We use American English
At PostNord we use American English. In our corporate language but also in our communication with customers in our digital services. See below for some common differences between the two.
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Color | Colour |
| Organization | Organisation |
| Neighbor | Neighbour |
| Apologize | Apologise |
| Organize | Organise |
| Traveling | Travelling |
| Canceled | Cancelled |
| License | Licence |
| Dialog | Dialogue |
When buying postage for the US and the Nordic countries we write: • Zip code for the US • Postal code for Nordic countries
Active voice
In active voice, the subject of the sentence does the action. In passive voice, the subject of the sentence has the action done to it. Active voice is usually clearer, more direct, and easier to read than passive voice. And it's almost always shorter.
English
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Add your parcels automatically | Your parcels can be added automatically |
| You have rejected paying the customs invoice | Payment of the customs invoice was rejected by you |
Swedish
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Lägg till dina paket automatiskt | Dina paket kan läggas till automatiskt |
| Du har inte betalat tullfakturen | Tullfakturen betalades inte av dig |
Passive voice
Sometimes active voice can come across too harshly. When it feels like you're about to blame the user, for example in errors, warnings, or notifications, use passive voice. Passive voice can also be used to confirm the action done by someone.
English
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Payment declined | We declined your payment |
| Your account was created | You created an account |
| Your changes was saved | The system saved your changes |
| Waybills, receipts and QR codes are sent to your email address | PostNord will send waybills, receipts and QR codes to your email address |
Swedish
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Betalning nekad | Vi nekade din betalning |
| Frakt köpt | Du köpte frakt |
| Ditt konto skapades | Du skapade ett konto |
| Dina ändringar sparades | Systemet sparade dina ändringar |
| Fraktsedlar, kvitton och QR-koder skickas till din mejladress | PostNord skickar fraktsedlar, kvitton och QR-koder till sin e-postadress |
Contractions
Contractions suit our friendly and uncomplicated tone, but to also be perceived as trustworthy, we're not using the weird ones. The goal is to sound human, so avoid contracting verbs that sound awkward when you say them out loud.
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| What's | Cannot |
| We'll | You are not ready |
| You'll | PostNord app is not available |
| You've | Ya'll's account has been removed |
| Doesn't | Your parcel's ready |
| Didn't | Ain't |
| Isn't | Mustn't |
Always use apostrophes for contractions, not vertical (straight) quotes or acute accent.
Keep it short!
When you've written something, take your time, go through it word by word, and challenge yourself to cut words. Every word should give value to the user. If it's not — cut it. One trick is to try to start with a verb.
English • Someone have to pick up at service point • You can track your parcels in the app
Swedish • Någon behöver hämta från serviceställe • Du kan spåra dina paket i appen
Another trick is to use sentence fragments. For example: • Save changes? • How portokoder works • Need more labels?
How to write short
No matter what you're writing for PostNord, less is always more. People come to our services to finish tasks and stay updated, not to read novels. Whether if it's chatbot conversations or parcel information, people scan to find what's important to them. They want info that's accurate, concise, clear, and conversational.
Keep it short
When you've written something, take your time, go through it word by word, and challenge yourself to:
• Use less words and unload the working memory of the person reading this. Fewer words means lighter load.
• Keep it simple. Complicated words and structure makes the product look complicated and scary.
• Make it scannable. Most people have limited attention and skim text.
• Guide with structure. Help people find your message by using hierarchy and bullet points.
• Focus on what's useful. People read, they actually do, but only what's important to them.
Every word should have a clear purpose and give value to the user. If it's not — cut it. Be brutal. You know you've gone to far when the text starts to loose meaning, and then, only then, it's OK to revive some words.
Cut unnecessary words
English | Swedish
| English | Swedish |
|---|---|
| Very | Jätte, väldigt |
| Slightly | Ganska, lite |
| Only | Endast |
| That | Egentligen |
| A little | Bara |
| Basically | Faktiskt |
| Just | Alltså |
| Actually | Ungefär |
| Even | Kanske |
| Like | Som |
Begin with a verb
English
• You can find parcels from other emails and numbers
• Someone have to pick up at service point
• In the app you can track your parcels in the app
Swedish
• Du kan hitta paket från andra mejl och nummer
• Någon behöver hämta från serviceställe
• I appen kan du spåra dina paket i appen
Use sentence fragments
English
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Postage bought | You have bought postage |
| Save changes? | Do you want to save these changes? |
| How Portokoder works | Here's how Portokoder works |
| Need more labels? | Do you need more labels? |
Swedish
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Frakt köpt | Du har köpt frakt |
| Spara ändringar? | Vill du spara dessa ändringar? |
| Så fungerar Portokoder | Det är så här Portokoder fungerar |
| Behövs det fler etiketter? | Behöver du fler etiketter? |
Tip
"In titles, headlines and body copy, use your, their, a, the and similar connecting words to keep it conversational. You can skip them for buttons, labels and confirmations since space is usually limited."