UX Writing For App Notifications

🔕 Design Guidelines For Better Notifications UX (https://lnkd.in/ehgF7Taa), with practical techniques on how to make notifications more useful and less annoying — with snooze mode, by exploring how and when they are triggered and measuring their use (scroll down for the newsletter ↓). 🚫 High frequency of notifications is a very frequent complaint. ✅ Not all notifications are equal: some are more useful than others. ✅ Users value updates from close contacts, transactions, insights. 🤔 Users ignore automated, irrelevant, promotional notifications. ✅ Sending fewer messages can improve long-term product use. ✅ Let users choose notification modes (silent, regular, power). ✅ Suggest switching from push notification to email digests. ✅ Let users snooze, pause, mute if high volume is expected. ✅ Track how often notifications are ignored and acted upon. 🚫 Avoid disruption and notification fatigue by sending less. And most importantly: scrutinize the decision tree to find the right timing to send the right types of notifications. Experiment with wording, timing, grouping and frequency for different user segments. And when in doubt, postpone, rather than sending through. --- 👋🏼 I'm Vitaly Friedman, and you can find useful UX resources on my profile. I’m also running “Smart Interface Design Patterns” 🍣 (https://lnkd.in/d4CNaTxR) with a friendly video library and live UX training. 😊 #ux #design #notifications

Someone reached out to me recently about an upcoming event, and their approach stunned me—not because of what was being asked, but HOW it was being asked. Instead of: Do you need special accommodations? Or: Can you handle stairs? The question was framed as: Would you be comfortable using the stairs to go down one flight or would the main level work better for you? Notice the difference: ✅ It assumes capability, not limitation ✅ It offers options without othering ✅ It puts comfort and preference first ✅ It treats accessibility as normal planning, not special treatment When we frame accessibility questions thoughtfully, we: ❤️ Remove stigma and awkwardness ❤️Make everyone feel valued and considered ❤️Create psychological safety for honest responses ❤️Model inclusive behavior for our entire organization When one person demonstrates inclusive communication, it ripples across everyone that sees it. Remember 1. Your words matter. 2. The way you ask questions shapes culture. 3. Small changes in language create massive shifts in belonging. What’s one way you could reframe a question to be more inclusive in your workplace? #InclusiveLeadership #Accessibility #WorkplaceCulture #DEI #Leadership #Inclusion #Communication #BelongingAtWork ❣️❣️❣️❣️ I made sure to thank this person privately—because when someone embraces inclusive language , recognition matters too.

The Italian language has a male bias. That's a fact. As a woman, I get annoyed every time a newsletter addresses me as a man. "Chiara, pronto per...?" 🙄 "Chiara, sei invitato a..." 🙄 "...con te stesso..." 🙄 Come on, it's 2024 – we can all try and make an effort to use inclusive language (without using gender-neutral symbols like ə or *) that addresses everyone, regardless of gender, job, background, etc. Whenever I risk excluding someone when I'm translating, I take a step back and get creative. I'll be honest – it's not always easy. Sometimes I need to rephrase or restructure sentences. It takes time. But making that extra effort is worth it. Here are some examples from recent translations: Source: "If you're riding alone..." ❌First thought: "Se stai pedalando da solo" (addressing only men) ✅Inclusive solution: "Se stai pedalando in solitaria" - gender-neutral and natural.   Source: "If you're riding with a friend..." ❌First thought: "Se stai pedalando con un amico" (male friend only) ✅Inclusive solution: "Se invece siete in due..." (if there are two of you) Source: "... to go to work" ❌Translation memory: "... per andare in ufficio" (to go to the office) ✅Inclusive translation: "...per andare al lavoro". Not everyone works in an office. Source: "Ready for...?" Challenging to translate in a straightforward, gender-neutral way, and a nice solution largely depends on context. ❌First thought: “Pronto per/a…?” ✅A couple of inclusive ideas: "Tutto pronto per...?" (All ready for?) / "È ora di...!" (It's time to...!) Coming up with inclusive solutions depends on various factors – text, context, client, how much freedom you have or can take, time, common sense, willingness... I always aim to discuss inclusive language solutions with my clients or leave comments explaining my choices. Embracing inclusive language is an ongoing process. I don't always get it perfectly right. There will be times when a smooth, all-encompassing translation simply isn't feasible. But that doesn't mean we should stop trying. 💡How? Remain open-minded, creative, and solutions-oriented when it comes to inclusivity.

Picking the "Perfect" Format in a Fidgety World Our attention spans are shrinking, that much is certain. But with a constant barrage of content vying for our precious seconds, how do you, as a content creator, choose the right format to engage your audience? The truth is, there's no one-size-fits-all answer. The ideal format depends on a perfect marriage of content type, audience preference, and platform. Here's a breakdown to help you navigate the content jungle: 1. The Skimmers (TL;DR Crowd): They crave bite-sized info. Tweets (280 characters), short Instagram captions, infographics, and eye-catching visuals are your best bets. 2. The Deep Dives (Knowledge Seekers): Long-form content like in-depth articles, podcasts, and white papers cater to their thirst for knowledge. 3. The Audiophiles (On-the-Go Consumers): Podcasts and audiobooks are perfect for those who consume content while commuting, exercising, or doing chores. 4. The Visual Learners (Show, Don't Tell): Images, videos, and GIFs resonate best with this audience. Think explainer videos, product demonstrations, and visually compelling listicles. Understanding Your Audience is Key: Knowing your target audience is critical. Are they busy professionals who snatch content in stolen moments, or students seeking deep dives? Are they visual learners or auditory consumers? Platform Power: The platform you choose also plays a role. Short-form video thrives on TikTok and Instagram Reels, while long-form articles find a home on dedicated blogs or LinkedIn. Understanding platform-specific preferences helps tailor your content for maximum impact. The Art of Variety: The good news? You don't have to stick to one format. Experiment with a mix of content types to cater to different audience segments and keep your content strategy fresh. Remember: Engagement is king. Regardless of format, prioritize creating valuable, informative, or entertaining content that resonates with your audience. So, the next time you're faced with the content conundrum, take a deep breath, understand your audience, and choose the format that best positions your message for success. After all, in the ever-evolving world of content, the key is to adapt and deliver information in a way that captures – and keeps – attention.

If your content feels generic, the problem isn’t creativity - it’s targeting. Specific targeting leads to specific content. And specific content gets attention. So how do you get to specific content? Let’s take a look at an example. Two AI tools: Lovable and V0. Both help you build apps by chatting with AI. But they’re built for different people in different situations: Lovable for non-technical founders who want to turn an idea into something tangible. They’re pre-product, often pre-validation. They just want to bring their idea to life quick and dirty. V0 for developers who already know what they want to build. They’re ready to ship fast, with clean, production-grade code. Speed matters - but not at the cost of control or technical debt. If you don’t respect those differences, you will default to beige content that revolves around: “How to build an app with AI” But if you think about the specific context your target segment is in, different content ideas start popping into your mind: For Lovable it could be: → Turning Raw Ideas Into Product Concepts → Testing your idea on Twitter, Product Hunt, or in DMs → What investors want to see before there's a proper product → What to do before you code For v0 it could be: → Building a working admin dashboard in 4 minutes using real React code. → Moving fast without compromising on code quality. → Avoiding brittle integrations in your MVP → Designing your frontend to scale from day one That’s the shift. When you stop thinking “What content should we make?” And start thinking: “Who is this for, what moment are they in, and what job are they trying to do right now?” That’s when your content stops being generic. Content that works is content that targets. Not by demographics but by context.

Still trying to manage your ever-increasing alert flow by hiring more analysts? That’s much like adding buckets to deal with a leaking roof. Invest in detection engineering and automation engineering to reduce the alert flow and prevent alert fatigue and unhappy analysts. Here are some best practices: - Apply an automation-first strategy: handle and/or accelerate all alerts through automation - Continuously tune and optimize detection rules - Let analysts and detection / automation engineers work closely together to increase the effectiveness of engineering efforts - Establish metrics for rule quality to identify candidates for tuning and automation - Test against defined quality criteria before putting any detection rules live - Increase the fidelity of your rules by alerting on more specific criteria - Aggregate and analyse batches of noisy alerts daily or weekly, instead of handling them individually in real-time - Consider your ideal ratio between analysts and engineers. Start out with 50-50, then decide what would best suit your needs - Make risk-based decisions on added value of rules compared to time investment, and drop time-consuming rules with little added value if they cannot be tuned properly This is by no means an easy thing to do. But by focussing on engineering and detection quality, you can transition to a state where you control of the alert flow instead of the other way around, so that analysts can focus on the alerts that truly matter. #soc #securityoperations #securityanalysis #detectionengineering #automationfirst

A hidden shift is transforming LinkedIn. 83% of users haven't noticed it THE END OF BROADCAST CONTENT For years, LinkedIn success meant one thing: broadcasting content to as many people as possible. Grow your network. Maximize reach. Chase viral posts That era is ending THE DATA SIGNALS Over the past 6 months, I've tracked metrics across 50+ LinkedIn accounts (combined following: 1.2M+) The pattern is clear • Broadcast content: Declining engagement (-32% YoY) • Narrowcast content: Rising engagement (+47% YoY) This shift reveals a fundamental evolution in how the platform works WHAT IS NARROWCASTING? Narrowcasting means creating content for a specific, well-defined segment of your audience rather than trying to appeal to everyone The broadcast approach says: "How can I reach the most people?" The narrowcast approach asks: "How can I reach exactly the right people?" WHY THIS MATTERS NOW Three forces are accelerating this shift: (1) Algorithm Evolution - LinkedIn now prioritizes "meaningful interactions" over pure engagement volume. Content that generates deep engagement from a relevant audience outperforms content with shallow engagement from a broad audience (2) Content Saturation - Users see 5,300+ monthly posts (up 41% since 2023). Generic content gets lost in this flood (3) Attention Fragmentation - Decision-makers have developed better filters. General business advice no longer breaks through THE NARROWCASTING FRAMEWORK To implement narrowcasting on LinkedIn: (1) Audience Segmentation - Divide your audience into specific sub-groups based on industry, role, challenges, or business model (2) Segment Selection - Choose ONE segment to address in each piece of content (3) Specificity Optimization - Use language, examples, and data points that only resonate with your chosen segment (4) Intentional Exclusion - Deliberately exclude other segments through your framing. Ex. For SaaS founders only: A retention strategy that doesn't work for ecommerce (5) Depth Over Breadth - Explore one specific challenge/solution deeply rather than covering multiple topics superficially REAL-WORLD RESULTS Clients implementing this approach are seeing: • 3.2× higher comment-to-view ratio • 4.7× increase in relevant inbound messages • 68% higher conversion rate from connection to conversation All with SMALLER reach numbers THE PSYCHOLOGICAL PRINCIPLE When someone feels content was created specifically for them, they're more likely to engage. Narrowcasting triggers the "this is for me" response in your ideal audience PRACTICAL IMPLEMENTATION In your next LinkedIn post: • Name your specific audience in the first line • Address one specific challenge they face • Use industry terms only they would understand • Include metrics/examples relevant only to their context • Ask questions only they can answer The future LinkedIn winners will have smaller, more engaged audiences They'll trade vanity metrics for meaningful connections What do you think?

Someone told me, “We should support these people,”  While another chimed in, “Yes, you people also deserve equal rights.”  [1 min read] Their intentions were well-meaning, but the words? Not so much. Phrases like “these people” or “you people” may sound harmless, but they subtly create a barrier. They categorize and otherize the LGBT+ community, making them feel separate, distant, and even less deserving of belonging. It’s not just words — it’s a tone of exclusion, creating a sense of otherness. Words matter, and small tweaks can have a big impact. 🛑 Why it matters: Inclusive language sends a powerful message: “You belong here.” Language has the power to connect or alienate. Saying “you people” or “those people” might: 1️⃣ Sound dismissive: It feels like pointing a finger, even if unintentional. 2️⃣ Erase individuality: LGBT+ people are more than just their identity—they are individuals with unique lives, stories, and contributions. 3️⃣ Create division: It enforces an “us vs. them” mindset, which is exactly the opposite of inclusivity. 🤝 How to Do Better: Here are ways we can address the LGBT+ community respectfully and inclusively. Try these alternatives: ✅ Use Names and Inclusive Terms: Instead of “these people,” try: “friends in the LGBT+ community” or simply “everyone.” ✅ Speak With Connection: “We all deserve equal rights” is far more inclusive than “You people deserve equal rights.” ✅ Neutral and Welcoming Words: “Folks,” “team,” or “all of us” helps everyone feel included. ✅ If it’s relevant, mention the group respectfully: “Members of the LGBT+ community have been advocating for change, and it’s inspiring to see their progress.” 🌟 It’s not about perfection—it’s about intention. The next time you catch yourself defaulting to “you guys,” pause and try one of the alternatives. Over time, these small shifts become second nature. Have you ever caught yourself using phrases like “those people” without realizing it? Let’s unlearn together and share ways to make our language more inclusive! Cheers! Sonali #LGBTInclusion #InclusiveLanguage #Allyship #Belonging

Let's unpack the research on OVER-ALERTING. My colleague Michele M Wood and I found three primary dimensions to describe over-alerting: 1. frequency 2. relevance 3. content Beginning with FREQUENCY, we found it was described in multiple ways. 1️⃣ To start, we need to consider how frequently a person's phone lights up, vibrates, or emits a noise to get your attention in general. We live in an "attention economy" and one study we cited said adults get upwards of 50 notifications each day on their phones. That's a LOT of messages to pay attention to. And an alert is competing for attention in that sea of messages. 2️⃣ Second, over-alerting frequency includes the number of times alerts are issued for a single threat/event. This becomes a problem when the second and third and fourth messages don't provide new information to help people understand how the threat has changed or what they need to do next. In the worst cases, this dimension of over-alerting frequency occurs due to technological malfunctions, such as when an alert "echoes" and is repeated in the alerting software-hardware system over time. 3️⃣ Third, over-alerting frequency includes the period of time over which those alerts are issued. If a person is "on alert" over a long period of time, with threat escalation happening only some of the time, then, similar to #2, there is a feeling of being over-alerted. Note that this dimension is very relevant to feelings of alert fatigued and we'll get to that in a later post. 4️⃣ Fourth, over-alerting frequency includes receiving redundant messages from multiple sources. We know that the best way to initiate attention and action is to issue consistent messages from varying sources, but it does contribute to a feeling of over-alerting. If you're like me and can think of examples from recent events that fit each of these dimensions, it becomes obvious that alert frequency is part of the over-alerting equation. In a future post I'll share about the second dimension - relevance. That one is JUICY, so you'll want to watch for it. To read the full paper, go here: https://lnkd.in/eZVJJGyt Or ask me for an open-access copy. Happy to share! For more insights into alerts and warnings, check out www.thewarnroom.com