Been a minute...

Hello UXer!

It's been a while.

Seven weeks, to be exact.

Long enough for trends to rise and fall, a whole new AI model to drop (looking at you, DeepSeek), and at least five product debates to flare up and fizzle out on X.

I wasn't supposed to disappear for this long.

The plan was three weeks.

But after returning from camp, time kept moving, and every week I told myself, "I'll write the next one tomorrow."

Somehow, tomorrow never came.

Procrastination is a sneaky thing, often hidden in legitimate reasons.

In my case, it was hosting an event, starting a new job, and juggling various commitments.

In the very demure multiverse of UX, we see this play out all the time. Except in product teams, it’s not called procrastination. It’s called UX debt.

Similar to technical debt, UX debt accumulates when design shortcuts are taken, usability testing is skipped, or clear requirements are lacking. Over time, these unresolved issues lead to inconsistent and ineffective user interactions, ultimately impacting business success.

To make it clearer, it’s a UX debt when there are:

• Copy Issues: Inconsistent or unclear microcopy, sections of explainers covered in ‘lorem ipsum’ or repeated paragraphs to ‘take up space’, or lack of text where it is so obviously needed.

• Inconsistent Design Elements: Variations in button styles, fonts, or colors across the product.

• Confusing Navigation: Users struggle to find important features because of poor information architecture.

• Accessibility Oversights: Low-contrast text or missing alt text for images, hindering usability for all users (design should consider all types of users, including those living with disabilities, but that’s a conversation for another day).

Design for Now, Not “Later”

We can’t always avoid procrastination. (If we could, this newsletter would’ve landed in your inbox weeks ago.) But in UX, one question keeps things from spiraling:

If we don’t fix this now, what’s the cost later?

The cost could be:

• Users bouncing because onboarding is still clunky.

• Support tickets piling up over a confusing UI.

• Losing trust because key actions aren’t intuitive.

So how do you stop UX debt from piling up?

I recommend the Impact vs. Effort Matrix.

This framework helps UX teams prioritize fixes before they become major issues. Here’s how it works:

• Low Effort, High Impact → Do it now. (Quick fixes that make a big difference)

• High Effort, High Impact → Plan for it. (Worth doing, but needs resources.)

• Low Effort, Low Impact → Do it when you can. (Not urgent, but still helpful)

• High Effort, Low Impact → Probably not worth it. (Let it go)

Applying this to your product’s UX strategy helps you flag problems early and act before they snowball.

I don’t have to tell you that once UX debt piles up, users won’t wait for you to catch up.

And on that note, glad to be back. See you in the next issue (before another seven weeks pass, I promise).

P.S. Seen any bad UX lately? Confusing copy? Frustrating flows? We’re collecting real-life examples to put together a resource on UX issues and how to fix them. If you’ve spotted anything, hit reply. I’d love to see it.

2025 with Content & Context 🤝 

This year, I want to take you on a journey.

Not just through my takes on what content founded on better context looks like (it looks pretty good actually), but through the world of UX writing itself. What it is, what it isn’t, and why it matters in product UX in general.

And because you’ve been with me through this journey so far, I’ve put together something special: a free resource, UX Writing for Small Teams. It’s my way of saying thank you and making sure that even if you don’t have a UX writer on your team yet, you can start creating better experiences right now.

You can grab it here.

Now I know this resource may not be beneficial for everyone, so if you have a special resource request, please reach out by replying to this email with what would be beneficial to you. That’s what UX is about, really.

New Here? Catch Up on These Reads

Here are a few past articles you might enjoy:

• How to "unalive" a good product idea 

• This thing called UX writing... *sigh 

• A tale of two strategies⚔ 

• 👋 First impressions only happen once 

And if you liked this issue, drop us a comment

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P.P.S. Your feedback makes us better!❤️ Reply to this email to share your thoughts, or reach us on LinkedIn to keep the conversation going.