Weekly UX Writing Review: Flow Lab App. Part 1
Hey there! I try some new apps every week and review their microcopy. This is a nice exercise for UX writers and content designers. I encourage you to join me and share your thoughts as well.
Let’s start!
I’ve run into the Flow Lab app in one of the App Store collections. The description of the app says that it is a mindset & performance coach with personalized guided meditations. So, let’s give it a try and see how good its microcopy is.
In Part 1, I review the first five promotional screens. They make the first impression, and let us decide whether to sign up or to skip.
Screen 1
This one shows the main idea of the app. OK, the message seems fine, let’s take a closer look at words.
I believe in brevity. Concise text is strong while adding synonyms and extra words make it weaker. That’s what we see on the first screen. Performance and productivity are too close in meaning. It’s better to leave only one of them.
Also, I’d remove digital, as it is obvious. We are used to all kinds of digital services and don’t expect to get a real coach. On the contrary, if the app offers real coaches, it makes sense to point it out.
Your mental coach for peak productivity
And, the buttons are quite generic. You can’t do much over Log in button, while Get started can be more interesting. They could play with the Flow word and create a nice unique text, like Dive into flow or Find your flow.
Screen 2
This screen nicely develops the idea of peak productivity and tells how we unlock the full potential with the app.
I’d remove flow from the phrase. It is better to use it in the button’s name. Inserting it into the text this way looks awkward. It can be replaced with drive, as they mention it later inside the app.
An exclamation mark looks too aggressive and adds visual noise. Moreover, there’s no end punctuation on the previous screen.
Find focus, motivation, and drive to unlock your full potential
Screen 3
Oh, this one is too wordy. I’d cut the first part of the sentence as it doesn’t add much sense. Now we have a nice and clear starting point — the app helps us find where we are now.
It already has the CTA, which is nice. I’ve cut the period to keep it consistent with the previous screens.
Find out how mentally and emotionally fit you are
As we already have a Find CTA in the previous message, we better change it.
Learn how mentally and emotionally fit you are
Screen 4
After we’ve found out where we are now, the app suggests a plan of action. Sounds good.
Here there’s an unpleasant repetition of words with the same root, train and training. I’d change it a bit.
Get your individual training plan for achieving flow states
Screen 5
And finally, the app suggests that we track our progress.
It is useful to remember that words coexist with illustrations in design. Here the image clearly shows tracking of the progress, so there’s no need to repeat it in the text. I’d cut the Track your progress part.
See how your mental and emotional fitness develops over time
Takeaways
- Check whether the information structure is good and the message evolves logically.
- Keep end punctuation consistent.
- Don’t forget about CTAs.
- Be brave enough to remove synonyms. This makes your text even stronger.
- Avoid generic text where possible.
- Remove word repetitions.
P.S. I encourage you to join the exercise and share your thoughts and insights.
Disclaimer: I’m not a native English speaker, so grammar and spelling aren’t perfect. Though UX writing principles that I mention can be applied to any language.
