Online Tools and Information

Web content is different from other copy.  A classic paragraph deals with a single thought, usually in several sentences.  On a webpage, it would be deadly.  There is only one style for the Web: short and to the point.  Writing simply is the essence of web content.

Keep it Short and Simple

The globalization of the internet has only just begun and it is fast propelling English into position as the global language. 

 Audience

Who are internet users?  Think of them as busy, impatient, petulant children with an attention span of about ten seconds, who are on the Web to find something or find out something and find it fast.

Assailed on all sides by the latest gadgets and toys, pressured at work, diverted by the wife and kids, mind on other things, it’s amazing he can focus at all

Surfers don't read, they scan and they react.  Hyper-impatient; they scan, click and move on.  They read only what catches their eye.  They want it short, obvious and they want it right now.  They look for headings, lists and small digestible bites of text.

Internet users would rather click than read

A few interested readers, looking deeper, scroll or drill down. 

 Web Content

Quality content is the essence of what makes a website successful.   All the rules and guidelines for Write Simple apply to writing web content, only more so.   Keep it short, simple and to the point.

Begin with the shortest and clearest statement you can make.

Begin at the beginning, and go on till you come to the end: then stop  ...  said the King of Hearts to the White Rabbit

The paragraph is not the basic unit of composition on the net.  Even the conventional sentence suffers; phrases dominate.  Break paragraphs into small blocks or chunks.  No more than eye candy, make them small digestible bites.  Any block of text more than 6 or 8 lines will probably be skipped, not read.

 Style

The Inverted Pyramid style, used in journalism, works well on Web pages.  The Inverted Pyramid places the conclusion followed by the important facts at the beginning of the paragraph where users can find them quickly.

Make it visually interesting as well as informative

Use headings, lists, rules, sidebars generously.  Make extensive use of fonts, and bold and italic typefaces. 

 Web v. Document Design

Users of Web documents interact with content in novel ways that have no precedents in hardcopy document design.  The Graphic User Interface (GUI) includes images and icons that convey function and meaning on the screen and produce the characteristic look and feel of Web pages.  Hypertext provides users with a great deal more freedom and power to access information unparalleled in conventional reading material.

Our current concepts about structuring information stem from the organization of printed books and periodicals, and their library indexing and catalog systems.  Every feature of a book, from the Table of Contents to the Index and footnotes has evolved over the centuries.  These standards of print design are well established and may be found in style guides like Chicago Manual of Style.   For additional Style Guides  (See Resources).

Who

Whether the page is from an individual author or an institution, always tell your reader who is responsible for the Web page.

What

Clear titles are crucial.  The page title is the first thing surfers see as the page is displayed.  The page title is prominently displayed on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) and is also the text displayed in the bookmark.

When

Every Web page should contain a revision date and should be updated whenever the document is modified.

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