Writers in Tech

Episode 100: Celebration and Reflection on the Journey

Intro: Welcome to a special episode of Writers in Tech! We are thrilled to be celebrating our 100th episode with you, our incredible listeners. Over the past episodes, we have explored various aspects of writing, technology, and creativity. Today, we embark on a unique journey as we dive into the world of "Post-Apocalyptic Leadership in Content Design." Join us as we reflect on the remarkable stories, insights, and lessons we have gathered along the way.

Episode Summary:

In this milestone episode, we reflect on the extraordinary challenges and triumphs of leaders in the realm of content design within a post-apocalyptic setting.

We explore the unconventional and inventive approaches required to thrive and create impactful content in a world forever changed.

In this episode of Writers in Tech, Jenn Shreve, Content Design Lead at Google, shares insights on maintaining consistency in writing and the valuable contributions of journalists in the field of UX. She discusses the importance of understanding one's energy patterns and establishing a routine that aligns with personal productivity. Jenn introduces "The Artist Way" process, specifically the practice of Morning Pages, as a method to stimulate creativity and generate ideas.

The conversation dives into how journalists excel in simplifying complex concepts and technologies, enabling them to effectively advocate for users in UX writing. The ability to find and convey a compelling narrative is highlighted as a valuable skill in prioritizing messaging and shaping the user journey.

Jenn offers tips for UX writers who are transitioning into leadership roles within their organizations, emphasizing the importance of developing a broader perspective and focusing on solving larger content problems.

The discussion also addresses concerns surrounding AI tools like Chat GPT. While acknowledging the power of such technologies, Jenn encourages a critical approach and questioning the potential benefits and drawbacks. Drawing a parallel to concept cars in the automotive industry, she raises the question of whether certain AI capabilities are practical or aligned with industry trends.

As we conclude this 100th-episode celebration, we express our deepest gratitude to all our listeners, guests, and supporters who have joined us on this incredible journey. We are honored to have shared these thought-provoking conversations and insights with you, and we look forward to continuing to explore the evolving landscape of content design and leadership in the post-apocalyptic world.

Remember to stay tuned for more episodes of Writers in Tech as we continue to delve into the ever-evolving realm of writing, technology, and creativity.

Thank you for being a part of our community!

In this episode of Writers in Tech, Ben Davies, a Senior Content Designer at Klarna and co-founder of Tech Outcast, shares his experience transitioning from product management to UX writing. He emphasizes the importance of educating oneself about UX writing and being resourceful when working with other departments. Davies also discusses his process for standardizing terminology across different departments in a company and suggests using AI tools like Chad GPT to analyze archived discussions.

Yuval and Ben discuss the potential uses and limitations of Chat GPT, an artificial intelligence tool for generating content. They caution against relying too heavily on it as a solution and emphasize its usefulness in brainstorming and refining ideas.

The conversation also touches on the importance of advocating for UX writing as a discipline within tech companies, despite recent layoffs impacting the industry. Towards the end, they mention Tech Outcast, a new community focused on offering content design services to companies through freelancing and consulting.

Ben, a content designer, enjoys working with early stage startups and solo entrepreneurs to help them put together their first version of products. He believes in the importance of combining UX, product management and marketing to create value propositions that resonate with users.

Ben founded Tech Outcasts as a community for talented people who feel like outcasts in the tech industry due to homogeneity in backgrounds and approaches. To land a UX writing gig right now, Ben advises contractors or freelancers to figure out their unique perspective before seeking out companies they'd like to work with directly rather than relying on traditional job boards.

In this episode of the Writers in Tech podcast, Yuval Keshtcher interviews Mohana Das, a lead UX Writer at Lazy Pay and founding member of a group of UX writers in India.

They discuss Mohana's journey into content design, the challenges she faces as the only UX writer at her company, and the concept of "content debt" - a build-up over time of bad content that accumulates just like financial debt.

The podcast is brought to you by the UX Writing Hub, which offers free and advanced courses on UX writing including Figma for UX Writing and Generative AI for UX Writers.

Mohana, a content designer at LazyPay, shares her approach to tackling content debt in the interface.

She emphasizes starting with a full audit of the entire application and product and taking a holistic approach. Mohana also stresses the importance of defining goals and ROI before revamping content. To show impact, she recommends picking low-hanging fruit like button copy or key screens for optimization.

Collaborating with designers is crucial for success in this field. For those looking to break into content design, Mohana advises brushing up on UX fundamentals and creating a strong portfolio with real-world projects.

Content designer Ilana Zholobovsky talks about how networking, books and AI can help people get into UX writing.

Ben Pines, the Director of Content at Wordtune, is optimistic about the future interaction between people and AI.

Lead UX writer Sherry Samtani on the different career directions UX writers can take, including content ops.

Aerial silk teacher Alexandra Spark shares how she transitioned to UX writing and her step-by-step process for creating an app.

Lead UX writer Sarah Loigge shares how she found inspiration outside of work and overcame impostor syndrome with the help of Star Trek.

What’s the value of UX writing and how can we measure it? Yael Ben-David has written a book on the topic.

How do you land a job in product design in today’s business climate? Get recruitment insights from Matt Carter, Senior Product Design Specialist at Eurobase People.