“The main goal is not to complicate the already difficult life of the consumer.”
Usability experts agree that, despite what many people may assume, users do not want a great deal of information. They just want the amount of information necessary for them to complete their task. Author Steve Krug advises us that we should not make users do anything unnecessary. Users can become confused and frustrated when they are asked to do something that does not benefit their cause for visiting the website. One of the most common problems is that there is too much content and too many options available for the user. With all this information for the user to digest, it is difficult to know what to do with it all.
Many website designers make the mistake of presuming that users will take the time to read in-depth content and try to understand how a site is organised. However, users want information quickly. In fact, instead of reading text, a study has shown that they ‘scan’ it (Morkes & Nielsen). They do this by picking out single words or sentences and extracting only basic information. This allows them to cover larger areas of text in less time. The study found that 79% of the people tested scanned web page text whereas only 16% read each word. Therefore, web page content should be written in a way that is concise and with logical layout (headers, lists, short paragraphs, etc.). Users pay attention to information that is either relevant to the task at hand, of personal interest to them or to trigger words. These key words are words that we naturally respond to; words like “free”, “sale” and “sex”. Web content can be improved when it is stripped of unnecessary language and when important words or phrases are drawn attention to (Hence the bold lines of text in this article). Headers and sub-headers should give a short but accurate description of the content to follow, using terms that the user is familiar with. Since users will normally not read a large body of text, paragraphs should be limited to one idea at a time so that they are easily digested.
The ‘inverted pyramid’ style of writing, which is often used in journalism, works well on the web. This method of puts forth the most important information at the beginning of the text with additional information following in descending order of importance. This allows the users to easily browse each section and surmise the context then decide on whether to continue reading. In web design, the area under which the user has to scroll down to see (known as ‘the fold’) is of less importance. Another advantage to this writing style is that search engines are more likely to analyse the information closer to the top of the page.
What makes website content different from traditional styles of writing is that information can be easily linked. Text does not need to appear as a linear body of text, but can be separated into individual areas, each linking to one another. Therefore the reader has more control over which path they wish to follow. Since the user is given more power over the direction they can take, there is more need for each area to compete for attention.
Font size is a common concern with designers. If a font size is too small or too large then the text becomes difficult to read at length. Studies show that common web fonts are read noticeably slower when it is less than 10 point. 12-14 point is considered optimal for most adults, although older people prefer larger font sizes. Sans serif fonts are generally preferred to serif, however there is little evidence to suggest that they effected reading times (Bernard, et al., 2001). An important factor to consider when selecting a font, however, is that the actual text size may differ with fonts of the same point size. The way the font is viewed may also vary depending on user settings, screen resolution and browsers types.
Line length is also an important factor on how quickly users can read text. This is based on the capabilities of the human eye which, at typical reading distance, only has a visual field of a few inches. Reading long lines of text which exceed this distance requires more eye movement and can become tiresome (Lynch, et al., 2001). An investigation by Bernard et al. (2000) concluded that longer line lengths should not be used for web pages. Especially those with large bodies of text. Shorter line lengths (around 11 words) are favoured over full-screen lines, as users are more likely to loose their place in the text when reading longer lines. However, very short line lengths are discouraged, as they require the user to scroll down the page. The study concluded that for adults, a typical line should consist of around 65 to 75 characters per line (CPL), whereas children favoured shorter lines (around 45 CPL).
It is a popular opinion of graphic designers that open-space (referred to as ‘white-space’, though not necessarily white) not only contributes to the attractiveness of a design, but provides additional functionality. Areas of white space can be used to organise areas on a page by drawing attention to easily identifiable regions (White, 1974). Important areas can be made to stand out if unnecessary visual elements are reduced to a minimum and information is suitably structured. The use of white space can eliminate the need for artificial barriers such as boxes or bars. White space is useful for, “directing the viewer’s attention to the regions where important information is provided and allowing the global structure of the composition to assume a meaningful configuration” (Mullet & Sano, 1995, p. 126).
Author of Web Site Usability: A Designers Guide, Jared Spool (1999) opposes this concept. He explains that although the notion that white space may apply to graphic design in general, it may not be so effective when it comes to designing for web pages. He suggests that the reason for this is that, because users prefer to scan content, they need the information to be arranged close together. However, empirical evidence in a study by Michael Bernard, suggests that a moderate amount of white space can make it easier for them to read (Bernard, et al., 2000). The investigation showed that a medium amount of white space increased user satisfaction over dense layout and high use of white-space. Interestingly, feedback from testers suggested that higher amounts of white-space slowed down reading times due to increased scrolling, a fact which seems to support Spool’s argument. Although white space is useful for visually separating areas of interest, pages consisting of large amounts of content should not use white space excessively, as this may detract from the users ability to scan pages quickly.
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