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AGENDA• Why is it important?• Best Practices• Key takeaways
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?•Accessibility•People read differently online
“Users have time to read at most 28% of the words during an average visit;
20% is more likely” Usability.gov
COMPETING CONTENT
THE CHALLENGE
STRUCTURING YOUR CONTENT
BEST PRACTICES
BEST PRACTICES
BREVITYBEST PRACTICES
To-Dos:• Nix unnecessary words• Avoid repetition• No semi colons• Not more than one comma• No excessive punctuation• Ok to start a sentence with
“and,” “but,” or “or” if it makes things clear and brief
BREVITYBEST PRACTICES
• Use bullets and numbered lists• Use clear headlines and subheads• Use images, diagrams, or multimedia• Use white space• Complete sentences are not always necessary• It’s okay to end a sentence with a preposition
• “It’s the event for which you have been waiting.”
STYLEBEST PRACTICES
• Avoid passive tense• No jargon• W.H.A. (we hate acronyms)• No metaphors• Address our audience directly• Refer to your organization as
“we”• Use the words that your
audience uses
LINKSBEST PRACTICES
KEYWORDSBEST PRACTICES
• In headers and in the body• Create a separate piece of content for each keyword• Internal search terms• Analytics• Conversations/focus groups• In your content AND your metadata
METADATA & SEOBEST PRACTICES
Metadata• Page title• Description• Keywords
SEO• Alt tags• Never sacrifice
good writing for SEO• Content freshness
TITLESBEST PRACTICES
• Contain verbs• Are not ambiguous• Must make it clear what the content is about• Real world examples:• DRUNK GETS NINE MONTHS IN VIOLIN CASE • POLICE BEGIN CAMPAIGN TO RUN DOWN JAYWALKERS• FARMER BILL DIES IN HOUSE • EYE DROPS OFF SHELF
FORMATTINGBEST PRACTICES
• Capitalization• Example:• Hannon Hill University appoints new deans in two of its
colleges.• Hannon Hill University Appoints New Deans in Two of its
Colleges.• Bold only for headings• Italics only sparingly• Don’t underline
“Effective web writing involves having the proper content, written in the right
style and formatted for effective scanning.”
U of Akron
BUILD TRUSTBEST PRACTICES
• Be factual and truthful• Be selective and respectful• Keep your content current• Identify yourself• QA your content
TARGET AUDIENCEBEST PRACTICES
• Deliver the type and quality of content that reflects your audience• What is your audience
looking for?• Not your mission
statement• Not PDFs
TARGET AUDIENCEBEST PRACTICES
•Context• Always establish context –
you don’t know where your visitor came from• Another site• Internal search • External search engine• Social media• Print• Email
GUIDELINES FOR CREATING CONTENT
BEST PRACTICES
1. I have a question2. I can find the page with the answer easily – I can see it’s the right page from the search results
listing3. I have understood the information4. I have my answer5. I trust the information6. I know what to do next/my fears are allayed/I don’t need anything else7. Next steps
Always a next step
Example
Example
Example
Example
Example
Example
Example
KEY TAKEAWAYS• It’s crucial to learn how to write for the web• Don’t rely on styling to convey meaning• Front load your content • Brevity rules• It’s not about you• Provide next steps
REFERENCES• http://www.usability.gov/how-to-and-tools/methods/writing-for-the-web.html• http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/08/20-tips-on-how-to-write-for-the-web/• http://www.uakron.edu/webteam/docs/dm_webwriting.pdf• https://www.hampshire.edu/communications/web-writing-style-guide• http://www.monash.edu/about/editorialstyle/writing/readability-statistics• https://econsultancy.com/blog/6771-how-to-write-for-the-web-23-useful-rules/• http://www.bbc.co.uk/academy/journalism/article/art20130702112133610• http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/writing-for-the-web-tips-common-mistakes-we-make/• http://www.dal.ca/webteam/web_style_guide/writing_for_the_web.html• http://www.studygs.net/writingcontent.htm• http://webwisewording.com/writing-for-the-web/#how-users-read-on-the-web• http://webdesign.about.com/od/writing/a/aa031405.htm• https://www.gov.uk/guidance/content-design/writing-for-gov-uk• http://www.mtu.edu/umc/services/web/seo/• https://www.york.ac.uk/communications/websites/content/writing-for-the-web/
THANK
YOU
