Could content design be the right fit for you?
I revisit how I got here and share tips for starting out on a budget—with a focus on mindset, transferable skills and personal stories.
If you put 10 UX writers and content designers in a room, they’ll all have a different story to tell.
There’s the journalist, the copy editor, the marketing manager. The customer service agent who loves baking. The translator with a keen eye for photography. The social worker, the former radio host, the architect.
Finding someone who hasn’t spent the last 10 years as a UX practitioner isn’t that unusual. We come from different places and have different backgrounds. Most definitely, we don’t have a degree in content design.
So, how does one carve a path in this field?
It was 2021 when I started figuring out how to transition to content design. These days, the market is harder to break into. The corporate giants that many see as career milestones have laid off employees by the hundreds, if not thousands. Interview cycles are longer and more drawn out. Good education opportunities are expensive and harder to come by. And generative AI is rocking the tech world in ways that are yet to be seen.
I get it: all this sounds scary. Uncertainty is scary. But change can create opportunities for you to pivot, reskill and find your niche — so don’t lose hope yet. If you’re wondering whether content design might be the right fit for you, in this longer read I’ll share my experience and touch on how to get started without breaking the bank — with a focus on your mindset, your transferable skills and your story.
How I approached the discipline
My background is in English and Spanish to Italian translation. Until 2021, I worked as a customer service specialist at a Fortune 500 company in the Netherlands.
After the pandemic hit, I realized it was time for me to make a change. To avoid losing my mind while confined at home, I turned to online education. I knew I was ready to go back to my first love: localization.
When buying from an international brand, most customers expect a fully local experience — words, visuals and interactions that feel like they were originally designed for the customer’s language and culture.
A disconnect at any step of the journey or inconsistencies between communication channels can hurt business growth and negatively impact the company’s brand image and reputation.
So, I thought, why not take advantage of my experience in a customer-facing role and specialize in translations for the customer experience? At the time, I didn’t know exactly what that would mean or if it was a thing, but I was determined to make it happen.
While browsing online courses, I stumbled upon the CX Writing for Marketing Engagement course by the UX Content Collective (now called Marketing Writing for UX Writers).
I went through the syllabus and read some reviews. It looked like a good starting point for someone like me who wanted to study at the intersection of translation and marketing writing.
I decided to take the course and learned a great deal about using the power of words to shape digital interactions for consumers. The course material brought out several common threads that naturally connected my knowledge and past experiences.
Putting my skills to the test
As I went through the units, I started thinking about the final portfolio project.
The assignment involved creating a set of deliverables for a new digital product — including in-app copy, a landing page, an onboarding email, a video script and social media posts.
I’d be carrying out one of my very first complex content design tasks entirely in English for seasoned native professionals to review.
The conversations in my head went like this:
Wait, I’ve never done this exact thing before. Plus, I’m writing in my second language. What if my copy sucks?
Well, nothing that constructive criticism and practice can’t fix. More courses, perhaps working with a mentor. Right?
Seriously though, what if it turns out I’m just bad at this?
I know senior colleagues who still regularly experience self-doubt. I’ve worked in various language- and content-related roles for quite a few years myself, yet here we are. I know — it doesn’t always make sense.
While I still haven’t found a way to overcome insecurity completely, I’ve come across approaches that help:
- Create a table where you list your projects and the specific impact you had on each one. For an added boost, include a column with the positive feedback you received. Maureen Herben and Jeff Humble call it a brag document.
- Improve your self-esteem by putting yourself out there and actually doing the work, especially when it feels uncomfortable. As content strategist Mandy Ellis puts it, build confidence with action.
Back to my portfolio project: I forced myself to stop overthinking, submitted my work and waited.
What happened next was that I got very detailed, very positive feedback from one of the course authors — a leading content strategist and designer.
Sometimes, all we need is to get out of our heads.
Landing my first content design role
After completing the course, the UX Content Collective included my profile in its Certified UX Writers directory — where my first client found me!
Unsurprisingly, the new assignment pushed me far out of my comfort zone. It was a fresh and welcome challenge by all means.
The team I worked with needed to revamp their product’s entire user experience — including user flows, copy and interface design.
For a beginner like me, being the go-to person for all content-related aspects was both extremely exciting AND frightening.
Plus...
- I was the first content designer on the team.
- I was most likely the least experienced person there (even though nobody ever made me feel less for it. Quite the contrary).
- I was writing in English, my second language.
- The product was relatively new to the market, making it harder to identify potential target users and research their needs and wants.
As the team grew and the product matured, we overhauled the existing features and added new ones. This meant new copy — not just for in-app flows but for the email and SMS sequences, website pages, marketing presentations and help content accompanying each update.
The process involved a great deal of social listening and conversation mining — which I love to use to uncover user insights, empathize with our audiences and start fleshing out our tone of voice guidelines.
Luckily, I was surrounded by a small group of serious and committed professionals who taught me a lot about collaboration and the industry itself.
Being part of a team and actively participating in the UX design process was fantastic, and I feel I got off to a great start with that project.
How you can get started, too
Now, I don’t think taking one course and landing one client means you’ve made it into the field.
But it’s a starting point. Taking the first steps builds that much-needed momentum and boosts self-confidence. The UX leaders I look up to started this way, then continued honing their skills, experimenting, advocating for the profession and generously sharing their knowledge until they became widely recognized and respected.
Like other career paths, being a good content designer means committing to continuous learning. You won’t just learn about content design and UX writing — you’ll explore other disciplines that inform your practice, such as business strategy, user psychology and behavioral design.
Understand if content design is your match
While I’m all for investing time and energy to explore new endeavors, I advise being more cautious about where you spend your money, especially in the beginning.
If you feel overwhelmed by the number of resources available and just want to weigh your options with no strings attached, here are two free resources I found incredibly helpful when I got started.
The first place I recommend visiting is the UX Writing Library. Created by UX writing pioneer and microcopy expert Kinneret Yifrah, it “curates the best and most helpful resources from the field and organizes them in a way that’s easy to navigate and use.” This online hub has it all: books, courses, tech tools, mentorship programs, job boards, portfolio advice — you name it. If you’re only going to check out one UX resource today, make it this one.
You can also head to the UX Writing Hub, a community for UX writers and content designers, and explore their blog, podcast and newsletter. Then, take a look at their free taster course. It covers the basics of product design, UX research, user psychology, content style guides, user journeys, Information Architecture (IA) and testing, among other important topics. It’s another worthwhile avenue to explore on your own time.
Assess your hard skills
Content design continues to attract professionals from diverse backgrounds. If you’re going to join us, your previous experiences, neighboring skills and personal interests are highly valuable assets. Think about the hats you’ve worn in your professional life and write down the transferable skills you’ve identified.
A few examples:
- Copywriter: you have a lot of writing experience under your belt. You understand user psychology and know how to be witty and persuasive.
- Translation specialist: you know localization and internationalization strategies like the back of your hand and can apply them to multilingual UX projects.
- Terminology manager: you understand the importance of ensuring brand voice consistency. Voice, tone and style guidelines are your bread and butter.
- Account manager: you’re used to working as a consultant, which comes in handy when explaining your choices and advising your client on the best course of action. Project management is your thing, too.
Try this exercise yourself, and you might start uncovering connections between your past jobs and future career.
Hone your soft skills
Being a good content designer also means cultivating the attitude and mindset that will allow you to succeed in a team setting. It’s a profession that requires a lot of cross-functional collaboration, so it’s important to align with your coworkers. You’ll want to understand their daily challenges and figure out how to work together efficiently.
The way you take constructive criticism will be instrumental to your growth. Your UX copy will change several times as you and your team iterate on the flow. Multiple stakeholders will likely have their say before what you wrote sees the light of day.
You might struggle to access user research. Also, office politics is real. Some stakeholders might try to push their final version of the copy, regardless of the data, so take a deep breath. Learning to articulate your rationale with eloquence and composure is key.
As a junior, it might feel like you’re not good enough. As you prepare to share your work with the team, explore multiple angles and create alternative versions of your deliverables for A/B testing. This will help you narrow down what the business is looking for. Request (and give) constructive feedback. Be objective and respectful. The more often you do this, the faster you’ll learn to explain your solution in a clear and convincing way.
Flexibility is another skill to master. Deadlines change and new tasks are added to the pipeline every day. Things can get confusing and overwhelming, especially if you’re just starting. Prioritize your mental health, communicate with your supervisor and regularly check in with your team members. Do your best to always be kind and understanding, but restate your boundaries in private when necessary.
If you’d like expert advice on navigating professional relationships as you start your content design career, have a look at platforms like UX Coffee Hours or adplist.org, where you’ll find seasoned mentors.
Find work
If you’re ready to start browsing job openings, here are some free resources you might want to check out:
- WorkingInContent.com is all about helping content professionals land their dream roles in content strategy, content design, content marketing, UX writing and more.
- The UX Writing Hub has an online job board that is regularly updated with new positions. These are also featured in their weekly newsletter.
- Content Writing Jobs offers a newsletter with remote, freelance, contract and full-time writing opportunities. The weekly issue is free and you can also sign up for regular alerts.
If you prefer freelance work, here’s a strategy I found helpful for honing in on your potential clients. It’s called the Audience First Method by content marketing writer Jennifer Goforth Gregory.
Here’s a summary of how it works:
- Think of an audience you know well. Look to past jobs, skills and hobbies. The key is understanding their daily life, specific problems, goals, needs and frustrations. Alternatively, you can think of an audience you’re part of.
- Write down the products and services they need. Ask people from that audience what products and services they regularly buy, if possible. Make an extensive list and be as detailed as possible.
- Pick a product or service from your list and search for companies that sell those products and services. Be as specific as possible. This is your list of potential clients.
- Connect with these companies on LinkedIn or via email with a personalized message. Use your research to demonstrate how much you understand their daily challenges and suggest solutions to help them.
As you screen prospects and apply for roles, consider these tips:
- Follow the money. Which companies are growing? Check their LinkedIn pages and visit Crunchbase to get an idea of their financials. High-growth teams have rapidly increasing content needs.
- Check which skills and qualifications are most sought-after. Do you notice a pattern? Can you fill a gap or carve out a niche for yourself that may be in demand in the future?
- Create opportunities. Many companies plan their product design and development efforts well in advance. Reach out early in the quarter to inquire about their needs for the next period. Knowing when they need support will help you determine the right time to follow up.
Explain your career transition to potential employers
The most compelling way to connect your past experiences with your desired job is by telling a story.
I recently learned that Hinge, the dating app, incorporates narrative interviews into their hiring process. In these interviews, candidates are invited to share “examples from previous roles that display a growth mindset,” effectively tying past, present and future together.
I’m sure Hinge isn’t the only company doing this. Recruiters want to understand what you bring to the table and how your background shaped you, especially if you’re changing careers.
So how can you do this? Gabriel Lucas, a leader in education technology, sums it up perfectly:
Try to find an artful insight or construct within a discipline about which you are passionate and authoritative, and apply it directly to your line of work at a strategic level.
Here’s the personal example he shares:
I am a jazz pianist. When I reflect on the transformation of the ed tech industry, it reminds me of a classical ensemble shifting to jazz. Several decades ago, technology required everyone to follow the same script—akin to classical musicians dutifully playing the notes on a page. Now, ed tech offers far more choices and the freedom to experiment and improvise.
Creating a story like this can help you connect seemingly unrelated work experiences, demonstrating your ability to pivot to recruiters.
More resources
Last but not least, I’d like to leave you with some interesting articles to read as you begin your journey into content design.
If you want to learn how people from diverse professional backgrounds have joined this community, check out UX Writing: A Field of Career Refugees, an article by writer and content strategist Melissa Geissinger.
Melissa Geissinger
And if you happen to be the UX writing trailblazer in your team, read How to Succeed as a Sole UX Writer by senior product writer Kendra Ralston.
Kendra Ralston
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Get in touch on LinkedIn to talk about all things UX writing, content design and localization.
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