The ROI of Readability

How Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Readability

come together to deliver high quality content

2The ROI of

Readability

1• Introduction

2• The ROI Of Readability

3• The Science Behind Our Measures

4• Where We Fit In / Everywhere You Write

5• Conclusion

3

According to research done by the Content Marketing Institute and Marketing Profs, the #1 challenge faced by

content marketers today is “producing engaging content” – a staggering 60% of those surveyed said.1

This should not come as a surprise – content that consistently engages audiences is essentially the “endgame” for

most content marketers. Whether it’s responding to a Call to Action (CTA), filling out a particular form, or sparking

interest in your company – your content exists to engage.

Of the various ingredients that make up a highly engaging piece of content, one gets oft ignored: readability.

One definition of readability is "the language you use, the length of your sentences and your use of grammar“2 - and

not surprisingly, these aspects could actually be getting in the way of your audience enjoying and engaging with

your content.

With regard to B2B content marketing, we find that readability plays a crucial role in how successful a piece of

content could potentially be. Optimizing readability for content can dramatically impact conversion rates as well as

SEO rankings - thereby improving your visibility.3

We created Atomic AI to address this very issue - how does one determine what the readability of a piece of content

should be? With the platform we wanted to address the various complex challenges that face modern content

creators and provide them with an all-in-one solution that assisted them throughout the content creation process.

Chapter 1:Introduction

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There has been a plethora of research around

the concept of readability. These focus mostly

on printed physical content for mediums such

as magazines, newspapers and print ads.

With the rise of the internet, and businesses’

use of it, more content is now available

exclusively online. Unsurprisingly, the metrics

related to digital written content differs from

their physical counterpart – and we are only

beginning to learn more about those

differences. There are, however, many

similarities between the two as well.

According to George Klare, readability can be

defined as “the ease of understanding or

comprehension due to the style of writing.”4 It

can also be defined as measuring “the

complexity of the words and sentence

structure in a piece of content.”5

Chapter 2:The ROI of Readability

5

Continued interest in readability has led to the creation of various formulae to determine the readability

of text. The most often used is the Flesch-Kincaid reading ease scale, developed by Rudolf Flesch and

J. Peter Kincaid in 1975 in conjunction with the US Navy.

The reason for this project was to ensure that technical manuals pertaining to essential job functions

were written in a way that could be easily understood by servicemen, no matter their level of education.

The formula was proven to be effective and was soon adopted as a military standard in 1978.6

In 2010, President Obama signed the Plain Writing Act - the law requires that federal agencies use

“clear Government communication that the public can understand and use.” This further underscores

the rising importance of readability in our everyday lives.

Although there are many readability formulae out there, a general theme can be deciphered. Using

shorter words and sentences reduces the reading level of the piece of content and in turn increases the

speed and reduces the difficulty in reading.

Brian Scott, a contributing writer for Lousy Writer, summarizes reasons why introducing a readability

formula or test for content creation in a business environment is a good idea.7

His first point states that most Americans (and other English speakers as well) have limited reading

ability. Writing in plain English is the best way to mitigate this issue – ensuring that the widest portion of

your potential audience will be able to understand it.

Using shorter words and sentences reduces the reading level

of the piece of content and in turn increases the speed and

reduces the difficulty in reading.

6

Another reason to use a readability formula is that if

the text is not understood, all your hard work in

creating it will be wasted and the very point of the

piece of content will be defeated. This is especially

true for critical tasks, such as those in a military or

health and safety context. Productivity could be

negatively impacted, and may lead to bodily harm or

critical errors on the part of the employee.

By using a readability test, organizations can save

“time and money that you might have wasted in

writing a complicated document”7 that doesn’t provide

value to your target audience. By producing an

unreadable text, you drive up costs as the text now

needs to be re-written to better suit your target

audience.

Furthermore, studies have shown that reading difficult

text can negatively impact the mood and psychology

of the reader. This will drive down their engagement

with your content, potentially resulting in the loss of a

sale or lead. You can increase retention,

understanding and speed of reading by ensuring the

content is at the correct readability level.

Another benefit of carefully considering the readability

of your content, especially web copy and blog

content, is the indirect impact it has on SEO. Search

engines don’t strictly measure the readability of a

page – rather, many search engines are looking at

the behavior of visitors on the page in question.

Factors such as time spent, exit rate, social signals

and bounce rate are looked at by SEO. By writing to

the correct readability level, you are also improving

audience behavior on the page, thereby helping the

page rank higher.8

The easier something is to read, the longer the reader

will stick around and consume the content. Your goal

is that they get enough information to click on a CTA

or interact with your brand. Contrast this to a page

that is heavily populated with industry terms, jargon

and long-winded sentences and paragraphs. The

reader may get frustrated by the fact that they are not

getting the information they need quickly enough –

they’ll close the page shortly after landing and

negatively impact your exit rate.

Paul Allen’s preliminary research from 2009 showed

that pages that had an easier readability level

generally ranked higher than their more complex

counterparts The average score for first page was 55

(10-12th grade reading level), whereas the second

page averaged around 40 (college reading level).9

This is great evidence to support the importance how

readability impacts the popularity and visibility of

content.

Gleanster Research claims that “$0.25 of every dollar

spent on content marketing in the average mid-to-

large B2B firm is wasted on inefficient content

operations.”10 At Atomic Reach, we believe that the

lion’s share of those 25 cents comes as a result of

content marketers failing to recognize the importance

of the readability of their content. By ignoring the fact

that a portion of their audience is unable to fully

understand their content, organizations are severely

handicapping the potential for engagement.

Readability is at the forefront of the Atomic AI

platform - we recognize the importance of writing to

your audience, as opposed to writing at your

audience. Not only is it important to have a great

subject or topic for your content, but the complexity of

how you put your ideas forth is also crucial.

The following chapter will delve into the some of the

measures Atomic AI analyzes to ensure that the

readability and overall quality is optimized for your

unique audience.

7

Atomic AI takes over 20 different measures into consideration when analyzing your content. Below we will

take a look at some of the most important factors that should be considered when creating a piece of content.

Chapter 3:Our Measures and The Science Behind Atomic AI

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Readability

Unsurprisingly, readability is

one of the major measures we

look at while analyzing content.

We used the Flesch-Kincaid

reading ease scale as our base

and we modified it to suit digital

content as opposed to print.

Under the umbrella term of

readability, we are also looking

at the components of written

content - sentence length, word

length, word count and

paragraph density.

The Flesch-Kincaid scale takes

the amount of syllables in a

word and the amount of words

in a sentence as a

measurement for readability.

This implies that shorter words

and sentence equate to an

easier read. In addition, we

found readers of online content

scan text as opposed to actually

reading it all – so it is essential

to make sure that the text is

easy to digest when scanned.

Lowering the readability level

would make this much easier

for the reader.

Paragraph Density

The length of a paragraph

greatly impacts a reader’s ability

to enjoy and understand a piece

of content. Christopher Coake,

a professor of English at the

University of Nevada states that

“paragraph length is one tool (of

many) that a creative writer can

use to speed up/slow down a

reader’s path through a piece.” 11

This is especially true for online

audiences; concise and to the

point paragraphs extract very

little effort from readers. This is

essential if you consider the fact

that readers are now consuming

your content on smartphones

and tablets more often. No one

likes scrolling through large

walls of text – it’s exhausting

and demands too much

attention from the reader. This

leads to a reader that is easily

bored, overwhelmed, or both,

resulting in them disengaging

and navigating away from your

content.

Although no rules exist to

govern the ideal length of

paragraphs in online content, it

is safe to assume that readers

consistently prefer it to be short.

Conversely, content that

contains too many short

paragraphs can also chop up

the flow of your ideas, proving

to be too distracting to the

reader. Striking the balance is

essential and requires some

trial and error.

Readability: “the ease of understanding or comprehension due

to the style of writing.”

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Emotion

Emotional language can greatly impact how engaged a reader is with your content. Viral content is a good

example of this – written in a way that ramps up the emotional intensity, it elicits a reaction or feeling in the

reader that compels them to share it.

Political content with a bias (left wing vs right wing news) will write about the same event in wildly different

ways. Depending on what the event it, a conservative website will report on it in a way that perhaps shows it in

a positive light whereas a liberal news site will “spin” it in a negative way. Using strong emotional words will

essentially tell the readers how to feel about the event. The more emotional the wording, the more influenced

the reader will be.

The recent coverage on the impact of “fake news” further solidifies the impact a highly emotional piece of

content can have on readers. Regardless of how preposterous the claims are, if written in a highly emotional

manner, it can sway the opinions of the reader. The emotionality of it sometimes will outweigh the logic, and

this can be a dangerous thing. Consider some of the dictators of our past – most were excellent orators and

speakers that really focused on using language that they knew would elicit a particular reaction.

Title Optimization

Article title optimization has been around for a long time due to its importance to SEO. The better optimized a

title, the higher the chance that it will appear near the top of search results. But it’s not enough to simply write

for SEO purposes, because in the end it’s the user that has to be compelled to click and read.

Based on our research of over 1 million blog posts, we have found various characteristics that constitute a high

performing title.

One of the most effective ways to compel a reader to click is to include numbers in the title. Listicles are very

popular because they indicate to the reader that there is potentially a lot of value in the post that they are about

to click on. They also indicate that the information will be displayed in an easily digestible manner (a list), which

is much easier to digest than a long winded article that makes the same points.

Another great technique is to posit the article title as a question. This works because it creates a connection

between the writer and reader, and may appeal to them personally in that context. One must be careful to not

create the title in a way that may be construed as “clickbait”. This would only anger the reader who feels like

they just wasted their time for very little payoff.

Using emotional words is also a good way to compel readers to click, but once again be wary to not overdo it

as it may stray close to clickbait territory as well.

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Content Uniqueness

Content uniqueness is also a factor that determines your SEO strength, especially in the context of

content marketing. How unique your content is strongly determines the overall “content quality” on your

website, thereby having a better chance of ranking higher in Google SERPs.

Dean Evans describes content uniqueness as “how original the words, phrases and paragraphs in your

articles are.”12 In plain terms, unique content is the primary reason someone would actually visit your

website - if there are dozens of other sites with the exact same content as yours, then why would

someone pick your website over another?

Google recognizes this and determines that unique, relevant content is a characteristic that would

constitute a “good” website. Google, and other search engines want to prevent the first 3 or 4 results to

contain identical information, therefore will filter these duplicates out to ensure that each result provides

the user with different information.13

“If there were dozens of other sites with the exact same

content as yours, then why would someone pick your

website over another?”

11

As our product evolves, so do the many ways in which you can use it.

Initially we were heavily focused on blogging, thereby limiting the ways in which a user could take advantage

of our platform. On numerous occasions, our users would ask us if it could be possible to use the same

underlying technology but apply it to a myriad of different content sources.

Below we outline the different ways you can use the Atomic AI writing platform for your marketing assets, and

where we fit in during your content creation workflow.

Chapter 4:Everywhere you write – Where Atomic AI fits in

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Web Copy Optimization

One application that was frequently requested by

clients was to be able to get an analysis on the

various linguistic aspects of a particular web page -

homepage, about us, product overview, etc. Clients

wanted to learn if there was a pattern or trend in the

way their web copy was written in regards to tone,

complexity and consistency.

Starting off with complexity, the importance is

apparent when it is understood that readers

disengage if they don’t quite understand what they

are reading. If the complexity of your product

overview page is way above your average reader’s

head, that’s a sure fire way to ensure that they

navigate away from that page in search of simpler

description elsewhere. This might take them to a

competitor’s website, thereby costing you a

potential sale.

For example, let’s take a look at the company

Cisco. Their network hardware solutions target 2

distinct groups; enterprise consumers and retail

consumers. The enterprise consumers would be

interested in Cisco’s line of enterprise level server

solutions, whereas the retail consumer would be

much more interested in Cisco’s home router

offerings.

If a network admin is tasked with making a shortlist

of potential solutions for their office, they will begin

by learning more on Cisco’s website. It is safe to

say that the admin knows his/her stuff, so it would

be a blunder to not include all the nitty gritty details

of what makes your enterprise solution worthwhile.

The admin would not shy away from highly

technical content, in fact they would relish it as it

saves them the task of finding this information

elsewhere. The readability of this particular page or

section of the website would be highly complex, as

this is the level that most resonates with potential

customers.

Furthermore, writing at a lower complexity level

may signal to the reader that your company lacks

credibility, or is glossing over facts and features

that may not be that great by only using words such

as “fast” or “efficient” to describe the hardware.

With engagement data, the platform is able to learn what level

of complexity, specific terms and the overall complexity

resonates best with your audience.

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In contrast, consider average Joe - he just moved out of his parent’s place and wants to get a decent WiFi

router for his one bedroom apartment. All he really cares about is watching Netflix, playing Xbox and making

sure his tablet, laptop and smartphone all connect to the network. A quick internet search has brought him to

Cisco’s line of home routers. If the copy on these pages was written in the same highly technical way as their

enterprise solutions, Joe will get flummoxed and go search elsewhere for similar products.

A better idea would be to write in much simpler terms - referencing common problems and features that these

types of users are looking for. For example, they could advertise the router as “perfect for Netflix and Chill”, “

amazing lag-free gaming” and “connect multiple devices.”

Although both approaches are saying the same thing, the difference is night and day. It is therefore extremely

important to pay attention to your audience, and the level of understanding that they are likely to have in

regards to all of your products and product lines.

With the new Atomic AI platform, analyzing your web copy becomes possible. Intelligent recommendations are

provided within your CMS so actionable edits can be made to improve the optimization of the written content.

Equipped with your engagement data, the platform is able to learn what level of complexity, specific terms and

the overall complexity resonates best with your audience.

An additional service offered, the Atomic Audit, will take a look at all of your web copy assets and provide you

with a deep level of analysis on its readability. Learn if a certain section of your website is written at a higher

readability level compared to a another. This will give you a better understanding of the distribution of your

content, and will give an indication of what areas need more attention.

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Business Email Optimization

When looking at the most effective outbound lead sources – email marketing still reigns supreme.

Although the marketing world has moved on to prioritizing content, social media, and mobile marketing

as new sources of outbound leads– email marketing still outperforms them by miles.14

The first challenge is getting the receiver of the email to actually open it. This means your subject lines

need to instantly draw the reader’s attention. This is especially true when conducting campaigns on the

B2B side.

Prospects are bombarded daily with requests to try out this tool or that tool, to help them with their

marketing/sales/HR efforts. You need to somehow cut through that noise with a simple one sentence

subject line that addresses a particular pain point, emphasizes a keyword or uses words that perform.

Optimize your subject line by ensuring they are concise and informative, thereby giving the receiver a

reason to open it.15 Include characteristics that would intrigue the reader – a question or personal

statement does wonders to improve open rates. Learn what types of subject lines have worked best for

you in the past, and strive to improve on them in the future.

The first challenge is getting the receiver of the email to

actually open it. This means your subject lines need to

instantly draw the reader’s attention

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Moving on to the body of the email – it is important to

include words that invoke some sort of emotional

response (both positive and negative, depending on

your product). Words that inspire fear, uncertainty

and doubt induce a sense of urgency in the reader –

pushing them further down the sales pipeline.

Likewise for words that invoke positive emotions – it

all depends on the product you offer.

Clarity and simplicity is also very important in the

body of the email – you must easily convey what your

product is, why it’s important and how it can address

the reader’s pain points.16

If you sell a lifestyle or luxury product, approach the

copy in a fun, light hearted manner with a tone and

easier complexity to match. Try not to overstuff the

email with industry jargon – rather, get your point

across in simple terms to easily grab their attention.

Density of the content also plays a major role in

engagement.

Picture someone on their smartphone, heading home

after a day at work. He/she receives an email from

you, is intrigued by the optimized subject line and

decides to open it. What he/she sees next is a long-

winded spiel about this product or that feature. Your

campaign email is not the place to describe every

feature of your product, or every benefit it offers – it

will never be as informative as your website.

The body of the email needs to be concise and

simple and is meant to invoke a sense of interest. If

their interest in piqued, they will click through the links

and visit your website – which is exactly what you

want.

A core aspect of the Atomic AI platform is the

Chrome extension, which is designed to go wherever

you create content - in this case a business email.

The extension will provide the same

recommendations and edits expected from Atomic AI

- available right in your inbox.

Couple this with insights gained from an Atomic Audit

looking at all sales emails and related engagement

data, and you can have everything you need to create

emails that will get higher open rates, click-throughs

and engagement.

Infographic courtesy of Hubspot.

16

Newsletter Optimization

Courtney Eckerle of Marketing Sherpa is spot on when she writes: “The newsletter is where two of the

most valuable marketing tools come together: email and content.”17 In fact, ExactTarget found that 68%

of marketers considered email marketing and newsletters as a core business driver.18

Combining two essential tools into one marketing package requires skill and good judgement to ensure

that the potential is not wasted.

MailChimp, a leader in the email marketing space, has mined through billions of emails to provide us

with some very interesting insights. A major finding is in regards to subject line – this is the first point of

contact with the reader and needs to written in a way that entices the reader. From the data, it is

recommended that “boring works best” – that is, don’t write an overly salesy subject line. If you miss

the mark on the subject line, chances are the reader will either ignore or delete – rendering your hard

work useless.

Another piece of advice that goes without saying is avoiding spammy words such as discount, free or

multiple exclamation marks. Beeketing has compiled an excellent list of words and phrases to avoid as

they have a tendency to trigger spam filters across the board.20

The newsletter is where two of the most valuable marketing

tools come together: email and content.

17

Not surprisingly, consistency (in terms of language,

layout and frequency) is essential as well. Ensure that

the language and complexity in each weekly/monthly

newsletter is consistent so readers can feel a sense

of familiarity with your content. Furthermore, the

visual layout of the newsletter should also be

considered. Opting for a more visual approach does

wonders to grab your reader’s attention.

This leads directly to the next point: length and

density. The newsletters of yesterday were

excessively lengthy and chock full of content. A better

idea is to highlight key articles within the newsletter

and provide links to other articles. This drives more

people back to your website, boosting your traffic

metrics and conversion possibility.

Another important characteristic to consider is mobile

optimization. Chances are a large portion (66%

according to Movable Ink)20 of your readers will be

accessing your content through a mobile device;

whether it be a mobile phone or tablet. Content not

optimized for mobile may appear as a big jumble of

images, headers and text. This makes a terrible

impression upon the reader, reducing your legitimacy

as a trusted content provider.

Last, but not least, make sure you are providing

value. The reader subscribed to you expecting to get

something in return. Being bombarded by sales

messages while reading a newsletter is a sure fire

way to one more unsubscribe. It’s also a good idea to

link to or reference other company’s content and

news – this shows that you care about the industry

and the reader.

Atomic AI can assist the newsletter creation process

by analyzing your content as you write. You can

optimize the content in regards to readability, the

emotional intensity along with length and paragraph

density. You can draft out the content within the

platform, run an analysis and then address any

issues that are flagged. This ensures that the

readability and overall structure of the newsletter is

optimized for your audience. With the help of an

Atomic Audit, you can learn about what readability

and structural factors led to the highest engagement,

and then apply those insights to any future

campaigns you initiate.

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Chapter 5:Conclusion

The task of content optimization is not an easy one. It is essential to recognize the type of content asset, the

purpose it serves and its place in the buyer’s journey. Depending on those variables, the optimization process may

greatly differ.

A one size fits all approach may be quick and easy at first, but will take a toll on your conversion rate as it does not

take into consideration all the variables that come into play.

Atomic AI is the writing platform for content marketers looking to optimize all types of written content; be it web copy,

blog content, outbound emails or newsletters. With our convenient Chrome plugin, the platform can “follow” you

everywhere you write – from your inbox to your CMS.

The Atomic AI WebApp is capable of connecting to your engagement data to extract valuable insights on how your

audience interacts with you content – giving you a deeper look into their reading habits and preferences.

Using the most advanced readability engine in the world, Atomic AI will match the readability to your unique

audience and produce measurable results. Reduce the time, effort and costs involved in creating all forms of content

and increase engagement by using data-backed insights.

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2. https://readability-score.com/content/what-is-readability/

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4. http://www.impact-information.com/impactinfo/readability02.pdf

5. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/legibility-readability-comprehension/

6. "Readability formulas: Useful or useless. (an interview with J. Peter Kincaid.)". IEEE Transactions on

Professional Communications. 30: 12–15.)

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8. http://seopressor.com/blog/improve-content-readability-and-seo/

9. http://www.advancedinternetmarketing.co.uk/seo-readability

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11. http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/whats-the-rule-about-paragraph-length?page=1

12. http://goodcontentcompany.com/good-content-writing-tips-unique

13. https://moz.com/blog/how-unique-does-content-need-to-be-to-perform-well-in-search-engines-whiteboard-

friday

14. http://www.convinceandconvert.com/email/email-marketing-case-studies/

15. https://www.clickz.com/7-strategies-to-optimize-your-email-marketing-campaign/32349/

16. http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/9-components-optimized-marketing-emails-

ht#sm.0019kiy3513ivcngrqb1ol0jmu8xo

17. https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/how-to/improve-your-email-newsletter#

18. http://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2015/04/08/how-important-is-a-mobile-optimized-email-

newsletter/#be8ae0f24326

19. https://beeketing.com/blog/spam-words-to-avoid-in-email-marketing

20. http://marketingland.com/34-percent-email-opens-now-happen-pc-83277

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