According to Jakob Nielsen, the guru of Web usability, most people don’t read Web pages at all.
They scan them.
A recent study showed that 79 percent of Web users scan any new page for individual words and sentences. Only 16 percent read it word-for-word.
The implications? Nielsen suggests using:
– highlighted keywords
– sub-headings
– bulleted lists
– one idea per paragraph
– and half the word-count of conventional writing.
That means that printed newspaper content needs to be reformatted and optimized for online use when it appears online.
Jakob Nielsen’s Website: www.useit.com