Best Practices for the Web

Writing for the Web
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Writing for the Web

People rarely read web pages word by word; instead, they scan the page, picking out individual words and sentences. Knowing how to write content for the web can significantly increase the positive experience of your visitors.
Concepts
 
  1. Most users scan the page instead of reading word-for-word.
  2. Reading from computer screens is 25% slower than reading from paper.
  3. Web content should have 50% of the word count of it's paper equivalent.
  4. Use meaningful sub-headings (not clever ones)
  5. Bulleted lists make it easy to scan the page.
  6. Links should be easily discernable from other content.
  7. One idea per paragraph.
  8. Write using the inverted pyramid style; start with conclusion.
  9. Ask yourself "who is my target audience?"
  10. Write at approximately a 7th grade level.
  11. Have a second individual proofread (spellcheck and/or edit).
Resources
 
  1. Writing for the Web (Writer's Edition), by Crawford Kilian
  2. http://www.useit.com/papers/webwriting/ - Jakob Nielsen
  3. http://www.sun.com/980713/webwriting/ - Sun