p.s. Did you know we have a Slack community for UX localization? Join right here – and don't forget to join the relevant language-specific channels, too. Can't wait to see you there!
More to read
Great localization content in your inbox. Unsubscribe anytime.
A few months ago I got a lovely gift: A watch. It may have been a hint. I used to be a punctual person, but with an overloaded plate of routine tasks, I might have teensy-bit neglected my commitment to timeliness lately. But anyway. It was a nice watch and I liked to wear it, and be the person people came to for time advice.
That joy lasted for a while, but then... The watch tragically stopped working. And that meant I had to do one of my least favorite things in the world... Reach out to customer care. You already know I'm a content person. And the fact is that many companies have got gorgeous front-room content. Beautiful ad copy. Glorious site wording. Marvelous checkout texts. But then, once customers make the purchase, there's a significant drop in content quality.
🔵 The templates are often poorly written, are so far from the brand voice they may be on another planet, and are full of grammar mistakes.
🔵 The people editing those templates (customer service reps) are often not fully fluent in the language they're meant to be writing in.
🔵 Localization makes this worse, as the already-poor source makes for a bad starting point, and there's rarely enough context provided as templates are meant to fit many cases and get adapted later. This is the response I got this time, from this Spanish watch company.
The fact is that to create a great experience for our customers and users, we need to embrace a 360 approach - for both source and localized content. Yes, you can start with one piece of the puzzle. Real improvement is incremental. But in your long-term plans, you should always strive to have every single touch point on-brand and strategically phrased. Post-purchase content or edge case copy are just as critical, and can have a huge impact on things like stickiness, retention, and more.
So in this newsletter, I wanted to send over some resources on creating content for those areas. I hope these will help you place the spotlight on some neglected gaps in your company's content.
So in this newsletter, I wanted to send over some resources on creating content for those areas. I hope these will help you place the spotlight on some neglected gaps in your company's content.
Six localization tips for multilingual customer support Gabriel Fairman for BureauWorks
Content design and legalese: Collaboration within constraints Panel by the UX Writing Hub
Improving the help center experience with user-centered design Sulaimon Salako for UXCC
When life gives you lemons, write better error messages Jenni Nadler for Wix UX
Writing user feedback requests: Five guidelines Anna Kaley for Nielsen Norman Group
Boost conversions with transactional emails: A dummy guide Samavia Malikfor Unlayer
Are there any other often-neglected touchpoints you think should be covered?
The 360 experience [23/11/23 newsletter]
A few months ago I got a lovely gift: A watch. It may have been a hint. I used to be a punctual person, but with an overloaded plate of...
Michal Kessel Shitrit
|
22/11/23