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Organizing page content and writing effective Web copy

Originally published on Monday, September 12th, 2005

The organization of your website’s content, along with the on-page copy, can make or break a user’s experience with your site. This may seem like a lot of pressure to bear, but writing for Web users, as opposed to other audiences, might be the most natural writing you’ll ever do. In contrast to academia, corporate environments, and other discourse communities, verbose copy is NOT the way to go. When writing for the Web, less is always more. Many of the ironclad grammatical rules you were taught not to break while in school CAN and SHOULD be broken. Sound crazy? Consider these two paragraphs discussing the differences between printed and electronic text:

Example 1

In my opinion, it is the interactivity of electronic text that really separates it from its printed relative. The ability of a user to control what is going on in front of them gives developers great power over how to present information. For example, a chemistry student may wish to see the periodic table of elements in order to answer a homework question. The table may be located in the front or back of a textbook, but the student must worry about losing their place in the book when flipping through pages, and possibly their concentration. With electronic technology, the student could display the periodic table with a single mouse click. If animations or attractive colors would help illustrate a point, they can be easily incorporated by the developer. Hyperlinks to further information can also be provided. And all of this can be achieved without the student “losing” the original question that was asked. This is electronic text at its best, and a perfect example of the most appropriate use of electronic literacy.

Example 2

Electronic literacy can be a wonderful tool when used properly, as exemplified with:

Electronic literacy can also be used inappropriately, however, as exemplified with:

It should be fairly obvious which of the above examples is optimized for the Web and which is suitable for a college essay. Example 2, at a mere 69 words, communicates the same information as Example 1, which contains 173 words. Now that we have a working example, what are the keys to writing and organizing an effective Web page?

1. Keep Web copy simple. And short.

Web users do not like to read. Part of it is because technology users are infamously impatient individuals. I should know. Also worth mentioning, though, is the fact that screen text is much harder to read than text on paper. On the Web, people skip large chunks of text for this very reason. Regardless of your target audience, keep your writing free of unnecessary bulk and you’ll have a better shot at delivering your message. One thing to keep in mind, though…

2. Do not confuse length with tone.

While Web writing should be short, don’t rush to use slang, jokes, and catch phrases. While these are appropriate for certain audiences, there are many instances where a formal tone is necessary. If you’re responsible for writing content for an organization, be sure to use an appropriate tone for your audience. If you’re not sure what kind of tone to use, determine who will be the primary readers of your website. Imagine yourself talking to this person, and put it in writing.

3. Chunk large pieces of text (keep it modular).

When HTML was invented, its founding fathers were kind enough to create tags like <h1> (header), <ul> (bulleted list), <strong> and <b> (bold), <em> and <i> (italics), and <p> (paragraphs) to break up text and make pages scannable. Use these tags. In addition to making a page easier to read, clean organization of text through usage of these tags is favored by search engines like Google and Yahoo! looking to index your pages.

4. Give your page an appropriate title.

This, much like chunking text, is important for both usability and search engine friendliness. A Web user should know the purpose of your page at all times. The easiest way to accomplish this is via the <title> tag, or the text located at the top of a web browser. Even if your writing is horrific, the user can still assume your purpose if you provide a descriptive title.

5. Use hyperlinks on descriptive words only.

Click here. Where? Here. That’s right. I bet you’re wondering what’s behind door #1, aren’t you? In this case, nothing, because I’ve used a dummy link. This method of linking is widely used, though, and for no good reason. When using hyperlinks, make sure the linked text SAYS something, like “fun pics of me drunk on my birthday.” As mentioned earlier, Web users scan pages. Only the very interested few (or people with lots of time) read everything. By using descriptive link text, you will improve the usability and scannability of your page immeasurably. Did I mention that search engines like descriptive link text too?

So there you have it– my 5 suggestions for writing and organizing an effective web page. Try it out. Who knows? Maybe there’s a future for you as a copywriter.

This article was written by Christopher Jason and published on Monday, September 12th, 2005. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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