Writing for the Web Phillip Gravely Director of Web & Editorial Strategy University of Richmond

A Few Things to Start… What we’ll cover An acknowledgment… What does “writing” entail on the Web?

How is it Different? The way we “read” on the Web We don’t “read,” we scan 8-11 seconds: “The Internet Death Penalty” Users control the experience Greater variance in knowledge of the medium and skills Inherently more difficult to read and interact with Takes at least 25% longer to read online Glowing light v. reflected light Blink rate (5x/min. instead of 20x/min.) = dehydration, strain Monitors, angle, etc. Source: Shel Holtz, 2007

How is it Different? (cont.) Changes easily This is good This is bad Interactive Multiple media (Web 2.0/3.0) Non-linear “Endless”

Why Web Writing Fails Too much content Loss of trust Lack of usability Inconsistency Losing focus on the user Not approached with thought and care; sloppy Rushed Done by a committee Everyone thinks they’re a writer Too many objectives Insincere, inappropriate, overdone language Content repurposed incorrectly

Way-finding v. Editorial Way-finding pages Top-level pages; for scanning Very little new info Show them what’s there 150 words of body copy maximum! Editorial pages Deeper content Visitors will read Three screens of scroll…

Three Things… ( the reader always needs to know) Where am I? What can I do here? How do I get back? Source: Flair Interactive, 2007

Rules and Tips Keep it brief Short paragraphs and sentences Use simple sentence structures Limit each paragraph to one idea Avoid transitions between paragraphs Users don’t mind scrolling once engaged, but they do prior

Write for “scannability” Use an intro paragraph (95% will read at least part) Arrange your content with the “F pattern” in mind Subheads and anchor tags Use bullet points Two lines max. per bullet Seven items max. in list (3-5 is ideal) Use the “inverted pyramid” style…begin with the main point White space is key Source: Poynter Eyetrack Study Rules and Tips

Links, not length Use hypertext links Link phrases instead of single words Stay at the subject level “Hear” your links Think context and expectation Rules and Tips

Incite action Think: “What do I want them to do?” Give them an easy way to do it (call to action) Rules and Tips

General Multiple points of entry to everything Make each page within a site independent Don’t assume the reader has seen prior pages 3 screens of scroll at maximum (content pages only!) Avoid words/phrases that are specific to the Web Find a consistent “voice” for the site Define and stick to a writing style Rules and Tips

Questions? Now… Later… Phillip Gravely

Social Media CAN be a good way to support business objectives But…it’s better to have no presence than a poor one Keys: be honest, transparent, thoughtful, respectful

Social Media (cont.) Start with: audience, goal, platform, results- monitoring plan Contribute, don’t promote Respond and encourage conversation…that’s the whole point Am I adding value to the “conversation?”

Facebook A quick way to share information widely All about interaction Post regularly Leverage existing content Remember, these are “friends” Great feedback channel

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Twitter Audience: mid-to-late 20s 140 characters…”what’s happening?” Post regularly and consistently…is a commitment Immediately relevant and “shareable” Only as good as the people who follow you Great feedback channel

YouTube Video content is huge (it’s not reading) Hosting content is all part of it Create a channel Create playlists Have content!

Questions? Now… Later… Phillip Gravely