Contents
- Voice and Tone
- Style Guidance
- Punctuation
- Pronouns
- Articles: a, an, the
- Abbreviations
- Date Formats
- Number Formats
- Money Formats
- Percentages
- Contractions
- Verbs and Verb Tenses
- Gender-Neutral Language
- Button Labels (CTAs)
- Word List
This article outlines the essential guidance for creating content that adheres to Affirm’s style guidelines.
Voice and Tone
What is Voice?
It’s our personality, which never changes. So we always write with our basic voice principles in mind, to ensure that how we communicate reflects who we are.
What is Tone?
It’s our mood, which changes based on how we feel about what we’re saying and how our audience is likely to feel about it. Changing our tone lets us celebrate when something good happens and lets us sound kind and respectful when we have something more serious to talk about.
| Conversational | Optimistic | Bold |
|
We keep things personable and light. We don’t speak bank. But we’re not jokey, flip, or |
We’re encouraging because we believe the future is bright. But we’re not patronizing and solicitous. |
We speak directly, But we’re not overly matter-of-fact and abrupt. |
Style Guidance
Above all, be clear. Our users must be able to understand what they see on the screen and what their next options are from any point in the UI. Everything on the screen should serve clarity.
Be brief. While it’s not true that people don’t read what’s on the screen, you should always seek to minimize text. Use short, easy words, and keep full sentences short too.
Use sentence cases for everything. Capitalize only the first word and proper nouns. (It’s OK for some subheads in the app UI to be in all caps, which is currently the case.)
Do: Choose a date
Do: Set up AutoPay
Don't: Choose a Date
Write like you speak. Don’t omit articles (a, an, the) and pronouns (I, we, you, my, your) when there’s space to include them. Omitting these words can make text sound robotic and demanding, and it can make content more difficult for ESL users to understand.
Do: Enter an amount.
Don't: Enter amount.
Do: Set your savings goal.
Don't: Set savings goal.
Do: Offer expires in 7 days.
Don't: This offer expires in 7 days.
Don’t use punctuation at the end of a header unless it’s a question.
Do: How much are you planning to spend?
Don't: Enter an amount.
Use punctuation at the end of any full sentence in the UI. Even if it's a single short sentence of body copy below a header, it needs a period or, in rare cases, a question mark or ellipsis.
Punctuation
General Rules For Punctuating UI Content
For the most part, how you punctuate UI content isn't largely different from how you punctuate any other kind of content. These are the two main ideas to keep in mind (but do read on for the nuances on each form of punctuation):
- Don't use end punctuation for a header or subhead, unless it's a question. Questions need question marks!
- Use end punctuation for body copy that's a full sentence. Even just one small standalone sentence needs final punctuation (a period, question mark, exclamation point, or an ellipsis).
- Don't use final punctuation for body copy that's not a full sentence. The exception is when there's a mix of full sentences and fragments. In that case, use final punctuation for everything.
Ampersands (&)
In body text, avoid using as a conjunction to join two sentences or as a replacement for and. It’s OK to use as a stylistic choice to combine two nouns that go together to form one unit (Shop & Save), commonly used in headers in the Marketplace. Avoid using it in headlines.
Do: Fitness & Gear, Travel & Events
Don't: Add an item to your cart & choose Affirm as your payment method.
Comma (,)
Use the Oxford comma: a comma used after the penultimate item in a list of three or more items, before “and” or “or”.
Do: We don't charge late fees, origination fees, or prepayment penalties.
Don't: Firearms, drugs and alcohol are on the do-not-buy list.
Ellipsis (…)
Use sparingly. It’s OK to use an ellipsis to suggest an ongoing process or to soften the tone of a brief bit of UI text. Don’t use in a button label (CTA).
Do: We’re processing your info…
Do: Stay tuned…
En Dash (–)
An en dash is longer than a hyphen and shorter than an em dash. Use it to separate numeric values and dates in a range (often takes the place of the word “to” or “and”).
Do: $50–$75
Do: 6.25–18.99% APR
Do: Jun 6–11
Do: Aug 21–Sep 21
Em Dash (—)
An em dash is longer than the shorter en dash. It’s OK to use in the UI, but rare. It can replace a comma, a colon, or parentheses:
Do: It’s never too late to pay—and get back on track.
Do: Choose your loan term—3, 6, or 12 months.
Do: Start saving—earn 2% APY.
*Note: No space before or after the ellipsis, en dash and em dash.
Exclamation Point (!)
- Use sparingly to create a light or celebratory tone.
- Use only where we can reasonably expect the sentence to generate real excitement in the audience, or where our genuine excitement is understandable.
- Never use more than one in a row, and never more than one in the same chunk of UI text.
Parentheses ( )
- Use parentheses sparingly. If possible, recast the content without the parenthetical, use different punctuation, or simplify the idea.
- Never use parentheses to create an optional plural, as in The loan(s) listed in your account. In this case, it's usually OK to use the plural only without confusing readers.
Question Mark (?)
Asking questions in the UI can make our content sound friendlier, but too many questions can be taxing for the user. Avoid using questions stylistically. That is, only use a question when the user actually has a choice to make or input to provide. Always consider whether a statement can be as effective and just as friendly.
- Save changes? vs Save changes (header for a modal)
- Are you sure you want to delete your account? vs Delete account [header for a modal]
- How much do you plan to spend? vs Your spending budget [page header]
- When do you want to pay? vs Choose a payment date [section header on an app screen]
Pronouns
Use pronouns (subjective, objective, and possessive) when there’s space. It makes our content sound more relational and less transactional. We want our content to feel and sound personal.
- Keep it to you, your, and we, us, and our. It’s also OK to use I and my in the right place.
- Don’t use he, him, his or she, her, hers.
- Avoid saying let’s. This word suggests a we're in it together relationship that we often can't literally follow through on, since we often deliver bad news (declinations).
Do: We never charge late fees.
Do: Questions? Let us know here.
Avoid: Let’s get started.
Articles: a, an, the
Use articles when there’s space. It helps our content sound friendly and conversational instead of robotic.
Do: Create an account (not Create account)
Do: Choose a payment plan (not Choose payment plan)
Abbreviations
Always use abbreviations for days of the week and months, except in these cases:
- In headers: Payment due in March
- When used in a sentence: Your April payment is due in 3 days
- When used as a standalone word unaccompanied by a date, as in pop-up menus
- When an abbreviation could be misconstrued or confusing to the user
Days: Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun
Months: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
Date Formats
Abbreviate months in most cases. (See Abbreviations for more guidance.)
Express dates as follows:
Do: Dec 15, 2020
Do: Dec 2020 (no comma when there's no day)
Don't: 04/21/2020. It's less scannable. But, using MM/DD/YYYY as ghost text in form fields is OK.
In date ranges, use an en dash with no spaces:
Do: Jun 6–11, 2020
Do: Aug 21–Sep 21
Do: Jan–Feb
Do: Jun–Jul 2019
Do: Jun 11–Jul 27, 2019
Do: May 5, 2005–Aug 12, 2020
Number Formats
Use numerals in text; don't spell them out unless they start a sentence:
Do: Make 3 equal payments.
Do: 3 equal payments [fragment]
Do: Three payments are spread over 6 months. [sentence]
For numbers greater than 999, use commas to set off each group of three digits:
Do: $1,500.00
Don't: $1500.00
Express numbers with decimals to 2 places, even when the final numeral is a 0:
Do: 15.20%
Don't: 15.2%
Money Formats
Use an en dash (–) to separate the values in a monetary range.
In most cases, express monetary amounts—even whole amounts—to 2 decimal places. Typically, things like payment amounts and loan or account balances aren't whole numbers, and a user would expect those numbers to be expressed precisely:
Do: Your next payment is $125.67
Do: Loan balance: $1,200.00
Omit the trailing .00 for these amounts when they are whole values: a prequalification amount, amount limitations on savings account deposits, prices, and in other places where omitting .00 isn't likely to be unclear to the user (when the user wouldn’t expect the number to be expressed precisely):
Do: You’re prequalified for $1,000
Do: You can deposit up to $25,000
Do: Spend $50–$75 and save.
In numeric ranges, express both parts of range to the same number of decimal places. Use the "$" symbol in front of both values:
Do: $297.25–$450.00
Do: $1,200–$1,500
Don't: $297.25–$450
Don't: $297.25–450.00
Percentages
General Guidelines
- Use the “%” symbol to notate percentages, even in sentences.
- Use an en dash (–) to separate the values in a percentage range.
- In any percentage range, express both values to the same number of decimal places (either both are whole numbers or both are expressed to 2 decimal places).
- In percentage ranges, use the symbol at the end of the range only, and not with each value in the range:
Do: 6.00–18.00% APR
Don't: 6.00%–18.99% APR
APR Percentages
- In general statements of APR values, those not associated with a specific payment plan or offer for example, it's OK to use whole numbers:
Do: Offers starting at 5% APR
Do: From 7–12% APR - When expressing a specific APR related to a user's payment plan or offer, express values to 2 decimal places, since users will expect specificity, and we don't want values to appear to be rounded up or down.
Do: 4 payments at 15.00% APR
Do: Pay over 3 months at 7.75% APR - An exception is 0% APR—this value never needs to be expressed as 0.00% APR.
APY Percentages
- Always express an APY to 2 decimal places, even when it's a whole number. APYs are rarely whole values, and users expect the value to be very specific.
Do: The APY for your Affirm Savings account is 1.25%
Do: The APY for your Affirm Savings account is 2.00%
Non-APR and Non-APY Percentages
- Express whole percentage values without decimal places when they stand alone. But in a range, express both values to the same number of decimal places (either both are whole numbers or both are expressed to 2 decimal places).
- For any percentage that's less than 1, use a preceding 0, and always express the fraction to at least to decimal places.
Contractions
In most cases, use common contractions instead of spelling out the words: you’ll, you’re, it’s, that’s, we’ll, you’ve.
Avoid using let’s. This creates a friendlier tone, and it saves space. Avoid uncommon contractions that look and sound awkward, such as that'll, you'd, might've. In legal text, it's OK to spell out words instead of contracting them.
Do: You’re $25 away from your goal!
Do: Shopping that’s just for you
Avoid: You are prequalified for $1000
Verbs and Verb Tenses
In general, use the simplest form of a verb that makes sense and is still grammatically correct. For example, use the present tense instead of the future tense if you can. Use the simple past (you chose) instead of the past perfect (you’ve chosen). Complex verb forms can make content sound heavy, they take more space, and they’re often unnecessary to convey the right meaning.
Do: You added $50.00 to your goal.
Avoid: You’ve added $50.00 to your goal. [the simple past works fine and is shorter]
Do: You’ve saved $2,000.00 so far. [the past perfect is necessary to suggest an ongoing process]
Do: You save $23.75 by paying off early. [the future tense is unnecessary in this case]
Avoid: You’ll save $23.75 by paying off early.
Gender-Neutral Language
It's OK to use they, their, them in the singular to avoid using gendered pronouns. Try to write around it if possible. For example, use a plural subject if it makes sense to do so, or recast the sentence. Never use he/she, him/her or other similar constructions in an attempt to write inclusively.
Do: A user must provide their verification code to sign in.
Do: Users need a verification code when signing in.
Don't: A user can't pay with his/her credit card.
Button Labels (CTAs)
General Guidelines
Ideally, CTAs should work with the page header to express what the goal of the screen is. That is, the user shouldn’t have to read the screen carefully in order to understand the consequences of clicking or tapping a CTA, since users often act quickly after scanning.
- Use strong, imperative verbs.
- Avoid Yes and No as CTAs, unless the page header is a question that the CTAs answer (not recommended).
- Use articles and pronouns when there’s space.
- Avoid including 2 actions on the same button (Agree & Continue)
- Never use an ellipsis in a button label.
Do’s and Don’ts
- In cases where the user can avoid taking action for now:
- Maybe later (keeps the door open, sounds softer)
- Don’t use ‘Not now’.
- In modals or other surfaces that are purely informational, where the user simply needs to close the modal or leave without taking a specific action:
- Close
- OK (not Okay): Use it in cases that imply the user is agreeing to something or needs to understand something (like instruction about what the user might do or see the next time they return to the app).
- Got it, Got it!: Use it in cases that imply the user needs to understand something (like instructions about what the user might do or see the next time they return to the app).
- Don’t use ‘Dismiss’.
- In modals or other surfaces where the user has taken an action, such as completed a form, made choices, and so on:
- Done
- Send
- Avoid ‘Submit’.
- In modals or other surfaces where the user is progressing through a flow with more than one screen or step. Don’t mix these labels in a flow of several screens:
- Continue
- Next
Word List
For detailed guidance on language and word use, see the word list below. Here's quick guidance on some common words that can be tricky to use correctly according to our guidelines:
|
Word |
Guidance |
| APR |
Annual percentage rate. Use this to express how much interest a user pays for a loan. Don't use it to describe the interest a user earns on a savings account (use APY). |
| APY |
Annual percentage yield. Use this to express how much interest a user earns on their savings. Don't use it to describe the interest a user pays for a loan (use APR). |
| Biweekly, Bimonthly |
Don't use these terms. They are ambiguous. Use words like every 2 weeks instead. |
| Buy | Try to use it as a verb instead of purchase. It's shorter and sounds more conversational. See also Purchase below. |
| Click, Tap | Users “click” UI elements if they're using a PC; they “tap” UI elements if they're using a phone or tablet. |
| Choose |
Use it when a user is choosing an option from a menu, for example, or making some other choice among a number of options. A user “chooses” a payment plan. Use “select” to mean interacting with an element of the UI: a user selects a checkbox, for example. See also Select below. |
|
Customer, User |
When there's space, try to refer to people who use Affirm as “customers” instead of “users”. |
| Pre-approve, Prequalify | Don't use “pre-approve”. We “prequalify” users with a process based on user-provided info and a soft credit pull. This differentiates it from a pre-approval, which requires a hard credit pull. |
| Easy |
Avoid saying anything is easy—that’s for the user to decide. |
| Enable, Disable | Don’t use “Enable” and “Disable”. Use “turn on” and “turn off” instead, as is in turn on AutoPay. |
| Loan | When possible, avoid describing any Affirm product as a “loan”. |
| Log in | Don't use “Log in”. Use “sign in” instead. |
|
Turn on, Turn off |
Use them instead of “enable” and/or “disable”. Always keep the two words together, as in turn on AutoPay. In other words, don't say turn AutoPay on. |
| Please |
Use this word sparingly in the UI. It's good to sound friendly, but it's unnecessary to always say please when you're asking the user to do something ordinary, like completing a form. Don't use “please” in headers. |
| Purchase |
It’s OK to use it as a noun, as in “complete your purchase”, but try to avoid using it as a verb. Use “Buy” instead when you can. |
| Select |
Use this to mean interacting with an element of the UI: a user selects a checkbox, for example. When a user is choosing an option from a menu, for example, or making some other choice among a number of options, use “choose”. A user chooses a payment plan. |
| Sign in | Use it instead of “Log in”. |