Onboarding Copy Vocabulary

Empty states are moments of highest leverage in onboarding — the user is engaged, open to guidance, and a single piece of well-written copy can be the difference between a user who activates and one who churns.

The anatomy of a great empty state: (1) An illustrative graphic (optional, but supports the message); (2) A headline that explains what happens in this space ("Your saved items"); (3) A body line that motivates the first action ("Save anything you find interesting to access it later"); (4) A CTA button with a verb-led label ("Save your first item" or "Browse to get started"). What to avoid: generic messages like "No items found" (explains nothing), apologetic language ("Sorry, nothing here yet"), or empty states with no CTA (the user has nowhere to go). Duolingo, Notion, and Linear are often cited for exemplary empty state copy because they make empty states feel like invitations rather than dead ends.

Key vocabulary:
• empty state — a UI state shown when an area has no content yet; a key onboarding moment that should guide users toward their first action
• activation — the moment a new user first experiences the product's core value; the goal that empty state copy supports
• call to action (CTA) — a button or link that prompts the user to take a specific action; should be verb-led ("Create", "Add", "Start")

Tooltips are contextual help — they appear exactly when the user needs them (hovering over something unfamiliar) and disappear when they don't. Good tooltip copy earns its brief screen time by delivering precisely the right information in plain language.

Tooltip writing guidelines: (1) Lead with the outcome — "Automatically re-run" tells the user the effect before the condition; (2) Match the user's vocabulary — use the language from their domain, not the implementation's terminology; (3) Be concise — if the explanation requires more than 2 sentences, consider a "Learn more" link to documentation rather than cramming it into the tooltip; (4) Avoid redefining the label — "Delete: Deletes the item" wastes the tooltip's opportunity; (5) Consider the user's context — a new user needs more basic explanation than an experienced user who is looking for edge-case information. Some products use progressive disclosure: a brief tooltip for new users that links to more detail for curious ones.

Key vocabulary:
• tooltip — a contextual help text triggered by hovering over or focusing a UI element
• contextual help — assistance delivered at the moment of need in the context where the user needs it
• progressive disclosure — revealing information progressively as users need it, rather than showing everything at once

Progress indicators reduce abandonment by making the end visible — but they work best when each step has a clear purpose and the remaining steps feel achievable rather than burdensome.

The psychology of progress indicators: the "goal gradient effect" (Kivetz, Urminsky) shows people accelerate as they get closer to completion. "3 of 5 steps" is more motivating at step 4 than at step 1 — this is normal and expected. To combat early-flow abandonment: (1) make the first step easy and quick (give users early "wins"); (2) consider showing the step count prominently only from step 2 onward; (3) name the remaining steps so users can anticipate them ("Just billing details and you're done"). The most effective onboarding flows also show the value the user has already built up — "Your profile is 60% complete. Add your skills to appear in more searches." mixes progress with motivation.

Key vocabulary:
• progress indicator — a UI element showing how far through a multi-step flow the user is (e.g., "3 of 5 steps", a progress bar)
• goal gradient effect — the psychological tendency to accelerate effort as one gets closer to a goal
• onboarding step — a discrete task in a structured first-use flow that moves the user toward product activation

A welcome message is the user's first impression of the product's communication style and their first moment of orientation — it should answer "am I in the right place and what do I do first?" before the user has to ask.

Welcome message anatomy: (1) Address the user by name if known ("Welcome, Maria!") — personalisation increases engagement; (2) Confirm the value they've just gained — "You now have access to all [product] features"; (3) Orient them to what's next — "Start by connecting your first data source" or "Your 14-day trial starts now"; (4) Set timeline expectations if relevant — "It takes about 5 minutes to complete setup"; (5) Signal support availability — "If you need help, we're here at support@company.com." What to avoid: long feature lists (overwhelming), generic corporate-speak ("We're thrilled to have you"), or welcome messages with no call to action (the user reads it and then... does what?). Stripe and Notion are frequently cited for welcome messages that are brief, confident, and immediately action-oriented.

Key vocabulary:
• welcome message — the first communication a new user receives after signing up; sets expectations and directs the first action
• user orientation — helping a new user understand where they are, what the product does, and what to do first
• personalisation — adapting content (name, use case, role) to the specific user to increase relevance and engagement

Verb-led CTAs reduce cognitive friction at the highest-stakes moments in an onboarding flow — when a user hesitates before clicking a button, the label is often the problem, not the feature.

CTA writing principles: (1) Start with a verb — "Create", "Add", "Start", "Connect", "Explore"; (2) Complete the sentence "I want to..." — if the button label completes this naturally ("I want to Create my project"), it's well-written; (3) Be specific — "Set up billing" is better than "Continue"; "Invite your team" is better than "Next step"; (4) Use first-person for high-commitment CTAs — "Start my free trial" feels more personal and positive than "Start free trial"; (5) Match the visual hierarchy — primary CTAs (the action you want) should be prominent, secondary CTAs (skip, cancel) should be de-emphasised visually. The classic UX writing reference on this is the Torrey Podmajersky book "Strategic Writing for UX," which uses the "voice-and-tone" + "verb-led" framework as the foundation of interface copy.

Key vocabulary:
• CTA (call to action) — a button or link that prompts a specific user action; the most important piece of copy in any onboarding step
• verb-led CTA — a button label that starts with an action verb ("Create", "Add", "Start") and clearly states what clicking will do
• cognitive friction — mental effort or hesitation caused by unclear, ambiguous, or unexpected interface copy