14 August 2008
This article gives clear succinct guidance on how to write effectively for the web.

The web is different!

Writing for the web is fundamentally different from other types of writing.

The internet is a dynamic medium with which users actively engage. Unlike television and print media, where the writer controls the reader's journey, the web user creates their own experience..

It is crucial that those writing for the web acknowledge this difference.

Web users read differently

Web users are usually task-oriented. They know what they want and will skim text until they find it.

Text often plays a navigational role to the user. It is a tool rather than an end in itself.

How to write for the web

1) Consider your audience

Whether you’re writing for school pupils, board members or refugees you need to use an appropriate tone and vocabulary.

2) Build a pyramid

Provide a summary at the start of a piece of content and add levels of detail as you go down.

3) Get to the point

Vague or emotive language is hard to skim read and off-putting to the user. Focus on language that contains information.

4) Use bullet points and sentence fragments

If you are used to writing for print media you may well see the sentence as a sacred entity not to be tampered with. However, bullet points and fragments have the effect of stripping away content that does not contain information.

Fragments are also useful because they don't lose their meaning as easily when separated from their context. The navigational devices used on the web (search engines, hyperlinks, etc) often pick up on fragments and export them to another website where they have to make sense apart from their original context.

5) Integrate content with navigation by providing links within the text

Don't be selfish about your writing! It’s true that placing links in your content may lead the user to leave the page and go elsewhere. However, if you’re helpful to the user, the chances are they’ll come back to you.

6) Consider keywords and then use them

As discussed in our search engine optimisation article, search engines crawl the web and index content for relevance against key words.

A major part of an effective search engine optimisation campaign is locating key words that your target audience will use and writing content that is tailored to those key words. If you want your content to appear prominently in search results, think about using as many keywords as you can.

Cramming key words looks unprofessional so make sure that your use of keywords does not take away from the flow and coherency of the content.

7) Write visually

There are a number of conventions that web users (often sub-consciously) recognise. These include link colours, which should be consistent across your site.
For some content types, making certain important words or phrases bold can aid the reader. You should also communicate with the designer of your site about how to integrate content with visually devices and layout.

Headings are a very helpful device to help the user engage with larger pages of text.

8) Write simply

There is little to be gained by using unnecessarily complex vocabulary so keep it simple.

Short sentences are easier to read quickly and used well can add power to your content.

Restrict yourself to one idea per paragraph. This enables users to efficiently skim text for relevant information without missing ideas.