UI microcopy + content design recommendations

CHALLENGE: The final project for the UX Writers Collective certification included reviewing mockups for a fictional app and prepping copy for a design review. The Handshake app is a project management and billing tool that helps freelancers and business owners collaborate on projects. Both user types share the app to track progress and payments.

PROCESS: Screens were provided without any collaboration (not ideal), so when possible I rewrote copy to the original design and provided recommendations where interactions were broken or could be improved. To kick things off, I mapped a few brand personality traits and landed on a rough outline of the Handshake brand voice as Friendly, Encouraging, Innovative, and Reliable. This wasn’t the point of the exercise, but voice/tone groundwork was necessary to give context and direction to the copy changes.

MY ROLE:

Review/rewrite all microcopy for Handshake app user flows
Provide feedback and recommendations where design/tasks need improvement

Sign Up Flow

Here’s where we start to see the brand voice come to life in the microcopy: An edited welcome screen summarizes benefits for both user groups, and encouraging copy (Let’s get to work!) help move our users through the project creation process. The Sign In screen seems to favor new users and skips important info for forgotten password/user names and alternate log in options, so my final recommendation was to redefine that interaction.

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Project Set Up Flow

The experience for business owners and freelancers starts to diverge in the set up flows. Without a list of product requirements, I focused on reorganizing and rewriting the existing content for clarity. Specific effort was put into focusing screen titles and button text on specific tasks while remaining conversational. The success message at the end of the flow injects more brand personality and moves users on to the project screens.

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Ongoing Use

The original screens for both users groups were significantly different, making the experience quite confusing. I spent the majority of my time mapping content to each user’s specific needs and making sure there wasn’t any missing content, which translated into some significant changes. For the Project Overview, I wanted to ensure that both user groups could collaborate and change the scope of the project; it was also the most natural space to include the app’s messaging system. The Hours and Payments screens focus first on the main action (entering hours, sending or receiving payments) and secondarily on tracking progress/payment history. My final recommendation was to collaborate on product requirements that could help solidify tasks for each user group and make design changes to the UI accordingly.

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Messaging

My main goal for the messaging function of the app was to edit copy for clarity, consistency, and efficiency within the design provided. Overall I think the design here is missing opportunities to streamline and replace some of the copy with thoughtful design elements.