, Booking for hotels. Well my job is to make sure the person using those apps (what we call the user) has the best possible experience.
Get it? UX = User Experience.
And a great experience usually means an easy one, like how little kids or even Nana can use and iPad.
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The Art of Making Things “Easy to Use”
Remember how Grandpa used to
always throw out the instructions when we were kids? Remember how we would always have to go get them out of the trash after he put it together wrong?
That’s because instructions are important. From cavemen who painted on cave walls, to IKEA instructions so easy even a caveman could follow them, instructions make it possible to use all the products and devices in our lives. So part of what I do is write the instructions for using your favorite apps. But in the apps, the instructions are built right in so Grandpa can’t throw them away!
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| But besides the instructions, product designers (the people in charge of the User Experience) need to make what they build is as intuitive to use as possible.
Maybe when you hear the word “design” you think about making things look nice. But designing products isn’t about that at all. As Steve Jobs said:
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That’s why a tea cup is designed with a handle so you can hold it when it’s hot, or why Tupperware lids fit tight so nothing spills out. If it looks nice but doesn’t work right, it’s because of bad design. Just remember, the easier it is to use, the better the design.
You can check out the book called The Design of Everyday Things if you’re interested in learning more about it. |
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The Age of Digital Products
Today, tea cups, Tupperware, and toothbrushes aren’t the only types of products we use. Really, a product is anything that creates specific value for a group of people. That means the apps on your phone or the websites you use are also products. But they’re a different kind of product—a digital product.
Like regular products, we favor the digital products that work best. We use Google because they designed the best search engine. We use Facebook (well, some of us do) because they designed the best social network experience. Just like we wouldn’t use a tea cup without a handle or Tupperware with a lid that didn’t fit, we wouldn’t choose a poorly
designed digital product—whether we realize it or not.
So designing digital products is a pretty important job! Unfortunately, since it’s still a pretty new job, we don’t always know what to call it. Along with UX Writer and Product Designer, there are other names people use:
- Product Owner
- Product Manager
- User Experience and/or User Interface Designer (UX/UI Designer)
- Content Designer
- Content
Strategist
- UX Web Copywriter
- All Powerful UX Ninjacorn Warrior (OK, I made that one up)
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See Mom, you’re not the only one confused here. But even though there are some people out there (even in major tech companies) that still think product design is about making
aesthetically pleasing apps, you know better now. Of course there’s still more to it since product design is also about business analysis, research, psychology, marketing, and even software development. So much more than making pixels look pretty.
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Heart of the Matter
Hope you’re still with me Mom, ‘cause now were getting to the good stuff. Now that we know
what product design is all about, we can talk about what I do with myself all day.
I spend my days on a mission—a mission to create intuitive digital experiences for everyone. I do this by talking to people who use the digital products I work on, learning about what kind of problems they have when using them, and then making improvements accordingly.
You know how I’ve always been kind of a wordsmith, right? That means my superpower is creating intuitive digital experiences using the magic of words.
And you can be extra proud, because there isn’t a single place in the world (except the new, fully booked training program from UX writing hub) that teaches people this profession. Even though it was a struggle teaching myself a profession that didn’t even exist just a few years ago, it was worth it since countless companies are in need of it today.
So whether you call me a UX Writer, Content Strategist, or Product Designer, it doesn’t make much of a difference to me. As long as I get to work on my mission of having a positive impact on millions of people, I’m happy in my career choice.
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Why I Care so Much About UX Writing?
Now that so many aspects of our lives take place online, designing the digital products we use is a big responsibility. Here are just a few examples of what good UX Writing and product design looks like.
The writers of Zocdoc are doing an amazing job of making their website intuitive enough for people to order doctors online when they’re not feeling their best.
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At Lemonde, they make sure we have
a better experience getting instant insurance. Instead of the tired old process, Lemonade gives the user a digital web product that makes it super easy.
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The writers behind the experience at Google maps make sure that it’s easy for us to navigate the world and give us alerts when we cross state borders.
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| The list goes on and on and on.
At the end of the day, people choose the most intuitive and easy-to-use products. Part of what I do is massive amounts of research, deconstruct ideas, and
generate new ones to solve various problems in the product. UX Writers are always working to optimize and there is always room for improvement—so don’t worry about me being unemployed any time soon.
In fact, more and more companies are hiring people like me these days as they learn about the benefits of having a dedicated UX Writer on board.
I Promise to Do It Responsibly
Unfortunately, not all product designers and writers are saints and some are actually using their superpowers for evil. They manipulate their customers so that their companies can make extra cash. We call this dark UX design, but that’s a story for another day.
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So don’t worry, I promise that I’ll never go to the dark side; that’s not the kind of impact I want to have on people’s lives.
I hope that clears things up. I know I may not be a junior investment banker like the neighbor’s kid, but I think what I do is pretty special.
So thanks for being the best Mom ever and raising me to be who I am. I couldn’t have done it without you.
Hugs and kisses 💖💖💖
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Hi, Yuval here.
What an emotional issue! Hope you got some warm
fuzzies and had a blast reading it. Don’t forget to pass it on to your mom.
Or, if some of you want an actual snail mail letter delivered straight to your mom’s door, just reply with her name and address, and we will take care of the rest.
Next week we’re going to delve into the menacing world of dark UX patterns. Check your inbox and remember to “beware of the dark side.”
Love,
Yuval Keshtcher
UX Writing Hub
Microcopy & UX Writing
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UX Writing Hub, Merkaz bali hamelacha, 7628706 Tel Aviv, Israel
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