Microcopy
The small bits of text throughout an interface — button labels, hints, error messages, empty states — that guide, reassure, and give a product its voice.
Why it matters
The interface talks in microcopy — and tone under stress is the test: an error message meets people at their most frustrated. “Something went wrong” abandons them there; good microcopy says what happened and what to do next.
See it
Both messages are accurate. Only one of them helps a frustrated person forward.
The numbers
- What happened + what to do next — every error message’s job
Related terms
On the checklists
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