Think You Know How to Write for the Web? Think Again
Why do people write online?
Some do it for fun, but mostly it’s because they manage a website and they’re writing copy… written marketing that helps your customer and sells you & your business.
Writing a regular blog is just part of having a website.
What I’ve noticed is that many people who do write online, make the mistake of thinking it’s just like any other writing they do.
Wrong. Like everything else in the digital world, it’s changing really fast.
The way we write and use language is in free-fall. And to a certain extent, so is the way people read, the way it’s even talked about.
For example:
Instead of the word ‘writing’ we often see it called ‘content’. This can also refer to videos, infographics, podcasts etc. But often it’s just a way of saying ‘writing’.
Instead of the word ‘reading’ we often see it called ‘consuming content’. This is possibly because Ai is involved, but also I expect it’s how the hardcore old school marketers want us to think of it.
On top of that, there are loads of common misconceptions about web writing - so let’s start there.
Misconception 1: Web readers only want a certain length of content.
There’s a lot of disagreement about how long a blog or article should be.
As a commercial blog writer, I was always given a word count and had to stick to it. I often wondered where marketing got these word counts.
So, I looked it up.
Here’s a few statistics:
According to SEO.co - the average length of the top 10 Google search results is around 2,200 words, but 85% of the top 25% of articles are under 1,000 words.
Longer articles seem to work - people appreciate a deep dive and yet…
…avoiding a brain dump is also wise. Content that's longer than 10,000 words can hurt rankings if it doesn't meet user search intent.
When it comes to blog posts specifically, Draft.co says that the ideal length is between 1,500 and 3,000 words, with the sweet spot being around 2,500 words.
And yet that’s still not the whole story.
Neil Patel says that more concise articles are in fashion right now, and that they should be short enough to answer the reader's questions quickly.
What interests me most about his article, was that when he looked into it, he found that people were reading shorter articles 20 years ago when the internet was just a baby.
Average length of an article two decades ago was: 500-800 words.
So, all that talk about how attention spans are getting shorter - might be nonsense.
And if you add this information about changing trends to the fact that according to Reboot Online SEO, the optimum length for journalism and newspaper articles is 600–800 words, a pattern starts to emerge.
I’ll go out on a limb here and say we like reading articles that give us what we’re looking for. And mostly, we can get that from around 500 - 2,000 words.
Sometimes we want more than that. But not too much…
Reality: How long should a blog post be?
It depends.
Readers appreciate both short, easy to digest stuff and in-depth articles.
If you want to please your readers, and help them solve their problems (which you should), then aim to write blogs and articles of different lengths.
Give them a variety.
Unless everyone who comes to your site only reads the 500 words quick stuff.
Experiment.
Keep changing what you do, give people a choice, and see what happens.
Misconception 2: Simple language means dumbing down.
Plain English, also known as plain language, is a writing style that aims to make information easy for readers to understand quickly.
It's clear, concise, and organised… and uses only as many words as are necessary.
Okay. Sounds good, if a little dry.
But does it mean that the richness of your unique way of expressing yourself must be crushed on the wheel of uniformity?
Not really.
Simple language doesn’t mean dumbing down. Unless you want it to.
Because the goal of plain English is to avoid jargon, euphemisms, convolutions, and ambiguous language - and that’s probably a good thing.
Mostly.
Your writing won’t suffer if you use the odd smattering of ambiguity. Creativity doesn’t have to die just because you use simple words.
Write for your readers. That’s all that matters.
If you know those who visit your website will get jokes full of Game of Thrones jargon - do it.
Really, plain English is all about using short, clear, commonly used words with few syllables as much as possible.
Short sentences are good.
But, as I always taught my students, a variety of sentence lengths is better. No need to take it all too far.
Ultimately, the goal is to help your readers focus on the meaning, rather than being distracted by complicated language.
Plain English is especially good for those with lower literacy levels, poor working memory, or who are easily distracted or slower at reading.
Busy people appreciate clarity and brevity.
It helps everyone understand what you mean the first time they read it.
Here are some tips for writing in plain English:
Use lists: Lists break up information. Your brain copes better when information arrives in separate ‘chunks’.
Use active verbs: The passive voice is dull and clumsy. There’s plenty of information about passive and active voice online. Learn that stuff.
Write sentences you can handle: If you read what you’ve written and you stumble over something - that sentence is out of control.
Reality: Clarity doesn't preclude complexity
You can write funny, smart, well-structured, and thoughtful sentences which are both clear and sophisticated.
Don’t be afraid of metaphors or analogies. Especially if you and your readers enjoy them.
And occasionally use a long word. It might discombobulate some of your readers, and others will love it.
Be yourself. Just don’t be confusing.
Misconception 3: The hard sell is still effective.
Most people do not want or like the hard sales approach. It’s aggressive, forceful, and annoying.
Marketing has had to change to a softer way of doing things.
Don’t be under illusion. Writing online is marketing.
Your blog posts are there to inform, engage, and support your readers.
At the same time, every now and again you want to nudge them towards taking action.
Whether you’re selling widgets, booking appointments, or hoping to get hired, every 7th or 8th post you write - should be focused on that.
The rest of the time, write about what your readers are interested in.
Write to solve their problems, answer their questions, and help them get what they want…
…within reason of course!
Reality: Readers now prefer subtle, authentic marketing.
A softer way of selling means your writing should avoid using dark emotional triggers and the type of language that makes people fearful or tense.
Now we’ve got the misconceptions out of the way, how do you write for the web?
Understand Your Reader
It’s not just about ‘ideal customer demographics’ or ‘reader personas’.
You also need to:
Identify Intent: In other words, find out if your readers are looking for quick tips or deep insights.
Respect Their Intelligence: Assume readers are intelligent and appreciate well-crafted, thoughtful content.
Engagement: To get more engagement - be more engaging. It’s that simple. Think of your reader as a student, eager to learn and engage with valuable information.
Writing for Clarity
Even if you pop in the odd ambiguity for a laugh, use clear and well-constructed sentences to get your meaning across.
At the same time - don't shy away from complex words.
The key is that any long words should fit your reader’s expectations, and do some heavy lifting in terms of meaning.
Be consistent.
If you write online, do it a lot.
You’ll get better at it, and your readers will get to know you - your voice, your brand…
The ones who relate to what you say and the way you say it - will stick around and keep coming back.
Techniques for Good Online Writing
Headlines - use them well. Draw readers in with informative and intriguing titles.
Subheadings & taglines - break content into manageable sections for better navigation. Use relevant subheadings & taglines as structural devices.
Visuals - use images etc with your writing. Use relevant images, videos, and infographics but don’t overwhelm your reader with too much of that. One brilliant but simple diagram or photo might be all that’s needed.
Conversational Tone - Write Like You Talk - is the best advice I ever had as a newbie copywriter. Make sure you use a natural, conversational tone to connect with readers.
Short Articles - for when your readers want some quick, actionable insights.
Long Articles - for when readers need a more detailed analysis and in-depth information.
Balance - give them a mix of content lengths to cater to different parts of the buyer journey. Generally speaking, if someone is just about to buy an expensive item - they want a lot more information. That’s why landing pages are usually quite lengthy.
Transparency - be a good person. Be upfront about your intentions and provide honest content.
Value-Driven Content - focus on creating useful, informative, and entertaining material.
Creativity - use ChatGPT and other Ai models for research and help with structure, but add your own perspective and be creative. Also, check up any research they do because they can get things wrong. The robots hallucinate my friends!
Remember: Writing online is its own thing.
Our interactions with content are constantly altering our perceptions… and this leads to the evolution of future interactions with content.
It used to be all about the hard sell - but now thankfully, it’s about providing value and building relationships with your readers, current clients, and future customers.
Stay curious about writing and don’t get distracted by the fact that it’s now called ‘content’.
Study online writing. Practice and write better.
Adapt and survive.
Stay updated with trends and continuously adapt your writing style.
Your readers will thank you.
Ref: How long should a blog be?: https://seo.co/content-length/
Ref: Very long blog posts… : https://neilpatel.com/blog/long-blog-articles/