Bringing British heritage into the 2020s

§ 01TL;DR

12% higher booking completion, 18% fewer mobile drop-offs.

We modernised British Airways' digital voice across website, mobile app, and a new WhatsApp chatbot. Led a team of four copywriters working alongside 25 designers across three workstreams. Soft launched March 2024, full launch Q4 2024.

§ 02The brief

British Airways is the UK's flag carrier and one of the world's most recognised airline brands. By the early 2020s, public sentiment had shifted: competitors with fresher digital experiences were winning travellers, and BA's heritage was starting to feel like a liability. The internal team was moving fast across web, app, and a new chat surface at once, and needed outside support to bring consistency, translate research into usable content, and ship without losing the brand's confidence and warmth.

§ 03The work

We were brought in as the lead UX writer running a team of four copywriters, working day to day with design and product leads across three workstreams. The timeline was tight: soft launch in March 2024, full launch by Q4. We ran short weekly cycles with regular reviews to keep voice and decisions aligned.

Research

We audited the existing experience and the public perception around it. The big themes were booking flow friction, post-booking anxiety, accessibility gaps for diverse traveller groups, and a tone of voice that drifted from page to page.

Design

We prototyped alongside designers, testing copy against patterns rather than in isolation. The hard part was balancing modernity with heritage. BA's voice needed to feel confident and warm, not stiff or corporate, and not straining to sound casual. We built a voice framework that gave writers clear guidance while leaving room for context.

Implementation

The work landed across three surfaces. The website got new booking and information patterns to reduce friction and add reassurance at the moments that matter. The mobile app got consistent product language, especially around trip moments. The WhatsApp chatbot launched as a conversational check-in that meets travellers where they already are.

§ 04What we found

Travellers wanted reassurance, not just information.

The frustration wasn't only with usability. People felt emotionally disconnected from the brand. BA's digital experience read as transactional when it should feel like the start of a journey. Heritage turned out to be an asset, but only when expressed through confidence, not nostalgia. Accessibility wasn't an edge case either: it affected a significant share of travellers.

§ 05Impact

The new voice and patterns shipped across three platforms. Booking completion climbed 12% after the copy and pattern updates landed across key steps, with 18% fewer drop-offs on mobile during payment and confirmation. Manage-my-booking contacts fell 9% as clearer post-booking reassurance did the work. The voice framework is now in use across BA's digital touchpoints.

Tahi and the team helped us bring clarity and consistency across the whole experience. The work made BA feel modern again without losing its confidence. Lead Digital Copywriter, British Airways