toss-ux-writing

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name: toss-ux-writing description: Use when rewriting or reviewing Korean product UX copy in a Toss-inspired voice: 해요체, active wording, positive framing, casual honorifics, de-nominalized verbs, and precise exception handling for errors, benefits, policies, forms, dialogs, buttons, and notifications. category: writing risk: safe source: custom source_url: https://developers-apps-in-toss.toss.im/design/ux-writing.html metadata: triggers: - 토스 말투 - Toss UX writing - 한국어 UX 카피 - 해요체 - 에러 메시지 문구 - 버튼 라벨 - 혜택 안내 - 앱 문구 리뷰 languages: [ko] output_contract: rewrite-table-or-copy-pack

Toss UX Writing

Use this skill to generate, rewrite, or review Korean product microcopy in a Toss-inspired style. The goal is not to impersonate Toss or copy its source examples; the goal is to apply reusable patterns: friendly 해요체, active verbs, positive-first framing, casual respect, and clear exceptions.

Core contract

When improving Korean UX copy:

1. Use 해요체 everywhere. Avoid formal 합니다/됩니다/하십시오 and avoid 반말.
2. Prefer active wording. Make the user, product, or object do the action instead of relying on 되다/됐어요/되어요.
3. Frame positively first. Say what the user can do and under what condition before saying what is blocked.
4. Keep honorifics casual. Remove over-formal ~시겠어요, 시나요, 셨나요, 께, 계시다, 여쭙다 unless an exception applies.
5. De-nominalize. Replace stiff {noun}+{noun} and Sino-Korean nouns with verbs, causes, and concrete actions.
6. Respect exceptions. Do not force positivity or active voice when legal/policy clarity, user reassurance, service end/expiry, or consequence explanation needs a passive or negative sentence.

Workflow

1. Classify the surface

Identify where the copy appears:

• Button or CTA
• Dialog / confirmation
• Toast / snack bar
• Error / recovery message
• Empty state
• Form label, helper text, validation
• Benefit eligibility or reward 안내
• Policy/legal restriction
• Notification/push
• Privacy, consent, recording, data use

Use references/surface-patterns.md for surface-specific defaults.

2. Rewrite with the five primary transforms

Apply transforms in this order:

1. Register: convert to 해요체.
2. Agency: convert passive/stative phrasing to active wording.
3. Valence: convert avoidable negatives to possible conditions.
4. Distance: lower honorific altitude while preserving respect.
5. Verbs: turn noun stacks into verbs or cause clauses.

Use references/vocabulary.md for replacement patterns.

3. Check exception gates

Before finalizing, ask:

• Is this a hard legal/policy/product restriction? If yes, negative wording may be clearer.
• Is this about service 종료, 기간 만료, 연체, 해지, 적용, 기록, 녹음, or 정보 수집? If yes, passive wording may be clearer.
• Is the question using the user's real context, inferred situation, or asking for goodwill/opinion? If yes, 시나요/셨나요 may be allowed.
• Could positive wording make the user misunderstand that the whole service is unavailable? If yes, specify the affected benefit/function.

Use references/decision-tree.md.

4. Return an auditable result

For rewrites, return this table:

원문	개선안	적용 규칙	예외 여부

For generation tasks, group by surface:

1. Primary copy
2. Secondary/helper copy
3. CTA labels
4. Error/empty/recovery copy if relevant
5. Notes on risk, exception, or missing context

For audits, return:

1. Overall verdict: 좋음, 수정 필요, or 위험
2. Findings by severity
3. Suggested rewrite
4. Rule references

Hard rules

• Do not output 되어요; use 돼요 if passive is intentionally allowed.
• In dialogs, prefer left button 닫기 over 취소 unless the action truly cancels a user-initiated operation.
• Avoid generic CTAs like 확인, 진행, 제출 when the action can be named.
• Do not blame the user. Prefer system/product constraints and next steps.
• Do not hide policy/legal restrictions behind cheerful wording.
• Do not claim generated copy is “official Toss copy.”
• Do not redistribute or quote the full Toss guide. Summarize patterns and cite the source when needed.

Quick patterns

카드를 해지하시겠어요?      → 카드를 해지할까요?
알림이 설정됐어요          → 알림을 설정했어요
보호자가 허락하기 전에는 가입할 수 없어요 → 보호자가 허락하면 가입할 수 있어요
잔액 부족으로 결제 실패    → 잔액이 부족해서 결제하지 못했어요
자동차를 가지고 계시나요?  → 자동차가 있나요?

When to Use

• Korean app/web product copy needs a Toss-like tone.
• UX writing for errors, dialogs, buttons, benefits, onboarding, forms, notifications, or policy 안내 feels stiff.
• A PR adds Korean UI strings and needs a style review.
• You need multiple variants in friendly 해요체.
• You need to explain why a Korean phrase feels too formal, passive, negative, or noun-heavy.

When Not to Use

• Legal terms must be reproduced verbatim.
• The brand voice intentionally uses formal 합니다체.
• The audience requires institutional or government-style honorifics.
• The copy is not Korean.
• You are asked to clone Toss's proprietary UI or copy full official examples.

References

• references/tone-model.md — deep analysis of the voice model.
• references/decision-tree.md — exception-first decision gates.
• references/vocabulary.md — replacement patterns and anti-patterns.
• references/surface-patterns.md — UI surface-specific copy recipes.
• references/examples.md — synthetic before/after examples.
• references/review-rubric.md — scoring rubric for audits.
• scripts/toss_style_lint.py — local heuristic linter.