Did you know that 79 percent of Web
users scan text on websites rather than read it? According to Jacob
Neilsen's article, "Why
Web Users Scan Instead of Read," there are four basic
reasons for this:
Reading from computer screens is tiring. The longer
you read, the more 'uncomfortable' you feel.
People want to feel active when they're on the
web. Many feel that reading a full page of text is "non-productive."
They want to move on -- to find what they came for.
Since there are so many pages on the web that contain
little relevant information, readers feel it's not worth
their time to read the whole text. Instead, they seek
out the most important elements by picking out keywords,
sentences, and paragraphs of interest.
Web users are busy. They simply don't have the time to read large blocks of text.
I have "preached" to many of my
clients, as well as those who have requested website text evaluations,
that short and to-the-point (concise) text is far superior
to long, flowery descriptions and commentary (see "Flowers
Do Better in Gardens that in Prose").
One of the primary reasons people use the Internet
is to seek out information. They are visiting your website
because they want to know more about your product, your service,
or about a topic of interest. To ensure they receive what
they're after (and thereby leave a better impression of your website), it's vital that you make your text 'scannable."
This means dropping any content that doesn't focus on what
your visitors want to know.
You can write text that is scannable by using:
Bullets
Numbered lists
Boldface type
Colored text to highlight
keywords
Additional headings
Shorter paragraphs (one idea per paragraph)
In short, if you want to receive the best response
to your website writing, make sure to write concisely,
make the text scannable (by following the suggestions
above), and use objective and clear (as opposed to
flowery, boastful, or exaggerated) language.
Nan Yielding has nearly 10 years experience as an online business owner. She is the owner of Writing-Etc.com and offers internet marketing services and assistance to help website owners attract more customers and increase sales.
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