Summary: Clear and consistent messaging isn’t just for human interaction—it’s a business asset that builds trust with users and keeps platforms profitable. What happens when that trust is broken by unclear system responses like technical error messages? Today, we unpack what goes wrong when an API returns a message like “Unfortunately, the text you provided does not contain a story…” and why these wording choices, though accurate, miss the mark in both clarity and user engagement.
What’s Actually Happening Under the Hood?
The source message is a diagnostic output from an application programming interface (API), triggered when the system fails to process the user’s request—specifically, when the request depends on account balance and content criteria. In this case, the user tried to extract a story from a data input that was either invalid or empty, and their account lacked the credits needed to run another query.
But instead of stating that the account lacks credits to proceed, or that the input is unsupported or invalid, the response does something strange: it comments on the content as though it was trying to rewrite a story—then passes judgment on the lack of one.
That creates confusion. Is this a technical problem? A writing critique? A billing issue? You’re getting hit with three different implications in one block of text.
Dissecting the Breakdown: A Symptom of Poor Message Design
From a system design perspective, an API response like this violates one of the oldest usability laws: Be specific, actionable, and helpful. When people don’t understand what went wrong, they lose trust in the system. That costs attention. Attention costs money.
Here’s what the message tells us:
- The input doesn’t qualify as a ‘story’ because it’s actually an error message.
- The system can’t “rewrite” the message because there’s no “story content” to work with.
- The underlying reason is not the lack of emotional arc or characters—it’s that the user is trying to rewrite a technical alert.
But instead of explaining that in business or operational terms—“The content format submitted cannot be processed” or “Your account is out of credits”—we get an indirect, almost editorial response. It reads like a bot that moonlights as a literary critic.
The Real Message: You’re Out of Tokens and Submitting the Wrong Input
Let’s cut through the fog. What the system meant to communicate was probably:
- Account Error: “Your balance is too low to complete this request.”
- Content Error: “The text provided is a system message and not a narrative. Please input a valid story or article for rewriting.”
If the user had seen this direct response, they’d know two things immediately: recharge your account, and submit a different kind of input. Two action steps, not confusion.
Why doesn’t the system do this? Probably because the API doesn’t distinguish between user error and system error clearly enough. And this gap costs valuable support time because users now send in support tickets asking, “What do you mean by ‘no story content to extract’?”
Language Reflects Authority—and Sets Expectations
Precise error messages do more than relay information. They convey authority. When the system dances around the root cause—in this case, a low account balance and invalid content—it undermines user confidence. People want clarity, not critique.
A well-constructed platform talks to users the way a trusted advisor does. At the moment when the user submits a bad input or runs out of tokens, what message builds trust?
Something like: “Your account balance is insufficient for this request. Please recharge. Also, the input provided appears to be a transactional error message—not actual story content.” That recognizes the problem, sets a boundary with a firm but respectful tone, and gives users a productive next move.
How Developers Can Fix This
Here’s what I’d recommend to any developer or product manager facing this issue:
- Segment your error types: distinguish between functional errors (e.g., low balance), content errors (e.g., invalid input), and system errors (e.g., backend failures).
- Write message templates that use clear subject-object-verb structure. Think “Your action caused X. Here’s what to do.”
- Test error messages with real users. You’re not writing for yourself—you’re writing for the person who just lost time and money on confusion.
- Give messages a self-help component. Add links to documentation or make them intelligent enough to trigger autosuggestions: “Want to recharge? Click here.”
Where Persuasion Comes in: Turning Frustration into Loyalty
When a user hits a dead end from an API, it feels like rejection: “We can’t help you.” That’s when friction turns into churn. But if the same message says, “We couldn’t process that input—but here’s how to fix it,” you’ve just transformed the outcome from lost to loyal.
Chris Voss teaches that hearing “No” isn’t the end—it’s the beginning of a better conversation. A proper error message lets the system say “No” in a way that opens up the possibility of user action—not frustration. That’s empathy in code.
What Does This Say About Your Business?
If your system talks in riddles or tries to sound polite instead of clear, it tells clients your business can’t be trusted to handle problems. It suggests you’ve put more time into your frontend than into customer support logic.
And if fixing that costs you half a day with a copywriter and a developer? You should have done it yesterday. That message will fire thousands of times a week. Multiply your confusion rate and support ticket backlog—there’s your business case.
Final Thought: Clarity Wins Confidence
Most platforms fail not because the tech doesn’t work, but because users don’t understand what’s happening when it doesn’t. One confusing sentence costs you hard-earned trust. Ten percent more clarity in your system messages creates human value that multiplies across every click, query, and customer conversation.
Next time your system returns: “Unfortunately, the text you provided does not contain a story…”—ask yourself, “What would I say if I were standing in front of this user?” Then write that into the API. That’s how professionals speak. Clarity is not a feature; it’s a business model.
#UXWriting #ProductDesign #APIUX #ErrorMessaging #BusinessClarity #UserTrust #SoftwareDesign #CustomerRetention #CommunicationMatters
Featured Image courtesy of Unsplash and Patrick Martin (UMlT0bviaek)
