# UX writing at Wix | Dan Kornberg UX writing at Wix · UX writer → lead UX writer **Before I built AI tools, I wrote the words Wix users click.** UX writing and content design at Wix, from CRM tools to leading content for Wix Studio. Pick a story. - **Wix Studio:** content lead from the first concepts with the CEO and CMO through launch - **10+** CRM and business products, from ideation through launch - **70+** writers using the library I structured ## In a manager’s words > “Dan is an asset to any organization he works for. He is extremely thoughtful and passionate, and is serious about developing as a professional every single day. Dan is not afraid of tricky situations, and he is willing to put in the extra effort needed to rise to any business challenge, and to develop his role beyond its initial boundaries; so that he can contribute meaningfully to business goals. > Despite working on numerous technically challenging products, Dan is always able to rapidly assimilate information and develop subject matter expertise. As a user experience and product professional he is adept at anticipating the likely challenges faced by end-users and at offering novel solutions to help resolve them. He can argue persuasively in support of the outcomes he believes in, whilst always collaborating effectively with his teammates and wider stakeholders. > As a writer and content strategist he has grown tremendously in the time he’s spent working within the SAAS space, such that he now has the ability to contribute enormously to any team he works with. Lastly, Dan always goes above and beyond in seeking to deliver meaningful value to end-users and enrich their user experience.” **Dan Wolfsmith**Former Head of UX Writers at Wix, who managed me directly · LinkedIn recommendation, 2021 Wix Studio · 2023 ## Content lead for Wix Studio, from concept to launch Wix’s top priority in 2023 was to create a robust solution for professionals: Wix Studio, a platform for agencies and freelancers who build sites for clients. Wix’s CEO called it “the biggest thing we’ve done since switching to HTML5 in 2012.” I had the opportunity to spearhead the content design efforts and oversee content as a whole, making sure Marketing, Knowledge Base, UX, Education, and Customer Care were all aligned. ### My part - I was the only writer to take part in the early stages. With a small team of PMs, designers, developers, and analysts, we created the concepts for company management: we defined the objectives, proposed the experience, and outlined a possible business model for a brand-new platform that would live alongside the existing Wix platform. - We were a task force of 3 PMs and 3 UX designers, reporting directly to the CEO and CMO. Once the concept was approved, our product team became the engine of the project, and I stayed the focal point for content efforts until the rollout. - I reviewed and edited an unprecedented number of high-priority features and products in the span of a few months. - I created a glossary for the new platform and made sure it was followed in every single screen and touchpoint. - I influenced information hierarchy, design, and product strategy, and aligned Marketing, Knowledge Base, technical writers, and of course UX writers. 1. Feb 2023 Concepts for management 2. Aug 2023 Phase 1 released 3. Dec 2023 Phase 2 released ### The biggest challenge: getting dozens of writers on the same page With so many product, marketing, and engineering teams working at the same time and against the clock, it was very difficult, and crucial, to make sure every writer had the information they needed, when they needed it. There was no time for mistakes. Dev teams had ambitious goals, and we needed to understand the product better than anyone to push for a clear, intuitive information hierarchy and product behavior. **Not asking for permission to lead.**As the focal group, the Wix Partners design lead, product lead, and I oversaw every decision made across content, design, and product logic, and made sure everything was aligned with our vision and with other teams’ work. The role was technically ours as leads, but we took it further, pushing back on other teams directly or supporting them when needed. **The Wix Studio workspace at the phase 1 release.** Two decisions from this project: [Account vs. Workspace](../account-workspace/), and [moving every Partner to Wix Studio](../partner-move/). Wix Studio · terminology ## “Account” meant two things. I made it mean one. On the existing platform, “Account” meant both a single user and a group of users sharing sites and domains. Wix Studio was replacing Team Accounts with Workspaces, which made it the moment to fix that. Working on the project from scratch let me revamp our existing user-facing glossary for Wix while defining a new one for Wix Studio. Before **Account** = one user **Account** = a team sharing sites After **Account** = one user **Workspace** = a team sharing sites ### The decision I pushed for using Account for the individual user, and always using Workspace or Workspace Team for the group of users. ### Why it was hard This had implications for many teams, and the alignment had to be implemented in every touchpoint, including the APIs and their documentation. More on terminology at scale: [the Writers Guild glossary system](../../../projects/glossary/). Wix Studio · migration messaging ## Moving every Partner to a new platform Every Partner was moving from the Partner Dashboard to Wix Studio. Whatever the announcement said, people had one question: what happens to my sites? Before the switch After the switch ### What the messages do - Lead with the change and the date: the Partner Dashboard is replaced in 30 days. - Say what’s new in three lines, in agency terms: one workspace, client handover, more ways to build sites. - Answer the real worry under “What stays the same”: sites, data, subscriptions, benefits, and the Wix Editor. - Give people who aren’t agencies or freelancers a way out. - After the switch, reassure first, then point to the next step. Wix Partners · lead UX writer ## How content fixed a leaky sign-up funnel In Q4 of 2021, Wix management decided the Partners group would become a company focus. The group builds products for users who create sites for clients. Key roles went to new people: I was promoted to the group’s lead UX writer, alongside a new Head of Group, Head of Product, and lead UX designer. One of the first items on my agenda was to map and improve every bit of copy in the product: dozens of screens, empty states, error messages, and hard-to-find nooks and crannies. To my surprise, the content on one of the most important screens in my domain was lacking. It affected many of our KPIs, so I was excited to take it on. ### The problem It wasn’t clear right off the bat that this was a sign-up for the Wix Partner Program, or that the program was for people who create websites for clients. Anyone who runs a business would find a central place to manage clients and workflows appealing. There was a lot of text on the screen, but it didn’t drive the point home, and the value wasn’t tailored to the audience. Potential partners **100%** Reached the sign-up **About 20%** Joined the program **3.5%** Each month, we identified users as potential partners (basically, people who build websites for others). Only 18% of those who saw the form completed it, so only 3.5% of potential partners joined. ### Before and after Before After ### What changed, and why Each number is one of my notes from the time. Hover or tap one to see what it’s about. 1. 1 **The entry point**The previous CTA was “Partner Dashboard.” The new entry point, “Become a Partner,” makes more sense for users who aren’t partners yet. I also added a first-time hint to draw potential partners’ attention when it appears in their top bar. 2. 2 **The header**It helps users understand what it means to be a partner at a glance. Do you build websites for clients? This is for you. Let us help you succeed. 3. 3 **The sub-header**It includes three terms partners commonly use to describe themselves and their business. The line breaks on purpose, so the word “free” is easy to scan. 4. 4 **The bullets**Bulleted lists are easy to scan. I ordered them based on data and insights from our Business Analysts, the Marketing team, and Customer Success agents. 5. 5 **The title and CTA**Titles and CTAs should carry most of the message on their own, even if users don’t read any of the text in between. Here, they do just that. 6. 6 **The form**We made it optional. It wasn’t necessary friction, and getting this data at this point wasn’t important enough to lower the conversion rate. Wix · CRM and business tools ## The whole company redid its error messages. I had the most products. After Wix’s CEO emailed about a bad error message in production, every team was asked to redo its error messages, with the Writers Guild leading the effort. ### My part - I was the writer covering the most products at Wix at the time, with the highest ratio of PMs and engineers per writer. - I worked with 10+ R&D teams and dozens of back-end and front-end developers. - Together we mapped hundreds of error messages: their frequency, cause, solution, and the UX/UI. - Outdated or generic messages turned into helpful ones that give users a way out and follow Wix’s voice and tone. Message How often Cause Rewrite “Something went wrong.” High Payment provider timed out “We couldn’t reach your payment provider. Try again in a minute.” “Error 400.” Medium Required field left empty “Add a phone number to save this contact.” Example rows, not real Wix messages. The real map had hundreds. Years later I took on the same problem with AI, in the [writing agents and skills](../../../projects/ux-writing-agents/). Wix · UX writer ## The words small businesses run on For almost three years I wrote UX content for 10+ CRM and business management tools, from ideation through launch. A few of them: **Inbox onboarding**: This onboarding flow was designed to ease pain points and fix discoverability issues. Management was hesitant about opening it to users, but we did our homework and I stood behind it. The result: green numbers across the board, with several KPIs up by 5% or more. **Forms: conditional rules**: The PM, the designer, and I worked together from day one. We went from mocks to developer handoff in under a month, then ran quick usability tests before launch. **Business phone number**: From the first pitch to choosing a number, adding call agents, and setting up forwarding. **Invoices and quotes**: Settings and templates for the documents businesses send to get paid. **Contacts**: Importing contacts from a file or Gmail, and merging duplicates without losing anything. **Automations**: Triggers and actions in plain words, for people who’ve never set up an automation. Wix · Writers Guild ## One library for 70+ writers With more than 70 UX writers across Wix, keeping language, terminology, and best practices aligned was hard. ### What I did I met with several third-party services to find a tool that fit Wix’s needs, and oversaw everything from the demo calls to the structuring and curation of the library, and finally the technical implementation and adoption by writers for a pilot. ### The call Our conclusion was that it was too soon for a third-party tool. We decided to keep the library in our knowledge base platform until it was extensive enough for an advanced tool. Wix · Writers Guild ## I built a course to teach writers how code works When I joined Wix, I often found myself trying to decipher developers’ messages and Jira tickets. The recurring questions in our writers’ Slack channel assured me I wasn’t the only one. ### What I did With management’s blessing, I set out to gather knowledge, meet R&D and CMS experts, and outline a 4-part, 12-hour course: 1. Part 1 Intro to code and a web glossary 2. Part 2 Translations in code 3. Part 3 GitHub: repos, versions, and JSON files 4. Part 4 How a string travels from code to the live product ### The result It was attended by all writers over three runs, and parts of it were added to the UX writing onboarding process. More teaching: [talks and workshops](../../../projects/talks/).