Forum Moderators: not2easy
1. Use concise text - sticking to short keyword rich statements that support the theme and present the key information.
2. Use bullet points to emphasize important points
3. White space is your friend
2 Speeling, check it, remember common mistakes (Had to mention it)
3 Don't use free online translators to get extra content for free :) They are not an exact science
White space is your friend
Boy, is that ever true!
Organise your content before building the pages. Use an outliner or "infomation tree" (freeware ones are avalable)
Structure the content in a logical fashion - each concept/keyphrase needs its own page. Page content can overlap - your visitor may not follow the obvious path to the page, so don't be afraid to repeat points.
Every page is a home page - content needs to reflect that by referring to the main site theme, (your visitors don't come through the front door, they come through whatever window Google chucked them through:)
Write short paragraphs, one idea at a time.
Don't use click here for link text, ever.
>1 Don't use apostrophe's - not good for people not used to the english language and maybe not good for SE's and 'partial matching' (?)
Do you think it's really so bad to use aposrophes?
1 ) Keep it Short.
2 ) Keep it Short.
3 ) and, for heaven's sake, Keep it Short.
People want to get it and go. Link keywords to more details on another page - if they want to know, they'll click the keyword. And yep - click here is bad - people know what a link is and they know if they click the words "blue widgets" they're going to get info on blue widgets.
And, did I mention? Keep it short.
G.
When so many people who have English as their primary language can't use them right....then don't expect a non-english speaker to learn the ins and out of the language purely because you couldn't be bothered to type the full thing :)
2. This is partly because you will need to consider the text from a right brained point of view and see the text as an "object". The readability and usability of a page often can be greatly enhanced at this moment. It's similar to proofing galleys for a print piece.
3. This is also because things sometimes fall unfortunately when you get them on screen - even embarrasingly when photos are involved.
PS - Isn't the phrase "Don't use apostrophes" an oxymoron?
Well, to not sound contradictory, this was mentioned to me by a tutor years ago, saying that they shouldn't be used in a formal document.
I guess its an either/or, being the 21st century, Internet and all ;)
Write short paragraphs, one idea at a time.
This is what I was going to say also. Long paragraphs are hard to read, particulary on screen, and it's easy for the reader to lose the point being made. Nothing puts me off a page more than a big chunk of text.
Avoid colloquial language and slang. It might sound great in your head but it makes you look stupid written down (I struggle with this one).
Know what you want to say before you start writing. This goes for every paragraph as well as the overall page. If you don't have a clear idea first then your readers won't either.
2. You may downplay the value of conciseness to put more spider food on your pages, but don't get carried away. Your final copy must make sense and be attractive to human readers.
3. Learn to write positive sales spin without writing hype. There's a difference there, too.
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The advice about avoiding long blocks of text is valid for casual visitors, but is less applicable to hot sales prospects. Don't be afraid to write about your product or service in considerable detail. People who are seriously considering opening their wallets DO like lots of information, so they can understand exacty what they'll get when they buy. Casual visitors will move on, but your best prospects will read extensively. Concise writing and generous use of white space can keep information-heavy pages inviting.
2. Be conversational.
3. Sprinkle in some humor and lighten the mood.
Don't use click here for link text, ever.
Sorry, my experience is most visitors want to see "click here" or something so they know what to do. Escpecially true if you are using non-standard colors for links.
I don't really think so, click here doesn't mean anything at all.
If you are using a mouse then, of course you will click, if not then click sounds really stupid.
Here is also meaningless, here sounds more like this page - but links should take you to another, so here should be discarded too.
That makes sense, I don't see any arguments that back up the use of click here, it's just something that people who didn't know how to best describe a site that the link takes you to used. As with other bad habits some people followed.
Compare to TV, does anybody say see here, instead of watch the news at channel n.
3. Spelling
4. *Bonus point* continually avoid fluff- conciseness is appreciated. Avoid click here's but use hyperlinks with decriptive text as a steadfast rule. This is related to "keep it short" above.
5. *Another bonus point* Know your audience.. use their language and jargon. (should have been point #1!) My strong beleif is that the Web is for targeting - in 99% of cases you are freer to use language and a style that your target audience would use and be familiar with, rather than trying to be populist and explaining your terms for the general public. This also helps with conciseness.
This technique of making references more explicit also helps get keywords on the page, and sometimes makes your search engine "snippets" more enticing.
The blue part of that last sentence can easily be omitted - and in print or in speech it often would be. But online, a person whose eye first gets caught by that paragraph gets a bit of help (and perhaps gets their interest aroused further) by the redundancy.
I make it a practice to start reading a page at various spots and see how well it engages a reader who didn't begin at the beginning. The practice is a valuable balance for overly concise writing.
2. LET YOUR READER KEEP AN EMPTY HEAD
Create the sentence structure so that a clause doesn't need to be remembered through extra clauses, nouns, verbs, or whatever just to discover at long last what it actually modifies. Keep words near the words they modify.
3. PLAY SINGLES, NOT DOUBLES
Avoid doubling verbs and nouns, and especially avoid doubling more than one part of a sentence's structure. This form of "literate writing" asks people to put together the various combinations in their head instead of spoon feeding the ideas. This is one reason legalese is difficult - even a little bit of it can be painful online.
Avoid:
Those who live, or rule by, or even attempt to gain power by using a sword or violence of any kind often die or at least receive a set back by the same or similar methods.
Use:
Those who live by the sword die by the sword.
Notice that the second sentence isn't literally as true. But it sure is a stronger communication.
4. BREAK SOME RULES
Lots of rules aren't really rules, they're just common practice. A preposition can be a natural word to end a sentence with. "To boldly go where no man's gone before" is nearly poetry.
"To boldly go where no man's gone before"
BREAK SOME RULES - too right tedster I used to break them all the time.
My supervisor during my time at university was a stickler for correct usage of english, which is not always my stong point. He used the above example as a famous gramatical error. It should be written "To go boldly....". For those of you that care. :).
In this sort of case I dont think you need to spend half of your life making sure anything you write would pass the scrutiny of a stickler such as my old superviser.
1. Get somebody who is not directly connected to the subject/project. If they cant understand what you are talking about and they are from your target audience you need to rewrite.
2. Aviod waffle and especially those ponsy terms that marketers like to use. "shaking the tree" "touch base" "holistic approach"...the list goes on. Fun play buzzword bingo though if you can avoid bursting into laughter when when of your oppos gets a full house. [plainenglish.co.uk...]
3. Get to the point quickly and concisely then give the detail after. Consider the pyramid approach. [mtsu.edu]
[edited by: engine at 1:24 pm (utc) on Aug. 19, 2002]
[edit reason] tidied up url [/edit]
I also believe there is a little too much dumbing down in useability. If there is a row of words on the left or top or bottom, many users will now realise that they are a list of different areas that it is possible to visit - likewise they realise an underline should be a sign of a link (in fact, it would be more of a cardinal sin in my book to use an underline when it is not a link, than it would be to have non-underlined links).
One content technique I have used on informational sites is to use a help page with a text or symbol link on every page. The page explains how the links work, where people can expect new windows to open and a little bit about the directory structure. Many visitors are used to the Help concept from their use of Microsoft products - those who already know their way around the internet don't have to go there.
[edited by: engine at 1:22 pm (utc) on Aug. 19, 2002]
[edit reason] url snipped [/edit]
I don't really think so, click here doesn't mean anything at all.
Use of "click here" or something to say "this is what you do to proceed" is important. This is not my opinion, but is based upon actual user studies that I have done. Users want to be told what to do. They don't like being asked to guess. The words "click here" are not necessarily the right words, but these are far better than just hyperlinking a word or phrase.
For example, it's better to say (bolded test is underlined hyperlink):
"For information about product blah please click here"
than to say
"Product blah"
It looks horrible, I know, and it makes the page look icky, but by survey with over a thousand users, that's by far what most of them want. And by want, I mean they actually CLICK.
Richard Lowe
ALL CAPITALS -almost always look cheesy to me, a holdover from when people used an antique device known as a typewriter, which lacked even bold to establish emphasis.
A Whole Sentence Or Phrase In Initial Capitals -there is a place for initial caps, but many seem to think in them, spewing them across the page as if they would like to place an exclamation mark behind every word. A blight on the English language it is.
Don't use click here for link text, ever
Wasnt there an article published somewhere (may be someone knows where it is!) that showed a 468X60 banner with the word click here,in the bottom right corner,blue and underlined got way more clicks than those without.
In my opinion, some consumers, if you tell them to to click something and make it stand out, they will :)
The verb in there gets your visitor in the "Alright, I've got to do something." The "here" is just silly to use as it doesn't describe what is going to happen - both to the visitor and to spiders. "Click is just cliche".
One thing I've been playing around with is descriptions in the L$/Zeal directory. If you look at those, they all (are supposed) to start with a verb, and then give a list of what the visitor will find if they perform that verb. A common L$/Zeal description is "Find a brief explanation of Keyword. Also explore pictures and schematics."
I've been playing around with these descriptions, where possible, so that I link to the pages I have in the L$ directory with the same description as appears there. (or at least with the same Verb and string of keywords, varying the sentence itself, slightly).
I realize I'm starting to get a bit off topic here, so I'll wrap it up - verbs are getting more and more important with linking because of search engines like "Ask" with natural language searches. Consistency is loved by spiders. Therefore, be consistent, get an action word in there, and get keywords in there. It's a modern version of "click here" and is important if you are going to get surfers "To Boldly Click where No One has Clicked Before".
G.
edit- the person who posted just above me, I really like that idea and I will be looking at adopting it. Probably wouldn't have posted this had I waited 5 minutes, but it still holds true - people are ...for a nicer word...slow
Clients are morons for the most part so take control of the copy if you can and a make a website that will work for them... ;)
Nick
Clients are morons for the most part..
Clients are the most important asset that you have. They are
not morons. They are your key to success. Treat them with respect and convince them that that you are the expert in this particular field of SEO.
Lighten up, it was a "toungue in cheek" comment to make a valid point about clients and web copy.
Taking control of the copy allows for greater success in a shorter time frame. At least for me...
Nick
Do you think it's really so bad to use aposrophes?
I think a key to writing is to choose an appropriate voice - if your audience is junior high students you want to write totally different copy than if you are aiming at sociology professors or retired longshoremen. A good writer is almost like an actor - able to take raw material and interpret it in an original and audience-appropriate way.
A good writer is almost like an actor - able to take raw material and interpret it in an original and audience-appropriate way
I beleive that's called selling!
Same thing applies when you are selling something face to face or over the telephone: It's no good talking to a plumber in the same manner you talk to a university proffesor:
The plumber would think you were being an overly superior idiot: No sale.
Nick
