Let me preface this by saying how strange it is to write about not reading. With all the arguments about e-books and the sanctity of the well-bound durability of the traditional page turner, the death of the newspaper and what will become of library; I don’t worry. I like reading books and newspapers at libraries. But you probably didn’t even read this paragraph, because…
People Don’t Read on the Web.
They scan menus, headings, lists, icons, images and labels looking for the juicy little bits of text that will lead them to the few words that communicate the information they want, need and were looking for all along.
Everybody’s writing about it.
Jakob Nielsen , Usability Guru, has done the research.
“79 percent of our test users always scanned…16 percent read word-by-word.”
“The introductory paragraph(s)… is what I call blah-blah text… such as “Welcome to our site, we…”
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Carsonified , Experts on Web Design, offer this equation.
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Steve Krug, author of Don’t Make Me Think, suggests a dull knife.
“Get rid of half your text and then get rid of half of what’s left.”
Conclusion: Write for the user, not for yourself.
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I can contribute this to one simple theory, this blog withstanding, some of the most interesting words on most blogs are the reCAPTCHA words in the verification boxes.
Binney Sponges
I always recommend really short sentences and lots of pictures and bullet points.
I really only care about blog posts or media like videos. Static pages on websites are really not all that interesting to me.
Unfortunately we’ve watered down information so much, that we only see pictures and bullets. Where we used to read books, articles, novels. Then again, I 100% believe in ???Get rid of half your text and then get rid of half of what???s left.?? There is indeed too much crap on the net, and to spend countless hours and minutes trying to find a couple links and some pictures, is a waste of time.
But then again, it’s like Walmart stocking its shelves with only two brands of bread, versus the thousands that are out there. They’re picking what we’re eating. The web (and it’s advertising/marketing firms) are choosing what we read.. what our eyes are being fed, and predictable outcomes that let our brains do NONE of the thinking.. Hence the book title “Don’t Make Me Think”…… Think about that!
Here’s to simple one word sentences, 2 page image spreads, and the future of letting computers do everything for us!!