Summary: When a piece of input data lacks usable narrative, you’re left not with a story to rewrite, but with a signal—pointing to real constraints, real design flaws, or real misunderstandings about how systems communicate. This article explores how error messages, specifically JSON responses indicating things like “insufficient account balance,” are not useless distractions. They’re the raw material of better systems, deeper empathy, and smarter product design.
The Misunderstood Value of an Error Output
What happens when somebody asks for a rewrite of a JSON string that simply says: "status": "error", "message": "Insufficient account balance"? It’s tempting to dismiss the prompt as broken, irrelevant—void of story or meaning. But that sterile message is revealing more than most marketers realize. It speaks to poor interface design, unmet user expectations, and a failure to anticipate customer friction.
This isn’t just a matter of technical messaging. It outlines a broken conversation between machine logic and human intention. These tiny error stubs—when ignored—turn into costly support tickets, lost sales, and abandoned checkouts. The better question isn’t “Where’s the story?” It’s this: Why doesn’t this error message explain what the customer can do next?
Error Messages as Missed Marketing Opportunities
Every error is a friction point—and every friction point is a marketing moment. If a user wanted to buy, renew, or interact with your product but couldn’t, then you’ve already got momentum. The signal was positive. The system killed it with a dead end.
Most “insufficient account balance” messages are the equivalent of slamming a door in someone’s face without telling them why or what they can do about it. Instead of saying “No,” why not say “Not yet… but here’s how you can fix it”? Reframe rejection as redirection. Done well, this becomes microconversion content—copy that makes the user smarter, not just stalled.
If There’s No Story, Make One
The absence of narrative isn’t a dead end. It’s a signal that we’re on the wrong layer of communication. Machines talk in JSON. Humans don’t. That disconnect is your opportunity. If the system says “You can’t do X,” marketers, product managers, and service designers should ask: What did they think was going to happen?
Every failed action is a user expectation misfire. That deserves a response. A good one. A clear one. And a human one. What would it look like if your payment error said:
“Oops – looks like your current balance won’t cover this purchase. Would you like to top up your account or choose a smaller plan? Here are your options:”
That’s a rerouted sale. That’s leverage. And in Chris Voss terms, that also avoids poisoning negotiation with a hard “no.” Instead, it reframes the rejection gently and precisely. That’s the difference between losing a customer versus guiding one.
The Psychological Cost of Dead Ends
A pure JSON error feels final. It’s definitive. Cold logic with no room for appeal. But remember: people don’t just want a product. They want to feel smart for choosing, using, and solving with that product.
A dead-end message quietly confirms users’ worst suspicions: “I’m doing this wrong. I’m not tech-savvy enough. I shouldn’t even try.” This is exactly what Blair Warren meant when he said you must encourage dreams while justifying failures. If your interface makes people feel small or stuck, they abandon more than the session. They ditch your brand entirely.
Building Systems that Speak Human
Think about every time software talks like this:
{
"status": "error",
"message": "Insufficient account balance"
}
What does it cost to rewrite that into a helpful sentence? Practically nothing. What does it buy you? A moment of empathy. A hand up instead of a brush-off. A path forward instead of a dead stop.
That’s not just better UX. That’s clearer marketing, stronger retention, and fewer furious support tickets. And yes, it’s still logical and scalable. We’re not replacing structure with fluff. We’re translating machine facts into human progress.
Where Logistics Meet Emotion
Nobody dreams of writing error messages, but everyone notices when they’re awful. The silent message you’re sending with terse tech gibberish is this: “Your confusion is your problem.” That violates every persuasion principle we have as marketers, especially Reciprocity and Commitment:
- If users have already tried to engage your product, give them the respect of usable feedback.
- Creators and marketers committed to user success must stay consistent—and that means not ghosting a failed interaction.
Treat every blocked attempt as a clue. Use it to refine your flows, your language, and your segmentation. That weird JSON fragment? It’s not just code. It’s data with emotion baked inside it. Your next conversion measured in empathy, not just analytics.
From Flat Failures to Friction Feedback
Next time you see a raw string like “message: Insufficient account balance,” don’t look away. Look deeper. That’s a failed workflow with a real person behind it. Someone who clicked and expected. Someone who engaged and got blocked. That’s not a gap in copywriting—it’s a product failure crying out for clarity.
What would it take to change that blind failure into a teaching moment or an upsell? How would your conversion strategy shift if you rewrote every “no” as “here’s what next looks like”?
You’re not just rephrasing JSON. You’re rewriting the way users hear your product say: “I see what you’re trying to do.”
#UXWriting #ErrorHandling #ProductDesign #MicrocopyMatters #ConversionStrategy #EmpathyInDesign #MarketingOps #FrictionPoints #HumanCenteredDesign #ChrisVossTactics
Featured Image courtesy of Unsplash and Adam Jang (8pOTAtyd_Mc)
