Write Button Text That Feels Natural to Say

Reading triggers inner speech.

You speak these words in your mind (Alderson-Day & Fernyhough, 2015).

Since buttons represent a 1st person declaration, they should produce inner speech that feels natural. Otherwise, something will feel wrong. And users will blame this negative emotion on the requested action.

How to Apply

• Mimic Their Tone of Voice. Avoid cutesy text (e.g., Count Me In) and exclamations (e.g., Buy Now!).
• Mention the Immediate Next Step. The text Buy on Amazon can feel weird because this step isn't immediate. After clicking this button, users would still need to read the product details and evaluate the purchase. The text View on Amazon feels more natural and less effortful.

Caveats

• Measure Conversions in Later Stages. Even though Buy on Amazon might reduce click-through rates, this text could increase conversions in later stages by extracting more commitment. Clicking this button will spark a battle of cognitive dissonance that requires users to reject this commitment to the purchase.