Roadmap for the future of copy

Building the first copy craft roadmap at Booking.com

Context Our copy community was maturing — we finally had a team of seniors — but we were still operating reactively, responding to the business rather than helping shape it. There was no content leadership structure, no cross-track vision, and no one accountable for raising the craft across the community.

I saw an opportunity to change that. I wrote the competency framework for a Lead Content Designer role and built a business case for why the track needed someone working across it — to uphold content standards, identify and grow talent, and steward a unified voice across touchpoints. It was an unusual move, but I had built strong relationships with my product and engineering managers. I got the role.

The content roadmap was the first major initiative I drove from that position.

Contribution Working closely with my co-principal and the senior copywriters, I led the development of our first copy roadmap and vision statement. By analyzing the path towards the stated business goals and understanding the needs of the craft I was able to synthesize high-level objectives that seek to bridge those gaps and keep us competitive. Our roadmap themes were: achieving a unified voice wherever users find us, craft excellence and scaling our copy systems. I also helped identify the right owners for each objective based on their skills and interests. I worked closely with one of our seniors to evaluate and evolve our objectives. I met regularly with objective owners to align and give feedback.

Impact The roadmap tackled high level objectives that serve as a north star to our craft and community. It gave copy leadership an understanding of gaps and opportunities for higher quality craft and scalability. It empowered copywriters with a vision and visibility of initiatives which has reduced the number of duplicate efforts and serves as a filter through which new ideas can go through to ensure maximum impact and direction. The roadmap also had a multiplying effect, creating concrete career paths and directly leading to promotions for senior copywriters.

Role Lead UX Writer | Booking.com, travel | Collaborator Principal UX Writer