Words Matter: Writing for the Web Darlene Fichter Data Library Coordinator, U of S Library January 30, 2004

Overview  Writing & Reading for the Web  Do’s & Don’ts –Format –Scanning –Style –Language –Jargon

Reading & writing  Goal is to communicate –Strategy –Key messages –Your audience

Rule #1 Write for the way your user's read  How do people read on the screen? –Top to bottom –Left to right –Focus first on the micro-content –Scroll to the bottom –Only after failing - side menu - top menu 1 2 3

People read  25% slower on the screen  Find Arial or Times Roman fonts at 12 pt the most legible

Reading slower: implications for style  Be succinct  Pyramid style (newspaper)  Scanning – lists, lists and more lists  Looks a lot like PowerPoint

5 tips 1.Strike out useless words. 2.Avoid noun sandwiches. 3.Use “you”. 4.Cut out redundancies. 5.Use simple, short words. 6.Avoid all uppercase words. commercial document delivery services

Instead ofUse concerning about forward send in order to to facilitate help strategy plan access (as a verb) get, assist assistance help, aid construct build in the event of if

Research shows: DON’T read  People who are looking for information don’t read, they scan.  If they have to read instructions or help page most people won’t.

“Scanability”  Headings  Lists  Create “zones” or areas with blocks of color  Use links

Effective headings  Set styles and stick to them  Be consistent –use font and/or color to offset headings

Lists, lists and more lists  Lists are quick to scan  Do not use complete sentences in lists

Anatomy Biology Biotechnology Chemistry Microbiology Physics Zoology Which is easiest to read?  Anatomy  Biology  Biotechnology  Chemistry  Microbiology  Physics  Zoology Anatomy Biology Biotechnology Chemistry Microbiology Physics Zoology 1. White space 2. Bullets 3. Neither

Which is faster? Why? Books Art Journals History Geography Mathematics SubjectsFormat Art Books Geography Journals History Maps Mathematics 1 2

Organizing content for viewing  In columns, not rows  Categorical not alphabetical

Links that work  Make the links in your text meaningful  Make visited and unvisited links contrast with the base font color.

Example of scanning How to Find Information 1.Search the catalogue 2.Browse by subject 3. For e-books, click here 4.Visit our list of web resources 5. Recommended web sites on SociologyRecommended web sites on Sociology

Hypertext: classic mistakes  No followed link color  Links are not underlined  Overused – everything is a link  Self referential - To start the tour, click here.To start the tour, click here

Use links wisely  Hypertext is powerful but can also be distracting  Links can help reduce clutter by moving information to separate Web pages  But when concentrating on content, people often ignore embedded linksembedded

Create links that don’t need to be followed  Use long descriptive links, captions, or headings so users can eliminate choices  UIE’s research shows that links with 4 to 9 words are more effectivelinks with 4 to 9 words are more effective

Review what we know: 1.Writing 2.Scanning 3.Links

Tour  Some sites –Jot down notes / opinions about the ability to scan and find words quickly –If you focus on the writing and content which are the strengths and weaknesses?

Language  Use the language of your users  Ambiguity is a problem  Provide context

Classic mistakes on library sites  Library sites are full of jargon –WinSPIRS –EbscoHost –Access –Database –Gateway –Services –Electronic Reserves

“Serial failure”  Finding articles  Many studies –Don’t know “database” –Names of database –Software product – Ovid, Webspirs

Labels are challenging  Testing helps  Use a “cookie test”  Create a list of possible labels: –My Account –Borrower Information –Library Card –Your Library Card

Go where your users are  Your lunch room or hallways at lunch break  Aim for cross-section  Ask which they prefer Reverse Study: Take a few concepts and ask them what they would call the item or group of items?

Other important writing tasks  Errors –Should stand out from other text –Should be comprehensible 404 not found ?

Things to avoid  “Marketese” –Anything that sounds like “advertising” is a complete turn off … the best, the biggest …

The “Buzz”: reusability  Write once, use many times  Device independent access  Break content in small nuggets  Assemble to suit –Web Pages –WAP –Headline Services –Alerts

Myths & ironies  Everyone owns a “printing press”  Explosion of publishing  Dirth of “good writing”  Need good writers’ that can create concise and interesting headlines

Secret to good wired writing  Observe and learn  Write often  Revise, revise and revise  Read the usability studies and research reports

Good news for librarians  Some of it comes naturally –Group and categorize –Assign labels –Think about words & meaning –Service oriented

Sites for web writing  Writing for the Web – Jakob Nielsen  Good Documents: How to write for the INTRAnet  Yale’s Web Style Guide: Editorial  Software Usability Research Laboratory Newsletter  National Cancer Institute Usability.gov

Books, columns & sites  Writing and Usability –

Thank you!  Questions? Darlene Fichter University of Saskatchewan Libraries library.usask.ca/~fichter/