Daily UX Writing Challenges:

I participated in a Writing Challenge offered by the UX Writers Hub. We were asked to write microcopy (pop-up’s, push notifications, etc.) to assist users with certain Apps. The companies are fictitious -so Voice is suggested based on the services/function it’s offering. Here are a few sample mockups.

Game Reminder

A working parent is a big football fan but has to miss a lot of games. Write a mobile ad for a sports app that offers game reminders, real-time, score updates, & video highlights for a chosen team.

Contact Delivery SERP & Meta description

Write a SERP title & meta description for a contact lens delivery service that aims to assist older shoppers.

Error Message

Write an error message letting a user know that his credit card has expired on a car rental App & he needs to update it.

Flight Cancellation Alert

Write a message that will notify a flight passenger that his flight has been cancelled due to inclement weather, & that he’s been rebooked on the next available flight.

Emergency Alert

Send a phone alert to a user to notify him that there is a partially contained fire within a 10 block radius that may be blocking certain roads.

Delayed Shipment Alert

A user has ordered a gift on an e-commerce App to be delivered for Christmas. Write a notification telling the user the package is delayed and won’t arrive until Christmas Eve.

Comments

An interstitial ad will demand the user’s full attention for a moment.

“Count me in” is meant to sound encouraging without requiring much commitment. It runs the risk of being too vague.

Voice: The App generally projects the persona of someone who is outgoing & competitive, but also light-hearted.

Comments

The title & description deliver info in clear, simple pros. Key words like ‘fast’ & ‘deliver!’ are used. Phone support is mentioned to target an older demographic.

Voice: I researched several contact delivery services to get a sense of Voice. 1-800-CONTACTS has a distinct, silly persona, but most shops are merely straight-forward, clear & direct. This doesn’t appear to be a service that wants or needs a strong personality.

Comments

An error message of this nature is often in red notation to draw the user’s attention to the problem. It’s more intuitive & obvious than a pop-up notification would be.

The goal is to gently nudge the user to correct the problem quickly & easily. It tries to minimize this pain point.

Voice: Trying to infuse personality into such a small request runs the risk of distracting & even annoying the user.

Comments

A push notification would alert the user regardless of whether he checks his flight status. For the airline to do this, the user would have had to download the App & consent to notifications.

Voice: Regardless of their brand, airlines are notoriously stiff-lipped & non-contrite when it comes to delayed or canceled flights. They’re not likely to infuse much personality or emotion into this negative (all too common) announcement. Instead, the message tries to be as direct & clear as possible.

Comments

This alert would also need to be a push notification. Legally, it would have to come from the Emergency Alert System (EAS), a national warning system used by federal & state officials to broadcast wireless emergency alerts (WEA’s).

WEA’s are limited to 360 characters & must stipulate the type/time of alert & any necessary action. They have unique sounds & vibrations.

Voice: WEA’s are meant to be direct & blunt to incite caution but not panic.

Comments

This notice needs to arrive as a push notification -so that the user is alerted to the problem even if he doesn’t open the App.

The message tries to alleviate a pain point & make the user smile. But it runs the risk of backfiring and sounding facetious if the gift is an important one.

Voice: The e-commerce site aims to be light-hearted, fun, & confident. Most of its sales are relatively small consumer goods.

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