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Writing
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Good
web page copy
Contributor:
Mike de Sousa, Director, AbleStable®
This
article explores how people read web pages as compared
to print pages, and describes some fundamental guidelines
to ensure your message doesn't get lost or overlooked.
When it comes to writing good
web page content,
context is all. A homepage requires very different
content writing than a text heavy page such as this.
Furthermore, users will use different methods of reading
dependent on their aims.
How
people read web content
Take time to write content specifically for your web
site. People tend to scan pages on the web instead
of reading line by line. Of cause we also regularly
scan magazines, posters and TV adds for meaningful
content. There are a number of reasons why we scan
content whatever the medium. Internet users are often:
• under a time constraint
• highly focussed
about their on-line aims
• needful of clear,
concise, unambiguous text
Matching
style and content
One significant issue we'll also raise here is the
need for style and content to be well matched. For
example, if users are browsing for information about
a particular product, text content has to support
navigational elements in ensuring the process is transparent.
That is, the user should effortlessly move to their
desired goal without the need to reflect on how good
or bad the text content is. A second example of when
content and style should marry is the well written
news headline/image. The combination of a powerful
image together with a three to five word phrase can
confirm fast and effectively the potential content
of an unseen web page.
Write
for the web alone
Time and again you'll see text content has been directly
lifted from a company's printed document and pasted
directly onto a web page. This is very poor practice
as these documents have often been written for a different
purpose in mind. Worse still, the general practice
of using documents intended for internal use within
a company and posting them on the web is still prevalent.
These kinds of documents should be kept strictly within
the confines of the company intranet.
When writing for the web use the simplest language
possible. Don't use technical terms if you can avoid
them. If you have to use specialist terms ensure you
also provide a clear path for users to find out about
the meaning of a word or phrase by providing an online
glossary.
Testing
Lastly, test your pages with a broad cross section
of potential users. Test users provide invaluable
feedback. Inform any test users prior to your web
site's evaluation that when you are observing you
will be unable to speak or answer any questions during
the test process. Write down any and all your observations,
however small they appear. Gather a team and evaluate
your observations. Do not justify deficiencies in
your web site, correct them.
More
advice
If you're serious about learning more about good web
page copy you'll find a great deal of useful information
at Jakob Nielsen's web site www.useit.com.
Jakob is a leading expert on web usability and his
site offers many examples and links to resources about
all aspects of this invaluable discipline. |
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| Authors
background |
Mike
de Sousa is the Director of AbleStable®.
Mike has been commissioned as an artist, music
composer, photographer, print and web site designer,
and author.
If you observe inaccuracies in our in-house
contributions or wish to contribute an article
or review to be included at AbleStable®
visit Feedback.
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AbleStable © 2002-2008 |
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