writing for the web in government and education

W R IT I N G FO R T H E W E BI N GOV ER N M EN T A N D E DUC AT I ON

H OW P E O P L E R E AD ON L I N E

SK I M M I N G A N D S AT I S F I C I N G

• F Patterns

• Headings and links

• Images and captions

• Bold phrases

F PATT E R N S

Source: Nielsen Norman Group, F-shaped Pattern for Reading Web Content

, April 2006

M O B IL E S C R E E N S IZ E S[ F I N D P EW S TAT S ON M OB I LE US AG E]

91%of all Americans own a cell phone

Source: Pew Research, Cell Internet Use 2013

34%of cell phone internet usersmostly use their phones

to access the internet

Source: Pew Research, Cell Internet Use 2013

4 yearsproportion of cell owners whouse their phone to go online has doubled(2009-2013)

Source: Pew Research, Cell Internet Use 2013

OTH E R WAYS OF RE A D ING A ND NAV I GAT ING

• Screen readers

• Keyboard controls

SC R E E N R E A DE R S

• Software that reads screens to the blind

• Reads everything aloud, in order

• Can read only headings

• Can read only links – out of context

SC R E E N R E A DE R D E M O

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PMuBQ7LyOw&t=5m10s

I M AG E S

• Images must have a text alternative

• Captions are optional

• Alt text• Describe the image for the visually impaired• How it looks, not who/what it is

• Captions• Identify people and places• Credit the photographer (when necessary)

ALT T EXT

A dark-colored beetle with bright yellow stripes and red-brown legs perches on a plant with spindly yellow flowers

The Locust Borer is a pest affecting the black locust tree. Both are common in Eastern North America. (Photo courtesy of WikiMedia)

C A P T I ON

TRA N S C R I PT S

• Audio: for the hearing impaired

• Video: for the visually impaired

• Required for accessibility

• Also helpful for search engines

TA B LE S

• Provide a summary of the table’s highlights or trends

PD FS

• Text PDFs vs. scanned images• Can you select the text?

• Document Properties• Title• Author• Summary

• Does this document need to be a PDF?• Probably yes / Probably no

P D F T I T L E S

E D I T I N G P D F T I T L E S

E D I T I N G P D F T I T L E S

AC C E SS I B I L I T Y I S S UE S

• Structure vs. presentation

• Alt text

• Transcripts

• Link text

• Keywords

• URLs

SE A RC H E N G I N E O P T I M I ZAT I O N

• Structure vs. presentation

• Alt text

• Transcripts

• Link text

• Keywords

• URLs

ACCE S S I B I L I T Y & S EO CH E CK L I S T

• Are headings styled as headings?

• Do all images have alt text?

• Do audio & video have transcripts?

• Do graphs, charts, and tables have summaries?

• Do image map regions have alt text?

W R IT I N G FO R T H E W E B

H E A D I N G S

• Page title and subheadings

• Keywords

• Questions!

• Heading styles, not bigger and bolder

Source: Usability.gov, Writing for the Web, June 2014

G O O D H E A D I N G S

• Verb phrases:• Filling out the Application

• Sentences:• You Must Get a Permit

• Phrases with pronouns and verbs:• What You Must Do First• Where do I get a permit?

Source: plainlanguage.gov, Headings, by Ginny Redish

G O O D H E A D I N G S

“How to” buries the action

• How to get a permit• How to fill out the permit• How to change your

address

• Getting a permit• Filling out the permit• Changing your address

Source: plainlanguage.gov, Headings, by Ginny Redish

ST Y L I N G H E A D I N G S

• Use Word heading styles

• Don’t make headings bolder and bigger

• Heading styles become HTML heading tags

• Structure conveys meaning• Search engines• Screen readers

• Appearance is meaningless

W O R D H E A D IN G S T Y L E S

NO

Y ES

C H U N K I N G

• Subheadings

• Prioritize

• Bullet lists

C H U N K I N G E X A M PL E :H I S TO RY O F T E X A S A & M F O R E S T S E RV IC E

• By subject• Establishment and early leaders• State forests• Urban forestry program• Fire protection program• Seedling nurseries

• By date

PA RAG RA PH L I ST S

The objectives of the Texas Forest Service were to persuade and aid private owners of forest land in practicing forestry and converting submarginal agricultural lands to productive forests; to protect private forest lands against forest wildfires, insects, and disease; to inform the public of the contribution that forests, a renewable natural resource, make to the economy of the state; to educate Texans in uses and abuses of forest products; and to assist forest products industries in developing new products and improving production techniques.

BU L LE T L I ST S

•The objectives of the Texas Forest Service were: • to aid private landowners in practicing forestry and

converting submarginal agricultural lands to productive forests

• to protect private forests against wildfires, insects, and disease

• to inform the public how forests contribute to the state’s economy

• to educate Texans in uses and abuses of forest products

• to help industries develop new products and improve production techniques

O M IT N E E D LE S S W O R DS

“C UT T E XT BY H A L F , TH E N BY H A LF AG A I N . ”

E XA M PLE

Like the term “weeds”, insect pests should be reserved for those insects causing unreasonable problems to the products we are trying to produce.

UN N E C E SS A RY ? R E DU N DA N T ?

Like the term “weeds”, insect pests should be reserved for those insects causing unreasonable problems to the products we are trying to produce.

R E PH RA S E

Like “weeds,” the term “pests” should be reserved for insects causing unreasonable problems.

Source: plainlanguage.gov, Wordiness Made Spare

PL A I N L ANG UAGE VS . BUR EAUCRACY

“Online readers expect a personal, upbeat tone in web writing.

They find bureaucratic writing so offensive and out-of-place that they simply ignore the message it's trying to convey.”

Source: New York University, Writing for the Web

PL A I N L A NG U AG E I N G OV ERN MEN T

• Plain Writing Act of 2010

• PlainLanguage.gov

• Usability.gov

• Center for Plain Language

E L I M I N ATE JA R G O N

• Arcane industry terms

• Acronyms

• Abbreviations

• Euphemisms

T H E O F F IC E O F N AT I O N A L S TAT I S T I C S

Statistician: Each Geographical Statistical Output (GSO) depicts an enumeration district.

Manager: Do you mean ‘each map’?

Statistician: No. We cannot call it a map because each GSO also contains a table.

Manager: OK. It's a map with a table.

Source: plainlanguage.gov, Keep it Jargon-free, by Nick Wright

“I soon realized solving Bosnia would be easier.”

-- George Robertson, English Defence Minister, on his attempt to cut out abbreviations and acronyms at the Ministry of Defence

Source: plainlanguage.gov, Keep it Jargon-free, by Nick Wright

E U PH E M I SM S A N D JA R G O N

Jargon Plain

Reduction in force Layoffs

Economic downturn Recession

Friendly fire Shot our own troopsInvoluntary undomiciled Homeless

Riverine avifauna River birdsSources: plainlanguage.gov, Keep it Jargon-free and

Avoid legal, foreign, and technical jargon

G O O G L E S E A RC H E S P E R M O N T H

40,000

“Low fares”Source: Gerry McGovern, Choosing the Right Classification Words,

October 2008

25 million“Cheap flights”

TO N E

• Active voice• Avoid passive verbs (it was done by…)• Take responsibility• Invite the reader to take action

• Personal address• Talk to a person, not an abstract group• The reader IS the audience• Be relevant

Source: plainlanguage.gov, Pronouns Can Establish a Personal Tone

AC T I V E VO I C E

Before:The Texas Forest Service was established by the legislature.

After:The legislature established the Texas Forest Service.

PE R S O N A L A D D R E SS

Before:This article will help students improve their study habits.

After:Learn to study more effectively.

L I N K S

• Descriptive• What will the reader find when she gets

there?• Unique

• Starts with a keyword

• File type and size warnings (PDF, 200MB)

Source: Nielsen Norman Group, Writing Links, March 2014.

N E V E R W R I T E “C L I C K H E R E ”

• What is the destination?

• The method doesn’t matter

• And it might not be “clicking” anyway• Tapping mobile screens• Keyboard navigation• Puff sticks and joysticks• Voice recognition

W H AT S C R E E N R E A D E R U S E R S H E A R•Click here•Click here•Click here•Click here•Click here•Click here•Click here

DO N ’T L I N K T O N O N E X I ST E N T PAG E S

N E V E R U N DE R L I N E N O N - L I N K E D TE XT

3 WAY S T O I NS E RT L I NK S I N W O R D

1. Control-K

2. Insert -> Hyperlink

3. Select phrase, right click, “hyperlink”

K E Y W O R D S

• How would people search for this page?• “how do I…?” is common

• Jargon AND vernacular• “low fares” and “cheap flights”

• Two- to four-word phrases are best

UR L S

http://tfs.tamu.edu/main/article.aspx?id=13944

http://tfs.tamu.edu/request-assistance-with-forest-recovery-after-wildfire

/foresthealth/

/foresthealth/insects/

S UM M A RY

W R I T I N G A G O O D W E B PAG E

• Identify and address the audience• Chunk the text by topic or task• Cut half the words• Eliminate jargon• Write task-based headings and descriptive

links• Add alt text and captions to images• Summarize tables and charts• Include keywords in the URL

TO O L S

• Style Guide and Page Template

• PlainLanguage.gov Quick Tips

• Plain language checklists• Center for Plain Language checklist• PlainLanguage.gov checklist

• Accessibility checklist