Writing for the Web Monday 22 June 2010 Presenter: Jon Matthias Communications – 21 May 2010

Five things Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Five things what people use the web for how people navigate websites what hooks people to read your website what helps people read your website why you need to write for a robot Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

What do people use the web for? Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

“People surf the web like hungry animals foraging for food.” Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Food = information Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Web users... ... have short attention spans. ... know there is information out there and plenty of places to get it. ... get frustrated easily. ... rarely re-visit ‘unhelpful’ sites. Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Linear content Contents Chapter 1 – How it all began Chapter 2 – What happened next Chapter 3 – And then this happened... Chapter 56 – A happy ending! Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Non-linear content “to fight the evil mountain goblin, turn to page 13, to run away as fast as possible, turn to page 46, to pray to your chosen deity for deliverance, turn to page 84” Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Forget the first page The first SCREEN is vital – not the first PAGE Think ‘above the fold’ Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

This means 2 things Your headline is vital Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

This means 2 things Your headline is vital Your first paragraph is crucial Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Your headline is vital Google looks for headlines People use them to decide whether this information is worth reading Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Good headlines… Are relevant Summarise the story Give information Compel people to read Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Tips for headlines Figures / statistics Buzzwords / search terms Summarise – make it clear what the story is about Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

The first paragraph Crucial for two reasons: appears in search results the only bit guaranteed to be scan-read Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

The inverted pyramid Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

The traditional pyramid Bill went into hospital and developed a pressure ulcer He was in hospital for 3 months Pressure ulcers cost NHS Wales £150m a year Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

The diamond Bill went into hospital and developed a pressure ulcer He was in hospital for 3 months Pressure ulcers cost NHS Wales £150m a year Bill has made a full recovery and is supporting the initiative on pressure ulcers Communications – 21 May 2010

The inverted pyramid Pressure ulcers cost NHS Wales £150m a year There are ways we can stop them happening Bill’s story Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

The first paragraph “Pressure ulcers are common, devastating to patients, can kill, place an enormous financial burden on the NHS - and yet are nearly all avoidable.” Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Helping people read Make your writing scannable Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Helping people read Make your writing scannable Chunkify your writing Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Helping people read Make your writing scannable Chunkify your writing Break it up with - subheadings - bullet points / lists - bolding key points Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Helping people read Short sentences (less than 17 words if possible) Short paragraphs (one or two sentences) Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Writing for a robot Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Writing for a robot Google... ... Has a reading age of a 3 year old ... Doesn’t get puns ... Can’t search PDFs Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias

Any questions? Jon.Matthias@wales.nhs.uk www.twitter.com/1000LivesPlus Writing for the Web – Jon Matthias