Web Writing - Keep it Short
Does that mean that you can't provide all of the information that you need to share? No. Instead, it means to break the information down into smaller segments. For instance, if you have a blog and want to write about repairing bicycles, you wouldn't cram all of the information into one post. Rather, you would keep it short and focus on one thing at a time, such as tire repair or brakes. A good rule of thumb for most web writing is to keep the piece to under 1000 words. 500 - 750 words is the most common length, but even 250 - 300 words is fine. Aside from short attention spans, why focus on brevity? One reason is clear - reading on a computer screen is harder than reading on paper. For this reason, visitors will want their information in a "soundbite" style. Another reason is scrolling. People are not patient (as if they ever were), and don't want to have to scroll endlessly to find what they are after. So, as you prepare to write web content of whatever form, keep in mind that readers want you to keep it short, simple and quick. Like this page. Return to the Writing for the Web Main Page Return Home from Web Writing - Keep it Short
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