How to Make Online Writing Interesting and Effective
Writing for the web requires a different approach than writing for print. But, when done correctly, your online articles and blog posts can be every bit as interesting and effective.
October 31, 2024 • 10 min read
For many of us, writing articles can be a challenging and time-consuming task. Here's how to make the process easier and maximize the impact of everything you write.
You've built a beautiful website and invested time and resources into creating informative content. Visitors are finally arriving! But there's one major hurdle: most of them may be leaving almost as quickly as they arrive. Studies show that the average visitor spends less than a minute on a webpage before deciding whether to stay or bounce.
Every visitor that "bounces" without engaging is a lost opportunity. Not only does it mean your message wasn't communicated, but it also impacts your brand reputation and future search engine performance.
Why Bounce Rates Matter
Here are 5 ways that a high bounce rate can hurt your website's success:
- Brand Perception: Visitors who leave quickly might associate your brand with low relevance or poor quality.
- Link-building Challenges: Sites with low engagement are less likely to attract inbound links from other reputable sites.
- Reduced Social Sharing: Engaged readers are far more likely to share content they find valuable; bouncers, naturally, will not.
- SEO Consequences: High bounce rates and low engagement suggest to search engines that the page might contain thin or questionable content. And that can hurt your rankings.
- Lost Conversion Opportunities: If readers don't find much value in your content, they're unlikely to proceed through your sales funnel.
A few of the common reasons for high bounce rates include:
- Slow Load Times: Page speed plays a huge role in whether visitors stay. A delay of even a few seconds can cause a visitor to abandon the page.
- Content Irrelevance: If the content doesn't align with what visitors expect based on their search terms, they'll leave.
- Intrusive Popups and Ads: Annoying popups, especially early in the visit, irritate visitors and drive them away.
- Readability Issues: A dense, hard-to-read page can seem overwhelming and uninviting.
Some of these issues, like web page loading speed and keyword relevance, are covered in other articles on our blog. But in this post, let's focus on specific steps you can take to create content that draws readers in and keeps them engaged.
Tips for Creating Online Content That'll Interest and Engage Your Readers
Know Your Audience's Needs and Meet Them Head-On
Start by considering what specific information your audience is looking for and how you can address their problems or interests directly. Are they seeking quick answers, in-depth guidance, or inspiration? The clearer you are on what they want, the more engaging your content will be.
Here are a few reader-focused ideas for articles:
For homeowners concerned with aesthetics:
"Boost your home's curb appeal with 5 simple landscaping hacks"For working individuals:
"Healthy, 10-minute meals for busy professionals"For expectant parents:
"Amazon's top rated and best selling baby necessities"Grab Attention with a Compelling Headline, Subheadings, and Opening Line
Headlines draw readers in, and subheadings keep them engaged by clearly organizing the content. Use intriguing language for headlines that promise value, such as "10 Quick Tips for…" or "How to Easily…" Subheadings should act as signposts, guiding the reader through the article and making it easy to scan.
"The purpose of the headline is to get you to read the first line. The purpose of the first line is to get you to read the second line, and so on. In short, if your first line doesn't enthrall your readers, all is lost." - Joe Sugarman, legendary direct marketing copywriter
Here is one of our favorite headlines. It was for a NYTimes review of hiking shoes and it does a great job of making you want to learn more :
"After a 46-Mile Hike, Everything Hurt. Except My Feet."
Write for Easy Scanning and Comprehension
Studies show that writing at a 7th-8th grade reading level tends to increase engagement across all demographics, even among highly educated readers. Avoiding jargon and using concise, simple language and structure helps readers quickly find and digest the key points. This free, online readability tool analyzes your writing and assigns it a grade level score in seconds.
Bullet points, bold text, callouts, and short sentences and paragraphs help skim and find relevant quickly. Here is an example from plainlanguage.gov:
Use a Conversational Tone with Active Voice
Active voice feels more direct and energetic, making the text easier to follow. They're also simpler and help keep the reader's interest.
Here are examples of active versus passive voice sentences:
Active voice: "The dog chased the cat."
Passive voice: "The cat was chased by the dog."Active voice: "The artist painted a beautiful landscape."
Passive voice: "A beautiful landscape was painted by the artist."Active voice: "They will build a new house."
Passive voice: "A new house will be built by them."Organize with a "Top-Heavy" or Inverted Pyramid Structure
Lead with your article's most important information or what benefit readers can expect to learn. Follow that with supporting details, such as how your product or service provides those benefits. And conclude with background information to expand or elaborate. Use subheads to break up sections and guide the reader through the page. This 'outlining' structure helps readers scan quickly to locate the points that interest them.
Here is an example of how we might use the Inverted Pyramid writing style to create an article about website design:
Start: By optimizing images for your website, we can make your pages load quicker, improve user experience, and boost your search engine rankings.
Supporting Details: To achieve these benefits, we use modern formats like WebP or AVIF, resize images to the needed dimensions, and delay images from loading until they come into view.
Background Information: While traditional image formats like JPEG and PNG are still common, they're often larger and slower to load. Next-gen image formats and HTML5 coding techniques allow us to display big, beautiful images and information-rich graphics a way that won't slow down your website.
As the following illustration shows, the inverted pyramid style of writing may be almost opposite of how most of us normally write:
Source: https://sketchplanations.com/the-pyramid-principle
Focus on One Main Idea per Paragraph
When a paragraph covers multiple ideas, it can become confusing and overwhelming. By focusing each paragraph on a single topic, and each sentence on a single concept, you make your writing more digestible and easier to follow.
Stress benefits and how you can help your reader
Readers don't really care about you, what you do, or what you sell. Focus on what you can do for them.
"Don't overload your reader with too much information in a single paragraph; give each idea its own space to breathe."
Break Up Long Blocks of Text
Long paragraphs can overwhelm readers, especially on screens. Whenever possible, break longer paragraphs into lists or shorter sentences. This enhances readability and helps your points stand out. Here are a couple examples of turning long, complex sentences into shorter, more effective sentences:
source: plainlanguage.gov Incorporate Visual Elements
Integrating images, infographics, and videos within your content can break up the text and visually engage readers. According to studies, articles with relevant images receive 94% more views than articles without images. Ensure that visuals are high quality, relevant, and well-placed to enhance the reading experience rather than distract.
"The most powerful communication happens when the visual and the verbal work together." - Michael Schrage, MIT Media Lab
Link to Related Content
When relevant, link to other helpful articles on your site or trusted external sources. This keeps readers engaged on your site and provides more value. Just make sure not to overload the page with too many links, which can be distracting.
Utilize Good SEO Strategies
If your article will be targeting shoppers who are looking for 'the most comfortable mens walking shoes for wide feet,' for example, include those very keyword phrases, and variations ('mens wide shoes for walking'), naturally and strategically into the wording of your page's file name, headline, and body text.
Also include related keywords that might be common in a discussion of that topic. A discussion on shoes might also mention words like: X-wide, athletic shoes, style, comfort, durable, jogging, hiking, athletic, price, and even blisters and bunions.
A quick, easy way to find the important keywords that actual customers use
If you sell products, check the reviews section for similar items listed on Amazon.com. Here's an example from a top selling walking shoe for men with wide feet:
Include Clear and Friendly Calls to Action (CTAs)
Don't assume that your readers know what to do next. A good CTA subtly nudges readers toward the next step—whether that's exploring another article, downloading a resource, or contacting you.
Instead, of using tired, old wordings, however, try to make your CTAs sound helpful, natural, pain-free and fun, like these:
Click thumbnails to enlarge
Sources:
Copyblogger.com
SmashingMag.com
When worded well, readers will see the CTAs as beneficial elements rather than interruptions.
"The best way to get someone to do something is to make it easy for them to do it." - Richard Branson
Conclusion
A thoughtfully crafted article does more than just communicate information--it creates a positive experience that keeps readers engaged and encourages them to share your content.
By prioritizing relevance, readability, and ease of navigation, you increase your chances of capturing readers' attention and guiding them through the entire piece. This establishes you as an authority in your niche and lowers your bounce rate. And remember, the longer readers stay on your page, the more likely they are to interact with your brand, share your content, and become loyal customers and followers.
Ready to optimize your website's writing, content strategy, and effectiveness?
Contact Joe Web site design in Asheville, NC. We've been helping small businesses succeed on the web for nearly 30 years. We'd love the opportunity to help you too. Help is just a phone call away: 828-551-9761
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