Most of us interact with digital content daily. Maybe you read the latest Bookwoman newsletter. Maybe you caught up on your favorite author’s blog. Did you do any online shopping? Did you get sucked onto social media for hours, alternating between looking at posts, pictures, and memes and reading articles from your favorite news outlets or magazines?
If you have done any of the above tasks lately, then you know that digital content has become an important part of our lives. It’s everywhere. And it can be presented in a variety of formats for numerous purposes.
But there are some basic practices for writing digital content that transcend the various purposes and formats. Whether you want to start a blog or write a guest post for a blog (pitch us!) or write better newsletters or website copy, knowing these basics will improve your digital content writing skills.
DIGITAL CONTENT WRITING BASICS
Think about how you read digital content. How long does an article have to grab your attention? How long will you stay on a web page before leaving?
Most readers only stick around for 15 seconds or less. In those 15 seconds, you need to capture the reader’s attention and entice them to read on.
It makes sense that difficult content drives readers away. Making the content as user-friendly as possible is important. That’s why concise and scannable writing makes readers want to keep reading.
Be Concise
Concision takes practice. Sometimes it means writing less to begin with, but often it means taking what you have written and cutting it until you reveal a stronger piece of writing.
Keep these tips in mind when you’re writing digital content:
Write short sentences.
Shorter sentences create faster paces. And they tend to be clearer. Aim for writing 20 words or less per sentence. If you can break the sentence up without changing the meaning, then cut it into two sentences. Start with sentences held together by coordinating conjunctions.
Use action words.
Use more active words—especially verbs. The stronger the verb, the better. Avoid helping verbs. Remember that writing in the present tense quickens the pace.
Write one idea per paragraph.
Group relevant content together. Chunked content allows those scanning the piece to find relevant information easily and without having to search in multiple spots for related content. And concentrating on one topic keeps you focused and on topic.
Write short paragraphs.
Throw out the rule your fourth-grade teacher taught you that says you need to have 3 sentences or more in every paragraph. A paragraph could even be one word if it makes sense and helps make the piece more readable.U
Use bulleted and numbered lists instead of paragraphs.
The more words there are on the page, the easier it is for the reader’s eyes to glaze over. Lists help keep the information succinct and focused as well as provide variety for the reader. Use numbered lists when items are sequential.
Weed out unnecessary words.
Avoid redundancies, eliminate excessive details, and delete wordiness. Limit adverbs. Use stronger verbs.
Show and tell.
While using excessive details makes it harder for your reader to get your meaning, just telling something flat out without any details can make your content boring. Use a combination of the two techniques to help your reader understand you and stay interested.
Be aware that every word matters. The less you use, the more powerful each word becomes.
CREATE SCANNABLE CONTENT
You’ve probably heard that most online readers don’t read every word on the page—they scan. In fact, studies show that 79% of readers scan digital content. And the farther down the page they scroll, the less they read.
It is important to make your writing as scannable as possible. One of the best ways to do that is to top-load your writing.
Use an Inverted Pyramid
Journalists often use the “Inverted Pyramid”—a method of top-loading that puts the most important information at the top of the article. The least important information ends up at the bottom.
Think of it as putting the conclusion first. In book terms, it’s like starting a book and then reading the last page.
If you look at newspaper articles (either print or digital), you’ll often see this inverted format. But it’s helpful to all digital writers, not just journalists.
The inverted pyramid is just one method to make content more scannable.
Other Key Practices
Use headers and subheads.
Headers and subheads break up long sections of text and act as guideposts throughout the piece to help readers navigate content. They should be short, direct, and relevant to your writing.
Use links wisely.
Rather than writing “click here” or the like, write the sentence as you normally would. Hyperlink the word or string of words that best describes the content you are linking to.
Descriptive linking helps readers, but it especially helps readers using a screen reader as it will speak the words aloud. When a screen reader clicks “click here,” it adds the link to a list of links. If all of the links in the list say “click here,” the reader is unable to tell what each link is for.
Hypertexts should be 4–8 words long. Use links to send the reader to relevant information. Be careful not to clutter your writing with hyperlinks as it distracts the reader.
Use images and multimedia.
Images and video also help break up the text and give the reader’s eyes a break. They also can enhance the story if appropriately chosen and placed.
Use white space.
When a page is covered in text, it is harder to read. Allowing plenty of white space helps your reader read faster and easier.
Use simple punctuation.
Replace a semi-colon with a period to break up a longer sentence. Em-dashes are easier to read digitally than semi-colons and commas.
Bold (or italicize) important words or phrases.
Using boldface or italics emphasizes important points. It draws the reader’s eyes, so use it, but don’t abuse it. Using too much loses its effect and can be difficult to read.
KEEP PRACTICING
Like with all writing, the best way to improve your digital writing skills is to write. Write blog posts, website copy, newsletters, articles, anything that interests you. Each piece that you write will help you improve.
And remember, like Nathaniel Hawthorne said, “Easy reading is damn hard writing.”
We’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s blog post, so reach each out to us on Twitter or Facebook!
Julie L. Frey is a freelance editor and member of the WNBA-Greater Philadelphia chapter. She serves as the copyeditor for the Bookwoman‘s publications. You can connect with Julie on LinkedIn or on Twitter.
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