What A Trip To The Museum Can Teach Us About UX Copy
Use your keyboard arrows to view the story!
I was walking around Chicago on a freezing winter day when...
Perfect!..An escape from this weather.
...I found myself in front of the Natural History Museum.
Ahh...It's so warm in here!
INFORMATION
COAT CHECK
We will visualize our experience with the Cieden 'Flo-Meter'
Flow = User Journey
Finally I won't be needing these heavy clothes...
Great! there's the coat check..➡️
Today, We'll evaluate the user experience of a trip to the museum, with a focus on copywriting.
# UX INSIGHT
A user journey is the experiences a person has when using or interacting with a product or environment.
Creating user journey maps helps you keep user motivation at the front of your mind and create UX flows that get users where they want to go...
EXHIBITS
INFORMATION
# UX INSIGHT
Introduce familiar elements, such as arrows, finger points, or other pathways.
Just like the You are here marker on a map, positional cues help users to orient themselves within an information environment.
Always make sure to orient the user...
Ahh...that's more comfortable!
Let's check out what all there is to see here
YOU ARE HERE
➡️
EXTINCTION HALL
METAMORPHOSIS
SPECTRUM OF LIFE
Nice...they have some cool exhibits!
I like dinosaurs so let's see what's in Extinction Hall ➡️
They do this by utilizing user journey mapping, wayfinding cues, & structured districts...
# UX INSIGHT
Structured districts are the main categories into which we can divide an environment.
Logical, clear districts are important to helping users understand an information environment at its most basic level.
EXHIBITS
FOOD COURT
EXTINCTION HALL MAP
Museums must account for the many different intentions of visitors...
Let's head to the exhibit...➡️
...but the labels & layout can also be confusing & over-whelming...
WELCOME TO EXTINCTION HALL
Museum exhibits can be interesting and exciting places...
These can be just as helpful or 'deadly' in UX copy as they are on your trip to the museum...➡️
# MUSEUM INSIGHT
In Exhibit Labels: An Interpretive Approach, Beverly Serrell offers a list of Helpful Research, as well as “Deadly Sins" that should be avoided within museum copy...
# UX INSIGHT
UX Copy consists of all words and labels that provide people with decision-making clarity when interacting with a product or environment.
This acts as a Call To Action (CTA) that guides people to their next step...
Too much text! Too many clickable paths and too much formatting can negatively impact navigation.
Focus on reducing clutter, confusion, and cognitive workload.
Cognitive Workload...
🧠 Imagine your brain
💪 Is a muscle
ℹ️ And every pixel of information
🏋️ Is weight that needs to be lifted
# UX INSIGHT
My head hurts!
"Labels that are too long and wordy" is one of Beverly Serrell's 'Deadly Sins'.
Labels should be short and concise, more like a tweet than a tome.
Trim away non-essential information, and make every word count.
Exhibit Labels: An Interpretive Approach
# MUSEUM INSIGHT
Right off the bat, this wall of text was too much to process...
# UX INSIGHT
Keep the most important text first and then ruthlessly edit what comes after. This is called Front-loading.
If there is too much information, people tend to read the first few lines, or the shortest paragraph, then start just scanning down the text. ➡️
Here's a better example that's concise, fun, & informative...
# MUSEUM INSIGHT
Too much complexity and simplified content both can have the same result:
making a visitor feel stupid.
Clarity, on the other hand, results from a process that focuses on one big idea and helps all visitors feel competent.
Exhibit Labels: An Interpretive Approach
# UX INSIGHT
One of the significant characteristics of effective UX writing is clarity and simplicity.
For clarity, remove technical terms and use familiar, inclusive, and understandable words and phrases instead. ➡️
The Heat Is On
Metamorphic rocks are formed under extreme heat and pressure present deep within the Earth's crust.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
This is a good example of a difficult concept explained in familiar terms...
That's interesting!
Now this is confusing...
⬅️ Look To The Left
This complete T-Rex scull is one of the best preserved in the world...
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
# UX INSIGHT
Having information in the wrong place or the wrong information entirely is as good as no information at all, or worse!
If people misread something or overlook some direction, you have to change it. You can’t blame them! ➡️
Hmm...I don't see it on the left???
"If your space becomes a never ending list of restrictions – no photographs, no food and drink, no touching, no talking and so on – visitors will never feel relaxed nor engaged" - Beverly Serrell
Exhibit Labels: An Interpretive Approach
# MUSEUM INSIGHT
Touch The Mammoth Tusk
Tusks are teeth! These modified teeth are not used for chewing or biting but for gathering food, downing trees, attracting mates, intimidating rivals, and fighting.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
No No No
It's best to avoid negative language whenever possible...
Bummer...
# UX INSIGHT
A reader doesn't necessarily want to hear what they're lacking, they want to hear what they can have when using your product or service. So in your copy, aim to frame information positively, not negatively.
This ensures that the user is respected and cared for, and the desired behavior is achieved. ➡️
Tell the user what can be achieved...
"Labels with no apparent system of design and content to organize the messages, codes, or context." is another 'sin' of label design.
It's proven that labels with images and words working together are more attractive, meaningful, and memorable to more visitors than text-only labels. ➡️
Exhibit Labels: An Interpretive Approach
# MUSEUM INSIGHT
Many plant-eating dinosaurs laid round eggs...
Many meat-eating dinosaurs laid long, narrow eggs...
Now let's take a look at the hierarchy of a museum label & how it relates to UX copy...
Human beings are incredibly visual creatures. An ability to interpret visual information and cues is hard-wired into our brains. ➡️
# UX INSIGHT
A picture is worth a thousand words...
Many plant-eating dinosaurs laid round eggs...
Many meat-eating dinosaurs laid long, narrow eggs...
Organizing and formatting your text in such a way that readers or users can clearly see what’s most important, which enables them to easily navigate the layout at a glance and quickly scan to find the information they’re looking for. ➡️
# UX INSIGHT
What's the big idea?..
Many plant-eating dinosaurs laid round eggs...
Many meat-eating dinosaurs laid long, narrow eggs...
For organizing text into sections or grouping related information together. Sub text should clearly direct viewers to the different parts of the design and help them navigate easily. ➡️
# UX INSIGHT
Boosting clarity...
Many plant-eating dinosaurs laid round eggs...
Many meat-eating dinosaurs laid long, narrow eggs...
This is where the detailed information lives. This level could be long or short; a whole article, a short note, or a brief description.
The primary concern for this level is that it’s easy to read since the font size will likely be somewhat small. ➡️
# UX INSIGHT
Explain the details...
Many plant-eating dinosaurs laid round eggs...
Many meat-eating dinosaurs laid long, narrow eggs...
# CIEDEN SUMMARY
Before you go...If you have any questions about these concepts, feel free to reach out to us...
1) User Journey
2) Wayfinding
3) Structured Districts
4) Information Overload
5) Frontloading
6) Clarity & Simplicity
7) Accuracy
8) Structural Hierarchy
NAVIGATION
UX-COPY
Stay tuned for Part 2, where we'll bring these concepts into the digital world.