Written on March 28th, 2006 at 09:03 am by Darren Rowse

How to Write for Busy People

Writing Content 15 comments

Ben at Inside Firefox has written a great little post on how to write for Busy People (and lets face – most of us fit the category).

I think the six points they make are great advice for bloggers also. Of course that doesn’t mean you can’t break the ‘rules’ and still have a worthwhile blog – but they are worth keeping in mind.

  • Making important points up front
  • Clear taxonomy of headings, and lots of them
  • Writing clearly and succinctly
  • No long, unbroken paragraphs or tracts of text.
  • Preferring bulleted lists with clear points to paragraphs.
  • Use of emphasis in formatting to make important things clear

I particularly would echo Ben’s sixth point. I know that when I go to a blog and see long unbroken paragraphs that it’s a major turn off. I don’t mind reading long article but am much more likely to do so if I can see it’s well organized, not too overwhelming and if it gives me some hints at a glance as to what it’s about and what I’ll get out of it. First impressions count for a lot.

The only extra hint I’d add to Ben’s list is to think carefully about your main title. He’s mentioned headings which could include this – but I think if a title is designed well it can communicate a lot and be the thing that gets people reading or turns them away from your post.

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