Web writing

SEO guidelines for content writers

Help web visitors find your page

Find out what your audience is looking for, choose the right keywords, optimize for mobile and otherwise help Google find you with these SEO guidelines for content writers.… Read the full article

Think index cards, not toilet paper, for webpage length

Should you write for clickers or scrollers online?

My favorite piece of advice for determining the length of a web page came from friend and fellow writing coach Jeff Herrington: “Think index cards, not toilet paper.”… Read the full article

Format long stories for mobile web reading

4 ways to optimize long stories for phone reading

How long is too long for the mobile screen?

“Only the biggest/most complex stories should go above 600 words,” counsels the BBC in its guide to writing news for the mobile screen.… Read the full article

Frontload your web page headlines

Get to the point faster by putting the topic up top

When it comes to web heads, focus on the front.

That is, place your topic words at the beginning of your headline.… Read the full article

Weed out your web page above the fold online

Don’t bury your message under sharing buttons, bylines and chrome

Web visitors spend 74% of their time on the first two screens, just 26% on all remaining screens, according to the Nielsen Norman Group

So once you’ve placed the most important elements above the fold, the next step is to weed out anything that’s pushing those key elements down the page.… Read the full article

Why get key content above the fold [statistics]?

And where is the fold, anyway?

“Instant gratification takes too long,” said Carrie Fisher, the late actress, author and wit.

When it comes to interacting with websites, she was certainly correct.… Read the full article

World technology literacy skills: bad and getting worse

16% of adults are technologically illiterate

Just 8% of adults around the world can manage conflicting requests to reserve a meeting room using a reservation system, then email people to let them know whether they got the room they requested.… Read the full article

What are the problems with reading on mobile devices?

Mobile reading costs time, attention, understanding and action

You may have heard that social scientists recently added a new item on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

The classic model of what drives human nature looked like this back in the day:

Self actualization: the feeling of doing what you were put on this planet to do
Esteem: feeling good about yourself and what you do
Social needs: having love, a tribe, companionship
Safety and security: not being afraid of getting eaten by a tiger
Physiological needs: food and shelter

Our modern world has revealed another, even more basic human need …

… Wi-Fi.… Read the full article

What’s the difference between reading paper vs. computer screen

Reading online hurts readers’ eyes, their bodies, their brains

I don’t know about you, but one of my goals in life is to never write anything that makes my readers throw up, resign or forget where they parked their car.… Read the full article