Computer screens are hard on the eyes, and their limited size
forces users to scroll. This makes reading online harder, slower
and more uncomfortable than reading on print. Following are a
few simple tips that you can follow to make the experience of
reading online easier to your visitors:
1. Write less: Try to use at least 50% of the words you would
use in print. Once you finish writing, go back and try to
further reduce your word count.
2. Use headlines to break the discussion into several
paragraphs. Breaking the discussion into small, manageable
chunks, each dealing with a sub-topic of your discussion, makes
things much easier for readers.
3. Online users don't read, they scan. Use elements that
facilitate scannability: bolding key words and phrases, and
using bullet points are two examples of this technique.
4. Try to convey one idea per paragraph, instead of bundling
them in long, cumbersome paragraphs.
5. Use hyperlinks to present complementary information instead
of trying to include everything in the body of your article. For
example, if you are writing a piece about “search engine
submission techniques", you may touch the subject of
“keyword optimization" at one given point. If you want to
explain what “keyword optimization" means, hyperlink the
words to another page where readers can find more about that
subject.
6. Try to limit your discussion to one short page, instead of
breaking your article into several pages. Most people won't read
through a long article broken into two, three or more pages.
7. Try not to use small fixed font sizes. Specify your font size
in percentage terms and let users choose their default settings.
If you absolutely want to use fixed font sizes because they
better preserve the intended layout of your pages, use font
sizes of 10pt. or higher.
8. Use font types that are specifically designed for reading on
the web, like Verdana or Georgia.
About the author:
Mario Sanchez publishes The Internet Digest (
http://www.theinternetdigest.net ), an online collection of web
design and Internet marketing articles and resources. You can
freely reprint his weekly articles in your website, ezine,
newsletter or ebook.
