Writing for the web

Visitors have a 2-4 minute attention span on each page, equivalent to limiting content to 400-800 words

Viewers read up to 5 words on average, or a maximum of 8 seconds, before deciding whether to leave the page

People browse, flit and enter at different points, so limit ‘linear’ writing, think brief, informative chunks

Give all content a headline to explain what it is, and highlight key words throughout to draw the eye

Say the most attention-grabbing thing first – before your audience loses interest

Use meaningful sub headings to split your text up, allowing readers to scan and find information important to them

Link to what you’re talking about – you don’t have to say it all if there's already another page that does

Break up the page – images, graphics and info boxes help to keep the focus on important points

Think about your tone and style of writing – text tends to be more informal online, so cater for your audience

Don’t use your professional presence to vent anger or complain, use constructive criticism if you need to

Don’t be anonymous - make it so that people can find and contact you if they want to ask about your work

Make sure you proofread any writing – spelling and grammatical mistakes will make people look elsewhere