Writing for the Internet—Part Three

The last part of Writing for the Internet that I want to cover is the importance of graphic elements in what we write. This includes much more than pictures—we discussed sentence structure, formatting and font choice in the first post. Today we’ll go deeper into what makes a webpage readable.


In years past, the emphasis with writing was simply that—writing. Now, as our society has become more and more visual we, as writers, must also evolve. This is especially true on the Internet. We must broaden our horizons and become designers. Trends and statistics are clear; in less than 5 years 85% of what is viewed on the Internet will be video.

Important Factors to Consider

• Wide margins – approx 12 words per line max.
• If your text is longer than 1-2 printed pages, try to break it up into separate web pages. It’ll be easier to read and the pages will download faster, especially if the user has a dial-up connection.
• Avoid a busy background or frame.
• Consider contrast between text and background. Although white is a good background color, consider a shade that is barely off-white as this is usually easier on the eyes.
• Choose your font wisely. Times New Roman isn’t a good choice for reading on the computer. Arial, Helvetica, Verdana and Georgia are better choices. (This site is designed using only Verdana) Also take into account font size.

As writers we often view our words within a box, or at least our minds. We don't pay attention to the whole picture. We can no longer afford that mindset. When writing for the web, we have to educate ourselves. Often writers will be consulted or at least asked to voice an opinion.
Things to Consider

• Study the web pages you go back to again and again. Make a list of what catches your eye. 
• Look at web pages that frustrate you and make a list of your frustrations. 
• Notice why the pictures and graphics help hold your attention when you're reading a magazine article.

All of these tools will help you become a more savvy content writer. Beyond that, make a commitment to stay current on the trends in your business—the Internet and all things digital. To that end, here are some websites I recommend to help you stay up to date on the changing market.

• http://www.problogger.net/
• http://sethgodin.typepad.com/
• http://www.makealivingwriting.com/
• http://www.dailyblogtips.com/
• http://www.copyblogger.com/
• http://www.makealivingwriting.com/
• http://www.bloggingbistro.com/

Now it's your turn. Where do you go to stay plugged into the digital revolution?

Don't forget to join the conversation!
Blessing,
Edie

Writing for the Internet—Part Two

Anyone who’s spent any time writing content for the web or even researching this market, has run across the acronym SEO. This stands for Search Engine Optimization. It's basically where, in the list of millions, your content will show up when searched by a reader (search engine). When you use different search engines—google, yahoo, etc., you'll notice that each will give slightly different results from any given search. But there are things we can do as writers to move our content up in the rankings. To accomplish this we have to have a basic understanding of how SEO algorithms work.

Myth
There’s also a common myth that an article’s search engine rank is determined by the number of times the keyword is used. There was a time—early in the history of the Internet—when this was partly true. But no more

Truth
If this were the case, all a website would have to do is have pages of nothing but keywords to up its search engine ranking. Search Engine Algorithms have done away with that method of cheating. Algorithms are too well written to fall for that—and many have built in sensors that penalize websites for trying to cheat.

Here are some other truths about Search Engines

• Nowadays, Search Engine Algorithms take words literally—and that can be good or bad

This means that they don't understand it when we make a play on words. For example, a recipe for vegetarian chili titled, Too Hot to Handle Chili will rank lower than one titled, Homemade Vegetarian Chili. This is because an algorithm uses the literal meaning of words and the first title doesn’t even have the word “vegetarian” in it. Often times a clever title will result in fewer clicks.
This doesn't mean we can't be clever—only that we have to be deliberate in where we're clever. Take that chili recipe, give it a title that can be searched literally, like Hot and Spicy Vegetarian Chili, but in the description use the clever tag line as too hot to handle.
This blog—The Write Conversation—is a clever play on words that works. The reason being I want this site to be searchable for the keyword “write” as well as be clever about educating writers as an ongoing “conversation.”

• Search Engine Algorithms also look for keywords.

Keywords are the words that appear on the website that describe that page. When writing content for a client they will often give you a list of keywords. It's your responsibility to use those keywords effectively. This is called Keyword Density and refers to the number of times a keyword is used on a page.

Search engines read from the top of a webpage to the bottom, searching to see that important keywords are used throughout the page.

Here’s a good rule of thumb when determining keyword density

• Always use the keyword in the title.
• Repeat the keyword at least once in the first 50 words.
• Spread the use of the keyword naturally and evenly throughout the rest of the article. In a 400 word article that would mean using the keyword a minimum of three more times.

This should give any writer a good working knowledge of SEO. You can apply it to your own personal blog or website or you can use it to write effectively for clients.

Let me know if you have any questions about writing for the Internet because next week I’ll be wrapping up this series.

Don't forget to join the conversation!
Blessings,
Edie