Scanability

Having a good layout and design when writing online is as important as the writing. Scanability is one of the of the key tools to online layout. Readers will often look very quickly over a page to decide if what they are looking for will be found. Headlines, subheads and links are all ways to achieve a more scannable page. Making small changes like variation in font size, and color or adding an image/graphic can also help your writing be more scannable.

Headlines / Subheads

When writing online it is a good idea to present the most important information first. When reading an outline vs a full text article; the readability is far better in an outline. The outline is easy to read and conveys all of the information the full text does just in a bulleted way. Readers can easily locate what they are looking for in an outline and when they find it, they can go to the full text for the details. Links are like the full text. Practice writing in headlines and subheads to make finding information easy, and link to other good sources to give what has been written more detail. Graphics can also be used for a headline if there is applicable text in the graphic.

Headlines and Subheads are a great way to

1. Break up text
   • Reading a long paragraph will likely be off putting to an online reader, visually breaking up text using headlines and even subheads then the reader is more likely to actually read the information.
2. Draw attention
   • Headlines can be presented in a different font, size or even color than the rest of the text and can early catch the attention of the reader.
3. Summarize
   • Often the information that is presented can be summarized in a few words, this is helpful so the reader can find exactly what they are looking for.

Links

Adding links to online writing makes the work non-linear. If the writing is more like an outline than adding links can add more details without adding visual weight to what has been said. Links should not interrupt the text; they should go with the flow of the writing and unlike headlines should not break up what is being said. The links used on a page should only create relevant support not extra reading for the user to navigate through.

When Linking

1. Do not link the words click here
   • Doing this is redundant, if adding a link the words that are connected to the link.
2. Do no use the entire URL
   • URLs can be very lengthy and confusing, this adds unnecessary weight to text and can confuse the reader
3. Know the sites linking policy
   • Each site may have a different way to format a link, make sure and know how to make links correctly for each site used.

Keep all links up to date and working all the time. Broken links make sites non-crediable and add unnecessary weight to the text. All links should have a purpose, and the site linked to should also follow the other rules of good online writing. Navigating to a new page should not distract the reader or cause confusion.

Also See

• The Department of Media, Culture, and the Arts

• Macon State College

Reference

1. Carroll, Brian. (2010). "Writing for Digital Media". New York: Routledge. Retrieved 2 Nov. 2012.