People rarely read Web pages word by word; instead, they scan the
page, picking out individual words and sentences. In research on how
people read websites we found that 79 percent of our test users
always scanned any new page they came across; only 16 percent read
word-by-word. (Update: a newer study found that users read email
newsletters even more abruptly than they read websites.)
As a result, Web pages have to employ scannable text, using
* highlighted keywords (hypertext links serve as one form of
highlighting; typeface variations and color are others)
* meaningful sub-headings (not "clever" ones)
* bulleted lists
* one idea per paragraph (users will skip over any additional ideas
if they are not caught by the first few words in the paragraph)
* the inverted pyramid style, starting with the conclusion
* half the word count (or less) than conventional writing
We found that credibility is important for Web users, since it is
unclear who is behind information on the Web and whether a page can
be trusted. Credibility can be increased by high-quality graphics,
good writing, and use of outbound hypertext links. Links to other
sites show that the authors have done their homework and are not
afraid to let readers visit other sites.
Users detested "marketese"; the promotional writing style with
boastful subjective claims ("hottest ever")
that currently is
prevalent on the Web. Web users are busy: they want to get the
straight facts. Also, credibility suffers when users clearly see
that the site exaggerates. Measuring the Effect of Improved Web Writing To measure the effect of some of the content guidelines we had
identified, we developed five different versions of the same website
(same basic information; different wording; same site navigation).
We then had users perform the same tasks with the different sites.
As shown in the table, measured usability was dramatically higher
for the concise version (58% better) and for the scannable version
(47% better). And when we combined three ideas for improved writing
style into a single site, the result was truly stellar: 124% better
usability.
Site Version Sample Paragraph Usability Improvement (relative to control condition) Promotional writing (control condition) using the "marketese" found on many commercial websites Nebraska is
filled with internationally recognized attractions that draw large
crowds of people every year, without fail. In 1996, some of the most
popular places were Fort Robinson State Park (355,000 visitors),
Scotts Bluff National Monument (132,166), Arbor Lodge State
Historical Park & Museum (100,000), Carhenge (86,598), Stuhr Museum
of the Prairie Pioneer (60,002), and Buffalo Bill Ranch State
Historical Park (28,446). 0% (by definition) Concise text with about half the word count as the control condition In 1996, six
of the best-attended attractions in Nebraska were Fort Robinson
State Park, Scotts Bluff National Monument, Arbor Lodge State
Historical Park & Museum, Carhenge, Stuhr Museum of the Prairie
Pioneer, and Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park. 58% Scannable layout using the same text as the control condition in a layout that
facilitated scanning Nebraska is filled with internationally
recognized attractions that draw large crowds of people every year,
without fail. In 1996, some of the most popular places were: * Fort Robinson State Park (355,000 visitors) * Scotts Bluff National Monument (132,166) * Arbor Lodge State Historical Park & Museum (100,000) * Carhenge (86,598) * Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer (60,002) * Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park (28,446).
47% Objective language using neutral rather than subjective, boastful, or exaggerated
language (otherwise the same as the control condition) Nebraska has
several attractions. In 1996, some of the most-visited places were
Fort Robinson State Park (355,000 visitors), Scotts Bluff National
Monument (132,166), Arbor Lodge State Historical Park & Museum
(100,000), Carhenge (86,598), Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer
(60,002), and Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park (28,446). 27% Combined version using all three improvements in writing style together: concise,
scannable, and objective In 1996, six of the most-visited places in
Nebraska were:
* Fort Robinson State Park * Scotts Bluff National Monument * Arbor Lodge State Historical Park & Museum * Carhenge * Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer * Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park
124%
It was somewhat surprising to us that usability was improved by
a good deal in the objective language version (27% better). We had
expected that users would like this version better than the
promotional site (as indeed they did), but we thought that the
performance metrics would have been the same for both kinds of
language. As it turned out, our four performance measures (time,
errors, memory, and site structure) were also better for the
objective version than for the promotional version. Our conjecture
to explain this finding is that promotional language imposes a
cognitive burden on users who have to spend resources on filtering
out the hyperbole to get at the facts. When people read a paragraph
that starts "Nebraska is filled with internationally recognized
attractions," their first reaction is no, it's not, and this thought
slows them down and distracts them from using the site.
