farfromfearless
Best Practices for Determining Content Density for Websites.
In a recent project I was asked to conceptualize a series of landing pages/micro sites for a product targeted at several verticals with two specific audiences. The ultimate goal behind the various landing pages was to gather metrics from A|B testing of design and messaging with "conversion" as the definitive metric (don't get me started on that). The business goals and the project requirements aside, I hit one of those fundamental brick walls in web design: "Copy Overkill".
Well written content is an integral part of web-design as much as the actual design and code around and behind it. Good copy writing can better help a user determine the context of the page, find information quickly, and ultimately influence the decision-making process.
Too Much of a Good Thing
“Copy Overkill” is essentially the tendency to overload a single page with too much copy — too much information, and in some cases too much of the wrong type of information. In the landing page project I described, one of the elements required as part of the A|B testing was a series of marketing messages and follow-up content that were to be finely tuned for specific verticals.
The writer was given a set of wireframes with a series of “blocks” in which copy was to appear. What the web-designer received was a content deck overflowing with copy and precious little screen real estate to contain it all (including all other design elements).
Now, the typical first reaction of a writer who is unfamiliar with how copy works online is to say, “Well that’s your job as a designer — you go make it work”. The second is to vehemently argue the validity and importance of keeping every word that was written in the content deck.
You can likely imagine the reaction and the ensuing conflict between teams. This can quickly turn into a project manager’s headache.
How Much is Too Much?
It seems that nearly every project I have been involved with suffers from this tendency. I’m hoping that one day I’ll luck out and not have to deal with this again (one can dream); in the mean time, it is difficult for a designer to argue with a writer about how much is too much or the validity of their words on screen. To make things easier for both sides, here are some ABCs that can help to determine the copy density for a given page:
Audience
Who is the target audience?
This is a fundamental question that needs to be answered before a single line of copy is committed — a good communication brief (sometimes known as the “strategic brief”) should answer this, as it is likely one of the key bits of information that was gathered at the outset of the project.
Without getting into too much detail about demographics and psychographics, etc. there is a significant difference between how much information one group prefers in contrast to the other. Understanding the target audience is key in determining the amount and type of information they prefer when reading a page.
Remember, we’re writing for the web, not a novel — and since we’re on the topic writing for the web, remember to that each word is worth pennies.
I know of one writer who would throttle me for seemingly diminishing the value of his fine words; however, the fact is that every word that appears in strategic areas of a page is worth something, especially if the site is part of a campaign leveraging SEM (search engine marketing) as a traffic driver. Consider too that the right verb can spur a user to action and direct them into the process of converting from a prospect to a customer (aka “conversion”).
Balance
What is the best balance between Design and Copy?
Typography is a discipline in design that copywriters tend not to observe — for most, it’s not a part of their job function; however, it is something that writers who are developing copy for a web-audience should attempt to appreciate, since good typography can help form a strong visual path to the desired action.
Web Typography is not necessarily the same as Print Typography — the principles are similar, but the application is where there are glaring differences. Writers should also consider the other elements and features that make up a given page (branding, navigation, visuals, etc). These elements when combined, dramatically reduce the amount of space in which to work.
The issue of real estate is compounded by the fact that unlike print, the visible real estate on screen can vary wildly, and so a web-designer has to look at a page in terms of segments:
- 33% for initial messaging and brand exposure.
- 33% for context and call to action.
- 33% for the granular details.
The closest comparison would be that of daily news publications — there is only so much only so much space to identify the publication itself; only so much of the font page that can be devoted to the headline and visual; and only so much column space to deliver the story. On a newsstand this defines which paper a reader will choose.
I tend to invoke one rule that I carry over from my days in designing for editorial: “Write to fit”.
This rule shouldn’t be invoked frivolously. Editors invoke this as a measure of last resort when there is quite simply not enough room for all the words to work effectively. When it comes to the web, screen real estate is at a premium.
Be prepared: This will sound cliché, but as a designer you need to show the writer why his copy is not working rather than tell him it is not working. The proof is almost always on screen, and no — 7px type is not an acceptable solution.
Be sensitive: As with design, coming up with compelling copy is not an easy task — appreciate that a writer spends as much time agonizing over verbs as a designer spends over grids.
Context
Why is the user viewing your page, and how did they get there?
I’d like to think that every website is unique in some small way but the reality is often the opposite. The sheer volume of websites online today is staggering. Within a particular industry you might find thousands of similar sites, and within those sites a myriad of identical pages with each one saying the same thing as their competitor.
However your visitor (aka “prospect”) finds you, you need to understand the context around their visit.
If the particular page is part of a targeted campaign with an SEM strategy, you can expect that they’ve found your page through results or other traffic drivers purchased for that reason. This is a pre-defined path with an expected purpose and resulting set of actions (abandon or convert).
If a visitor comes to your site cold (e.g. no identifiable referral or metric), you can assume they are searching for “something”. You need to help the visitor determine what that “something” is — and quickly.
This is where copywriting comes into play. The behaviour for most users (especially if they’ve only stumbled onto your page), is to start scanning for key words and phrases that might help them orient themselves. I’m treading pretty close to talking about SEO here, but it’s unavoidable given the current topic.
Some key considerations:
- Your positioning statement or value proposition should answer their need — they came searching for something, so your content needs to address their query with an appropriate response.
- Lighten up — dense blocks of copy are intimidating and visitors shy away from these in favour of bite-sized phrases and sentences. In web as with print, readers tend to “see” blocks of grey rather than areas with “lots of copy”.
- Draw clear relationships between copy on page — clear communication builds trust, and showing strong relationships between blocks of information tells a user that your content is well thought out and authoritative. You’re not attempting to over-sell the subject of the page.
There are at least half a dozen other factors that will help to determine if you resonate with the unknown visitor or not, but having the right amount of copy will help to make that task easier.
Conclusion
Finding the right balance between copy and design for a website is never going to be easy, and there will be struggles between both, but it doesn’t have to always have to be this way. Consider how you can work with your writing to team to create an effective balance, and when push comes to shove, remember who it is you are writing for.
Here are some additional articles that I’ve found useful:
The Elements of Style for Designers by Christina Wodtke
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