Writing for the Web

Research on how users read on the Web and how authors should write their Web pages.

I. How Users Read on the Web

They don't. People rarely read Web pages word by word;

instead, they scan the page, picking out individual words and sentences. Research on how people read websites found that 79 percent of test users always scanned any new page they came across; only 16 percent read word-by-word.

I. How Users Read on the Web

As a result, Web pages have to employ scannable text, using:

highlighted keywords (hypertext links serve as one form of highlighting; typeface variations and color are others)

meaningful sub-headings (not "clever" ones) bulleted lists one idea per paragraph (users will skip over any

additional ideas if they are not caught by the first few words in the paragraph)

the inverted pyramid style, starting with the conclusion half the word count (or less) than conventional writing

I. How Users Read on the Web

Eyetracking visualizations show that users often read Web pages in an F-shaped pattern: two horizontal stripes followed by a vertical stripe.

I. How Users Read on the WebImplications of the F PatternThe F pattern's implications for Web design are clear and

show the importance of following the guidelines for writing for the Web instead of repurposing print content:

Users won't read your text thoroughly in a word-by-word manner. Exhaustive reading is rare. Yes, some people will read more, but most won't.

The first two paragraphs must state the most important information. There's some hope that users will actually read this material, though they'll probably read more of the first paragraph than the second.

Start subheads, paragraphs, and bullet points with information-carrying words that users will notice when scanning down the left side of your content in the final stem of their F-behavior. They'll read the third word on a line much less often than the first two words.

I. How Users Read on the Web Teens like cool-looking graphics and that they

pay more attention to a website's visual appearance than adult users do. Still, the sites teen users rated the highest for subjective satisfaction were sites with a relatively modest, clean design.

They typically marked down overly glitzy sites as too difficult to use.

Teenagers like to do stuff on the Web, and dislike sites that are slow or that look fancy but behave clumsily.

I. How Users Read on the WebWhat's good? The following interactive features all

worked well because they let teens do things rather than simply sit and read:

Online quizzes Forms for providing feedback or asking questions Online voting Games Features for sharing pictures or stories Message boards Forums for offering and receiving advice Features for creating a website or otherwise adding

content

II. Inverted Pyramids in Cyberspace Start with the conclusion. Start the article by telling the reader

the conclusion ("After long debate, the Assembly voted to increase state taxes by 10 percent"), follow by the most important supporting information, and end by giving the background.

This style is known as the inverted pyramid for the simple reason that it turns the traditional pyramid style around.

Inverted-pyramid writing is useful because readers can stop at any time and will still get the most important parts of the article.

II. Inverted Pyramids in Cyberspace

The Lead Sentence Start quickly with the news (“Traffic is

smothering the campus”), follow it with attribution (“the principal”), give the verb (“said”), And time element (“Tuesday.”). Traffic is smothering the campus the

principal said Tuesday.

III. Passive vs. Active Voice

Active voice is best for most Web content,When structuring a sentence, active voice ("Actor does X to Object") is usually better than passive voice ("Object has X done to it by Actor") because it more directly represents the action. As a result, readers don't have to jump through as many cognitive hoops when trying to understand what's going on.

IV. Summary

Summarize first. Put the main points of your document in the first paragraph, so that readers scanning your pages will not miss your point.

Be concise. Use lists rather than paragraphs, but only when your prose lends itself to such treatment. Readers can pick out information more easily from a list than from within a paragraph.

Write for scanning. Most Web readers scan pages for relevant materials rather than reading through a document word by word. Guide the reader by highlighting the salient points in your document using headings, lists, and typographical emphasis.