This document provides an overview of best practices for writing content for websites. It discusses how today's web users have short attention spans and scan pages quickly looking for relevant information. It recommends defining the purpose of pages and sections, leading with important information, using concise chunks of text with descriptive headings, and including calls to action. The document also gives technical tips on keywords, links, headlines and using images to complement text. The goal is to provide usable, accessible content that achieves organizations' goals and helps readers.
Call Us 📲8800102216📞 Call Girls In DLF City Gurgaon
Writing for the Web Best Practices
1. Writing for the Web:
Today’s Best Practices
Dalya Massachi
A Service
Of: Sponsored by:
2. Synthesis Partnership works with nonprofit
organizations facing or creating change to
align strategy, identity, capacity and facilities
with vision, mission and values.
A Service
Of: Sponsored by:
4. Today’s Speaker
Dalya Massachi
Founder,
Writing for Community Success
Assisting with chat questions: Hosting:
April Hunt, Nonprofit Webinars Sam Frank, Synthesis Partnership
A Service
Of: Sponsored by:
6. IMPROVED CONTENT:
RESULTS TO EXPECT
Better educate, support readers
Reach new, varied audiences
Accomplish mission more
efficiently
7. OUTLINE
I. Intro
II. Today’s web users
III. Best practices to increase
usability & accessibility
IV. A bit of technical info
(All stats come from leading web usability expert,
Jakob Nielsen.)
8. WHO ARE YOUR READERS?
Clients, Potential Clients
Partners/Colleagues
Researchers
Funders
Press
Activists
Casual web surfers
9. DATA YOU NEED TO GATHER
Demographics
Geographic location
Limitations ($, education, tech)
Values, hopes, and fears
What they already know or believe
Info or tools they need to act
10. ASK YOURSELF:
What info do they want from reading
your website?
What problems can you help them solve?
11. EXAMPLE:
ENVIRONMENTAL
EDUCATOR
As a middle-school science teacher, you’re always
looking for fresh, up-to-date material on today’s
pressing issues. With diminishing resources in our
public schools, you may find it increasingly difficult
to keep up with the times.
On the Eco-kids website, you will discover a wealth
of up-to-date classroom resources that reflect
changing frontiers in the environmental sciences. Get
teaching materials that will inspire your students with
over 50 lively discussion starters and activities!
12. HOW DO WE FIND OUT?
Check web statistics
Review event and service evaluation forms
Take online or print surveys
Hold focus groups
Attend gatherings where they congregate
Study published opinion polls
Review other online media they use
Ask others who also know about them
13. TODAY’S WEB USERS
In general, they…
Have short attention spans
Rely heavily on first impressions
Need to know content is relevant first
Read 25% slower than on paper
Scan: Usually only the first 2 paragraphs,
headlines and/or the end
Will spread your content if it’s good
14. TODAY’S WEB USERS
They are looking for:
Benefits to their community: NOW
Expert advice that’s easily accessible
A “quick hit” on the new
Inspiration & hope: we can do this!
Reasons to trust you
15. BEST
PRACTICES TO
INCREASE USABILITY
& ACCESSIBILITY
16. DEFINE SITE/PAGE PURPOSES
Increase readers’ understanding of issue
Remind how you benefit the community
Keep readers up-to-date
Offer convenient purchase or donate system
Project professionalism; encourage trust
Keep readers connected to your org
Be a landing spot for links from elsewhere
Coordinate with social networking work
Act as a pointer to other valuable related sites
17. COMMON WEBSITE SECTIONS
Home: tagline; brief summary; what’s new; where to
go from here
About Us
Our community: “about you”; who this site is for
Our Programs: what we do, how we do it
Why We Do It: community need/benefit, values
Blog
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Calendar of Events
18. ABOUT US
Having a good About Us section helps users
understand your site as a whole.
Summary: 1-2 paragraphs at the top about
the organization's mission/vision and main
accomplishments.
Detailed info: people involved; strategic
plan; history; partners; include photos if
possible
19. REMEMBER…
Your web writing must be:
Timely and valuable enough to justify the
time, mental engagement you take up
In the "need to know" category
Relevant NOW
Scannable and a quick read
20. LEAD WITH THE MOST
IMPORTANT INFO
Inverted pyramid format
Summarize the main point:
who, what, when, where, why
(big benefits to gain, problems solved)
Tell what the page is about and why anyone
should read it (2-4 lines)
Start with an overview and link to details
21. This heat map shows where
users’ eyes traveled on a page.
Red and yellow are where they
spent the most time.
So you want to put your most
critical info in the upper left-
hand corner and at the left
column
1st 2 words of a sentence or
paragraph: most seen
22. “CHUNK” YOUR INFO
Use focused, easy-to-understand categories
Give a meaningful 1-line subhead to each
major chunk of text
Use subheads that tell the story, as if they are
the only things your reader sees
Got a list of 3 or more items? Number
(sequenced) or bullet (random) it. Intro:
sentence fragment or a sentence w/colon
23. CULIVATE CONCISENESS:
LESS IS MORE
KISSS: Keep It Short, Simple &
Scannable
Cut any text from paper
Tell how to act right away — and why
Sentences: 14-20 words max
Every word should work
Each item: 1-3 screens
24. BUT…
Complicated topics, background/tech info
often benefit from longer copy: readers need
time to make an informed and confident
decision
Keep to same page (don’t chop it up) b/c
search engines like at least 250-300 words
Add summary or Table of Contents at the top
25. ENGAGE BOTH THE
HEART & THE HEAD
Even left-brained people
need an emotional understanding
Your reader will remember how you make her/him
feel more than anything else
26. TELL SUCCESS STORIES
Capture the essence of your work
with short quotes from people
similar to your target readers
or people they care about
Talk about how people
have benefited: results and importance
27. LISTEN TO HOW YOU
SOUND
Conversational/informal:
o use the second person (“you”)
o can include sentence fragments
o o.k. to begin with a conjunction (and, but, so)
Friendly, warm; contractions o.k.
Easy to understand (clear over clever)
28. AVOID JARGON
Familiar words spring to mind when
users search for you; include them!
If you must use technical terms or
acronyms, explain them the first time
Avoid American slang
Would readers use the term themselves?
29. EXAMPLE
“Are you sure you want to navigate away
from this form?”
“Are you sure you want to close this
window?”
30. TIE BACK TO YOUR MISSION
AND VISION…REPEATEDLY
Always remember to summarize it in 1
sentence or less
Evoke a vision of what things will be
like when you fulfill your mission
31. ISSUE CALLS TO ACTION
Use in at least some sections
Include all the details they need
Provide easy ways to interact with you
Feature a special offer (preferably with
deadline)
Reminder of benefits they will enjoy by
acting now
33. USE LINKS
STRATEGICALLY
Use links in your sentences to:
Send the reader to important background or
related material
Explain unusual or technical terms
Emphasize important info (repeat in strategic
spots to follow reader’s train of thought)
34. HOW TO PHRASE LINKS
First 11 characters: most important
Use plain, specific language
Follow conventions for naming common
features
Front-load with action and keywords
(first 2-3 words)
Don’t mislead or promise too much
35. FOCUS ON YOUR HEADLINES
Use a few words to tell the gist of the story
Should include at least 3 keywords for SEO
Use present tense if possible
Often all people see on small screens or RSS
feed: must be accurate out of context
Predictable before clicking
36. MORE ON KEYWORDS
Need 2-3 “core” keywords and variations
(-ing, -ed) for each page
Use them: 2-3 times on short pages;
4-6 times on longer ones
Call them out with bold, italics, links, etc.
37. FOR MOBILE DEVICES
Use shorter blocks of text with just
keywords
Most relevant, useful info at the top
Create narrow, bulleted lists
Eliminate unnecessary white space
(it forces users to scroll)
38. SENTENCE STRUCTURE
Subject-verb-object
1-2 ideas per paragraph (1-4 sentences)
Keep “if” before “then”
Click the “Edit” link if your address is
incorrect.
If your address is incorrect, click the
“Edit” link.
Use basic verb forms: infinitives, commands,
simple tenses
Stay positive (avoid negatives when possible)
39. COMPLEMENT WITH GRAPHICS
Not just filling space as an afterthought
Use short, lively captions with keywords
“Micro-copy”: summarize your story/
highlight your message
Add clear alt-text descriptions to images
Identify people from L to R, double-check all
name spellings
Use active, present tense verbs
Find action shots, not “posing”
40. TRACK TRAFFIC
Website metrics tell you:
How many hits did we get?
How many are unique visitors?
How are people finding the website?
What search terms are they finding us with?
What websites link to us?
What are the most popular pages on the site?
Who is the average visitor tech-wise (platform/
browser/ screen resolution)?
41. RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
Jakob Nielsen’s Website: useit.com
The Yahoo! Style Guide
Letting Go of the Words: Writing Web Content
that Works
42. SUGGESTION
Step 1: Go to your website.
Step 2: Find a colleague or two to play a
“new user.” You will take notes.
READER: Narrate your train of thought.
What do you like?
What’s missing?
What do you skip?
NOTETAKER: Resist the urge to explain.