How People Read On The Web
WylieComm:
June 2019 by Ann Wylie
They don’t; so make web pages scannable
Here’s the title of one of usability expert Jakob Nielsen’s earliest
articles on writing for the web: “How Users
Read on the Web”
The first paragraph:
“They don’t.”
“People read paper,” says TJ Larkin, principal of Larkin
Communications Consulting. “They use the web.”
In fact, just 16% of people read word-by-word online, according to
eye tracking studies by Dejan Marketing. Remarkably, that’s the same
percentage Nielsen came up with in his 1997 study.
So if they’re not reading, what are they doing?
They’re not reading; they’re seeking.
Web users spend most of their time looking for something specific.
According to research findings by Xerox PARC, web visitors:
Collect 71% of the time.
They search for multiple pieces of important information, maybe
research for a Writing for Mobile workshop.
Find 25%.
They seek something specific, like “What is this bacalhau they want
to serve me for lunch?
═════════►
In other words, web visitors have a goal 96% of the time, according
to the PARC study. So much for “surfers.”
Same thing’s true on mobile. In fact, the No. 2. mobile task is
searching for specific information. (No. 1: wasting time.)
Mobile visitors often seek information relevant to the here and
now, like “Where is the nearest gas station?” In fact, according to a Pew
study, some 49% of mobile users use their phones for location-based
information.
How long do they spend?
So as they look for information, how much time do visitors spend on
web pages?
Not too long:
➤ The average page visit lasts less than a minute — but many are 10
seconds or less.
➤ 55% of visitors spend fewer than 15 seconds on your website.
➤ Visitors spend an average of 19 seconds looking at a web page. READ
MORE ➤➤
Based on 7 readability formulas:
Grade
Level: 6
Reading
Level: fairly easy to read.
Reader's
Age: 10-11 yrs. olds
(Fifth
and Sixth graders)
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