ba.com writing style
Principles for FORMS v1
9 August 2012
Claire Neylan
User Experience Executive
ba.com and mobile delivery
What problems need to be resolved?
•
Mixed styles of language on forms – functional vs friendly
Some fields are just labelled, others offer direction or help
with a question. What is appropriate?
•
Variations of wording for the same label
Inconsistent approach to labelling - Last name or Family
name? Town/City or Address line 3?
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The BA brand behaviours
• Do things properly
Tell you what you need to know and make it simple and easy.
• Find solutions
Highlight the benefits and give you special tips like a friend would.
Look for opportunities to help you.
• Keep promises
Demonstrate that our service is added value and make travel special.
Make things relevant to each stage of travel.
• Treat everyone as an individual
Have a one-to-one conversation with you.
Tailor our service to you, from a Gold to a first timer.
• Look the part
Use images, design and a writing style that fits with our brand.
Demonstrate our personality in the online environment.
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Retail principles
•
Social proof
I go with the flow
•
Authority
I’m more likely to trust information if it’s communicated by an
expert
•
Scarcity
If it’s running out, I want it
•
Framing
I’m strongly influenced by the way prices are framed
•
Salience
My attention is drawn to what’s relevant to me right now
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Initial ba.com writing principles
• Show what’s important to most people first. Make it simple,
easy and relevant.
• Summarise the key points and show the user how to find the
detail. Avoid putting too much detail in the summary.
• Highlight the benefits. Pull out specific messages and be
precise. Avoid generic information that doesn’t convey
anything specific.
• Keep copy succinct. Every word has to work hard to justify its
existence.
• Lay out detailed information logically. Use relevant imagery to
support the copy and help convey the message.
• Speak as if having a one-to-one conversation.
• Show the ways in which British Airways adds value and makes
travel special.
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Outlining the problems
Title of internal presentation here
Labelling name fields
Passenger details (flight booking)
Join the Executive Club
‘Family name’ is used
instead of last name on
the Executive Club form.
Baggage claim form
Email us
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Presenting address lines
Each of these forms uses a different type of labelling
Join the Executive Club
Baggage claim form
Flight booking payment address
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Email fields
Passenger details, flight booking
Join the Executive Club
Baggage claim form
Some good reasons to have
specific labelling to identify
to whom the email address
belongs ie. ‘Email address of
person paying’.
Usage of ‘Confirm email’
rather than ‘Re-type email
address’ is common practice
on the internet.
Fairly consistent labelling in
general, although ‘Your email
address’ is also used.
Email us
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Help text
Passenger details (flight booking)
Additional notes to help
the user vary in style.
Join the Executive Club
An example mobile
number is only useful if it’s
shown in a recognisable
format.
Flight booking payment address
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Help text
Some field names are badly labelled
so help text is required to clarify
their meaning.
The help text then unnecessarily
duplicates the field name.
A few of the help fields actually offer
proper help eg BA1074 for flight
number.
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Notes on forms
Flight booking - payment
The tone does not reflect the company style, it’s authoritative and written like
a policy in places.
There is no flow-through to the next item.
The last point is a block of text that is difficult to read.
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Notes on forms
Join the Executive Club
The Marketing
Communications section is
user friendly and helpful,
although quite long.
The privacy section is a
reproduction of legal
statements rather than
something helpful to the
customer.
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Notes on forms
Customer relations
There is some important
and useful information
here, but it’s a block of
text.
It looks like it’s been
pieced together and is
disjointed.
The tone could be
improved.
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What are UX guidelines outside BA?
• A form is a conversation, not an interrogation
- avoid aggressive or abrupt wording
- choose appropriate language and remove superfluous text
• Order the labels logically
- reflect the natural flow of a conversation.
- ask questions that are relevant to the user’s task
- lead the user through to the next step
• Group related information
- use sections to break up the form and make it more manageable
- address one topic at a time
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How do we compare?
• A form is a conversation not an interrogation
We use appropriate language for labels and provide help text.
• Order the labels logically
We ask for necessary information, starting at the beginning and
guiding the user through to the next step.
• Group related information
We use sections to break up a form so it’s manageable, as well
as grouping related information.
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Examples
ba.com writing principles applied to
existing forms
Title of internal presentation here
Customer Relations
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
See annotations marked below:
1. *Asterisks have been moved to the left of the text. The fields have been re-ordered into a more
logical, conversational order using standard labels.
2. The field labels have been made clearer to avoid unnecessary explanation.
3. Standard address labels have been used. Mandatory fields are determined by the application
requirements.
Retail principles: authority and salience
Before
After
1.
2.
3.
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Customer Relations
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
See annotations marked below:
1. The field labels have been made clearer to avoid unnecessary explanation.
2. The text has been written in the correct tense ie. to indicate an event in the past.
3. Related fields have been associated ie. what the issue is about with providing more information.
Retail principles: authority and salience
Before
After
1.
2.
3.
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Customer Relations
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
• Use headings to draw important points out and make the text easier to read.
• Break up blocks of text so it’s easier to scan and find what you want.
Retail principles: authority and salience
Before
Nothing stands out and it’s unlikely to be read.
After
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Passenger details/1
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
• Text is aligned and the asterisked mandatory fields stand out.
• Use labels that clearly help the user; these can be questions and statements, however other
label types can be used depending on what’s relevant.
• Help text is aligned to the right of the field.
Retail principles: authority and salience
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Passenger details/2
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
• Grouping of passenger details separately from the person paying avoids repeated input and
makes the form easier to manage.
• Important notes can be shown below the relevant field, as appropriate.
Retail principles: authority and salience
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Passenger details/3
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
• Legal text/important notes can also be shown above the relevant field, as appropriate.
• Make sure help text is clear – it is unnecessary to show an example of a mobile number format,
which adds complexity, as it varies by country.
Retail principles: authority and salience
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Payment
Retail principles: authority and salience
Do things properly: tell customers what they need
to know and make it simple and easy.
• Say things in the simplest way possible, including
notes.
• Keep naming of fields consistent across the site
ie. Billing address is a standard label for payment
screens.
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Executive Club
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
•
•
•
•
The order of information must be logical to the user, and ask only for what’s necessary.
Group information into sections to break up the form, so it looks manageable to the user.
Use section titles to help the user to fill in the form.
Apply a consistent tone throughout the form ie. Your name, Your address.
Retail principles: authority and salience
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Executive Club
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
• Apply the same labels and order consistently ie. address fields.
• Labelling should be short, succinct and convey the necessary details to help the user.
Retail principles: authority and salience
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Executive Club
Do things properly: tell customers what they need to know and make it simple and easy.
• Help text should be succinct and written in complete sentences, with a full stop.
• Avoid examples unless they’re essential to conveying the message.
Retail principles: authority and salience
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Executive Club
Find solutions: we look for opportunities to help the you
• Where there is an age restriction, say that. Offer an alternative for those under 18 if applicable.
• In this case under 18s do have to join the Executive Club to be part of a Household Account, so
show them how to do that.
• Many people are not aware of Household Accounts, so it is an opportunity to offer membership
without looking like advertising.
• Additionally, for those wanting to register a child, they need direction in the right place.
Retail principles: authority, salience
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Executive Club
Find solutions: we highlight the benefits and give you special tips like a friend would.
• Order the message so it’s clear what is offered as standard, and then what the user is being
asked to sign up to.
• Focus on the positive so that the user knows what they get if they sign up for news and
offers.
• Draw out the call to action with bold text so it stands out.
Retail principles: framing and salience
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What applies to ba.com?
Standard labels and help text are detailed in the ‘Standard field
labels’ spreadsheet, available in the Online Standards.
Example
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Summary
• Copy on forms is predominantly labelling. Text must be clear
and should be kept as short and conversational as possible.
• Form headings/section headings within a form should give the
user direction, ask relevant questions or help them understand
how to complete the form.
• Use standard label names from the spreadsheet on the Online
Standards.
• Make footnotes or information clear and easy to read, use
headings where applicable.
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