What is UX writing in e-commerce?

User experience (UX) writing is a relatively new term you may have come across. You may be familiar with the role of a content writer and what they can do for your e-commerce site in terms of marketing, but how exactly does a UX writer differentiate their craft and how can they improve the user experience of your e-commerce site? First, UX writing and copywriting are not the same thing. UX writing is a discipline that focuses on the experience and interaction between a website, app, or device and its user. UX writers use words and phrases designed to refine and facilitate the user experience. UX writing is concise, to the point, and useful, aiming to intuitively guide the user toward the final goal. Traditional copywriters, on the other hand, are less interested in user experience and more connected to the marketing aspect of a product, website, or app. UX writers, on the other hand, typically have nothing to do with advertising, sales, or marketing. One of the biggest hurdles a shopping website must overcome is creating the most seamless and frictionless process possible, and a UX writer's job is to do just that, very subtly. If you're wondering where you can find UX writing examples, take a look at any website or app and try to notice how the text is designed to guide the user. But what about UX writing for online shopping and e-commerce businesses? In this article, we'll explore how UX writing can improve your customer experience and why it's important for your online store:

1) Create easy communication

When it comes to writing UX for your e-commerce site, simple, clear, and easy-to-understand language is essential for successful sales. It's the UX writer's job to eliminate all the confusion and simplify the process that will lead your potential customer on a smooth and intuitive journey from the homepage to the checkout page, with a frictionless and confusing process. The easier the communication between your e-commerce site and your customers, the better the user experience will be.

2) Easy navigation

One of the biggest challenges an e-commerce website must overcome is eliminating as much friction as possible for customers. Friction is a term used to describe any point in the buyer's journey that complicates or confuses the checkout process; at that point, many potential customers who experience friction tend to abandon a purchase. A UX writer can help you avoid user frustration by creating simple navigation through a logical and organized navigation process throughout your site. When a potential customer wants to search your website, for example, the word "jersey" should serve as a catch-all phrase for the variety of jerseys on your site, making it easy for your customer to navigate and find what they need. A UX writer will help you organize your product categories so that users can find exactly what they need as quickly as possible, without any problems. A UX writer can also help you set up the ideal express checkout, determining the essential information you need for your customers and creating a payment system with the right words for a smooth and confusing user experience at checkout.

3) Create triggers

A UX writer can help you attract your customers by using carefully selected words on navigation buttons, designed to trigger your customers' desire to move forward, explore your site, and click the Buy button. Here are some examples of triggers you may have seen before:

Request Free Vouchers
Buy now
Add to cart

As simple as they may be, words like these encourage users to complete the right actions on your website, instilling confidence and even urgency in your buyers.

4) Keep things consistent

It's important to be slightly repetitive to avoid confusing users on your site. A UX writer will help you keep your website consistent in its wording and carefully select appropriate words and phrasing that will remain true to your brand and resonate well with your target market. The UX writer's job is to make certain chosen words as effective and familiar as possible to the user, and repetition is key.

5) Avoid empty carts

UX writing is strategic and well-crafted to harness the subtle power of suggestion. One such instance where UX writing can be particularly useful is the shopping cart section of your website. By now you know how an empty shopping cart can be the bane of a shopping website's existence, and a UX writer can help you develop a strategy to ensure you avoid them. The strategy is to make sure the user knows their cart is empty with a dialog that will direct the customer to products they can add to the cart. The next time you shop online, try looking at the words displayed in an empty cart. A great example of great UX writing can be found on the popular clothing site Zaful. They use the following UX copy for empty shopping carts:

"Your bag is empty!"
“Keep shopping”
"You might also like"

Simple, yet highly suggestive and persuasive, they include products at the bottom of the page based on the products the site has collected that it thinks you might want to add to your cart. An effective strategy for avoiding empty carts.

Conclusion

The UX writer's job is to create symbiotic and collaborative microcopy, taking into account the entire process of your online store so that every journey your customer takes is easy to use, to the point, and even fun. It's a subtle yet carefully considered process that takes into account the user journey and experience from start to finish. In the competitive world of e-commerce, it's crucial to create intuitive experiences for our users and ensure our website is easy to navigate and purchase without confusion or any type of hijacking. Creating a user-friendly and frictionless website can be one of the ways you can ensure repeat purchases, referrals, and a loyal customer base.

Contact us

There are many benefits of UX writing that we haven't been able to fully cover in this article. However, if you'd like to learn more and discuss UX writing for your online store, feel free to contact us here at Yastime. We help entrepreneurs like you build better and more successful e-commerce and dropshipping businesses. We don't just help you build the foundation, we also help you take your online business to the next level.

SHOPPING CART

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