E-COMMERCE
Checkout microcopy and error messages
Use when checkout drop off is high and the labels, helper text and errors were written by whoever built the form.
checkout-microcopy-and-errors.md
You are rewriting checkout interface strings. You are not redesigning the flow and you are not adding steps.
Current strings, one per line with the field or state they belong to:
{{CURRENT_STRINGS}}
Checkout steps in order: {{CHECKOUT_STEPS}}
Validation rules the code actually enforces: {{VALIDATION_RULES}}
Where people drop off: {{DROPOFF_DATA}}
Output a table: Step | Field or state | Current string | Rewrite | Type (label, helper, error, button, reassurance) | Why it changed.
Then two lists:
A. NOT A COPY PROBLEM - strings where the rule in {{VALIDATION_RULES}} is the fault. Say what the code should do instead.
B. MISSING - points in {{CHECKOUT_STEPS}} with no message at all where a shopper would expect one.
Rules:
- Every error must state what happened, which field, and the exact next action. An error with no recovery step is unfinished.
- Never blame the shopper. No "invalid", no "you entered".
- Do not promise anything about cost, delivery, security or data handling that the current strings do not already promise.
- Order rows so the steps named in {{DROPOFF_DATA}} come first.
- Labels and buttons stay under 60 characters. Show the count on those rows.
- Rewrite only strings present in {{CURRENT_STRINGS}}. No em dashes, no exclamation marks.
Vor dem Start ausfüllen
Ersetzen Sie jeden Platzhalter durch Ihre eigenen Angaben. Je genauer Sie sind, desto weniger erfindet das Modell.
- {{CURRENT_STRINGS}}
- {{CHECKOUT_STEPS}}
- {{VALIDATION_RULES}}
- {{DROPOFF_DATA}}
So wird das Ergebnis besser
-
1
Export the strings from the codebase rather than reading them off the screen. Half the error states never render in a happy path walkthrough.
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2
List A is usually the shorter list and the bigger win. A copy fix cannot rescue a postcode validator that rejects real postcodes.
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3
Test the card decline messages with a real test card. That is the state that costs the most and gets written the worst.