{"id":325,"date":"2012-11-05T09:33:48","date_gmt":"2012-11-05T09:33:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/index.php\/2012\/11\/05\/newsletter29427_325\/"},"modified":"2018-02-27T20:11:15","modified_gmt":"2018-02-27T20:11:15","slug":"writing-for-the-web","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/writing-for-the-web\/","title":{"rendered":"Writing for the Web"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Do your members fully utilize your website, read your\u00a0e-newsletter and take advantage of your mobile apps? If not, it may be time to examine how you\u2019re\u00a0writing content for your digital products. Chances are you could be making\u00a0your writing more user-friendly for a digital audience.<\/p>\n<table style=\"border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%; margin: 5px; border: 1px solid black; background-color: #dcdcdc;\" width=\"\" cellspacing=\"3\" cellpadding=\"3\" align=\"center\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"border: 1px solid black;\">\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Provide information that is useful and easy to\u00a0find.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Keep it short.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Adapt information to the life cycle and context\u00a0in which it is being used.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Provide info that saves time, but also fills\u00a0time.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Online marketing experts Katie Atkinson and Amy Hissrich say\u00a0your member communications should always be useful, easy to find, concise,\u00a0relevant, timely and time saving. Here are some tips they shared with us last\u00a0month at an ASAE Technology Conference &amp; Expo in Washington, DC, during\u00a0their session, &#8220;Writing for Web, Smartphone &amp; Tablet:&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Four keys to more\u00a0effective Web content<\/h3>\n<h4>1. Provide information that is useful, and\u00a0easy to find.<\/h4>\n<p>Sounds\u00a0obvious enough, but do you know what pages or sections of your website,\u00a0newsletter or digital magazine your members read the most? Do you know which\u00a0sections they rarely bother to peruse?<\/p>\n<p>Conduct\u00a0a survey and find out. Analyze your website\u2019s traffic by content. Talk to\u00a0members, exhibitors, potential members and other industry professionals who may\u00a0\u00a0use your information. Do they like\u00a0\u00a0visiting your website? Can they consistently find the information they need\u00a0without having to wade through bogs of filler text? There\u2019s always room for\u00a0improvement. Ask your end users how you can make their time on your sites more\u00a0satisfying.<\/p>\n<p>The\u00a0writers behind the website for Flipboard, a\u00a0social magazine app, have mastered the art of cutting out unnecessary text and\u00a0presenting only what the average Internet surfer passing through needs to know\u00a0about their product.<\/p>\n<h4>2. Keep it short.<\/h4>\n<p>This\u00a0principle of writing for digital media cannot be stressed enough. People\u00a0reading from computer screens tend to skim text and pay attention only to\u00a0certain keywords and phrases, and people reading from mobile devices have a\u00a0smaller screen from which to glean needed information, sometimes in a hurry.<\/p>\n<p>Minimize\u00a0their impatience and make them stumble across the truly important details of\u00a0your copy by breaking up large paragraphs, using bullets and only writing\u00a0what\u2019s really necessary. For mobile, format your text larger than you would for\u00a0print media or a full website, limit your use of images and leave plenty of\u00a0space around links for easy tapping.<\/p>\n<p>Web\u00a0usability expert Jakob\u00a0Nielsen recommends writing no more than 50 percent of the text you would\u00a0have used in a hard copy publication. (Note that his post is from March 1997. Effective writing style is timeless.) Need some inspiration for packing as much<br \/>\nas you can into as few characters as possible? Look to the lyrics of rap\u00a0musician, Marshall Mathers, a.k.a Eminem.\u00a0While you may disagree with the content, he successfully stuffs multiple\u00a0messages into tightly woven, organized and memorable musical packages. When\u00a0writing or organizing new content, it may be easier to write for mobile devices\u00a0first, then expand your content to tablet format and finally, to the full Web.<\/p>\n<h4>3. Adapt information to the life cycle and\u00a0context in which it is being used.<\/h4>\n<p>We\u00a0need specific information at specific times, in both our professional and\u00a0personal lives.<\/p>\n<p>Imagine\u00a0you\u2019re considering whether or not to attend a conference. As you make your decision, you need to know the conference\u2019s theme,\u00a0location, dates and cost. You might have a brochure about the event, but\u00a0you\u2019ll probably want to visit the event\u2019s website<br \/>\non your desktop computer for more extensive information about general sessions,\u00a0exhibitors and accommodations.<\/p>\n<p>You decide to attend, so now you need to know how to register and pay. You might\u00a0complete this task at your office computer, or you might remember to do it\u00a0while relaxing at home with your tablet. You probably want to browse the\u00a0session topics and speakers so you can begin assembling your personal\u00a0conference agenda as well.<\/p>\n<p>Once\u00a0you arrive in the host city, you realize you forgot to print directions to the conference location from the\u00a0airport. You\u2019re not at your\u00a0desk, so you\u2019ll want to use your smartphone or tablet for fast information.<\/p>\n<p>As you leave the venue, you\u2019ll take out your phone or\u00a0tablet again to look up the names and locations of nearby restaurants. Once you are back at your hotel, you might revisit\u00a0the conference\u2019s website or Twitter page to read the day&#8217;s\u00a0conference-related tweets, look at the day&#8217;s photos or double-check the following day\u2019s schedule on your personal device, laptop or hotel desktop computer.<\/p>\n<p>Notice\u00a0how much of a variety of information is needed to successfully navigate one\u00a0event? And the variety of devices on which information should be available when\u00a0it is needed most?<\/p>\n<p>Smart\u00a0organizations will provide all this information (even restaurant recommendations\u2014keep your members on your website\/app) in a\u00a0format that is easy to use on every device its attendees and exhibitors are\u00a0likely using. Once members pay for a membership or event, give them every bit\u00a0of information they will need to have an enjoyable experience.<\/p>\n<p>While\u00a0your organization will likely include everything on the full website, you don\u2019t\u00a0have to cram it all on a mobile app or mobile version\u2014just the items they are\u00a0likely to need while on the go.<\/p>\n<p><strong>4. Provide info that saves time, but also\u00a0fills time.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>According\u00a0to the Pew Internet &amp; American Life Project, 35 percent of Americans own a smart\u00a0phone. Eight percent own a tablet. Mobile users often use their devices to\u00a0save time (look up a phone number while on a break) but also to fill time (look\u00a0at photos on Facebook while waiting for the bus).<\/p>\n<p>Occasionally,\u00a0saving time means you have extra time to fill\u2014you found the phone number you\u00a0wanted, called and left a message, and now you\u2019re looking at photos while\u00a0waiting for a call back.<\/p>\n<p>Write\u00a0for your Web properties in a way that will help your members find the phone\u00a0numbers, directions or industry news they want in a flash. At the same time,\u00a0provide fun stuff such as photos, feature stories or member profiles in a\u00a0digital location that will engage them further with your organization when\u00a0they\u2019re looking for a five-minute break on a Friday afternoon.<\/p>\n<h3>Lather, rinse, repeat<\/h3>\n<p>Concise writing for the Web takes practice and a little trial and error. Before\u00a0publishing something, ask yourself if you\u2019d want to read what you\u2019ve written on\u00a0a desktop or mobile device. If the answer is &#8220;No,&#8221; grab your red pen and start\u00a0editing. Continually ask your members what type of information they want and in\u00a0what format. If you constantly evolve and refine your digital writing, a more\u00a0engaged and satisfied audience will soon follow.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-style: italic;\">Kelly\u00a0Donovan is an online marketing specialist with Naylor, LLC. This\u00a0article is based on information shared by <a href=\"http:\/\/www.resultsdirect.com\/AboutUs\/OurTeam.cfm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Katie Atkinson<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.asaecenter.org\/Profile\/CommunityCloseUp.cfm?ExternalID=703296\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amy Hissrich\u00a0<\/a>and <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/#%21\/kkish\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kim Kishbaugh<\/a> at the 2011\u00a0ASAE Technology Conference &amp; Expo.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are your members reading every word on your website or e-newsletter, or do their eyes glaze over before they need to scroll? Learn four keys to holding your members&rsquo; attention online through better digital writing.<br \/>\n<em>By Kelly Donovan<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-features","category-marketing-communications"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Writing for the Web - Association Adviser<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/writing-for-the-web\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Writing for the Web - Association Adviser\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Are your members reading every word on your website or e-newsletter, or do their eyes glaze over before they need to scroll? 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