Error messages + alerts
The most effective error messages don’t just say what went wrong—they guide the user toward a solution.
Context
GuerillaBox is a marketing automation service that centralizes a business’s customer communication channels (SMS, email, Facebook/Instagram messenger, etc.). Each channel is referred to as a box; hence, GuerillaBox.
✏️ Task
Write error messages for six scenarios:
User signup:
Invalid email
Invalid username
Invalid password (passwords must be at least 8 characters long and contain at least one number)
Email already exists
Username already exists
Upgrade requirement:
User has reached 3-box limit on the free plan and needs to upgrade to a paid plan for more boxes
🎯 Goal
Help users correct (and prevent) the errors so they can complete their goals.
💭 Other considerations
GuerillaBox’s brand voice is that of an experienced and compassionate business partner. They use a conversational voice and play with language to bring joy to the workplace. They are plainspoken, genuine, and a bit quirky.
✍️ Approach
To communicate the signup requirements while remaining true to the product's voice, I needed to write copy that was playful yet direct. But it was important to prioritize clarity over cleverness—when a user gets an error message, they just want to know what happened and what to do about it.
Striking the right tone was also key. Errors are already frustrating, so we don’t want to use language like “you didn’t” that points blame.
Prevention is always better than correction, so my first step was to revise the field suggestions on the original signup screen to help nudge users in the right direction. I then created a copy doc to explore clear, helpful messages for each error scenario.
💡 Solution
The field suggestions and error messages are direct, concise, and useful: helping users easily understand both the problem and the solution. Copy also adheres to the playful, punny nature of the brand voice where appropriate, without sacrificing clarity.
Original signup screen:
Revised signup screen, with helpful field suggestions to prevent user errors:
Invalid email address, username, and password error messages:
Existing email and username error messages:
“Upgrade for more” alert:
Next steps
It would be helpful to add error message guidelines, with example scenarios, to GuerillaBox’s content style guide to keep tone and terminology consistent across all areas of the product.