Writing for the Small Screen Janice (Ginny) Redish, Ph.D. Redish & Associates, Inc. Bethesda, Maryland [email protected] et www.redish.net @GinnyRedish
Writing for the Small ScreenJanice (Ginny) Redish, Ph.D.
Redish & Associates, Inc.
Bethesda, Maryland
www.redish.net
@GinnyRedish
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 2
Topics for this morning
Think
Plan
Organize
Write
Design
Review and test
Think
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 3
Pictures of people ©iStockphoto.com, except where I give another citation
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 4
What devices do you own and use?
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 5
Why worry about writing for the small screen?
As of April 2012:
own a cell phone 88% of U.S. adults
of those, use it for internet 55%
of those, go online mostly or only on phone 31%
Smith, 2012http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Cell-Internet-Use-2012/Key-Findings/Overview.aspx
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 6
Age18 – 24 year olds 45%
MinoritiesAfrican-Americans 51%Hispanics 42%
Income and educationLess than $50,000/year 40%Not college graduates 39%
Of those who use the internet on a cell phone, this percent go online mostly or only from their phone:
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 7
90% of people start a task on one device and then complete it on another.
77% of mobile searches take place at home or work, only 17% on-the-go.
http://services.google.com/fh/files/misc/multiscreenworld_final.pdf
http://www.google.com/think/research-studies/creating-moments-that-matter.html
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 8
Share your story – preferably a small screen story
Flickr cc photo by theworldcafe
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 9
What do people want from web sites?
To satisfy their goals
Content
Information
To do a task
People just want to
answer their question
do a task
solve a problem
engage in a social conversation
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 10
Why focus on content?Useful, usable navigation and search are critical.
Good, clear design is critical.
Technology that works is critical.
But they all support the content that people come for.
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 11
How well does your site converse, especially on a small screen?
Every use of your web site is a conversation that the site visitor starts
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 12
Let's consider a common conversation
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 13
Try it!
Plan
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 18
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 19
Plan DraftReview,Test
Revise Publish
Draft =
OrganizeWriteDesign
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 20
Your site visitors must be able to
find what they need
understand what they find
act appropriately on that understanding
in the time and effort that they think it is worth
Find Understand Act
For web conversations to succeed…
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 21
Content strategy =
thinking strategically about your content aligning content with business goals
Develop and follow a content strategy
text
illustrations
charts
graphs
tables
forms
videos
podcasts
blogs
emails
social media
paper mailings
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 22
Content must be
planned
coordinated
reviewed
managed and maintained
removed
Content strategy = Governance and resources
Break down those silos!
all with cross-group collaboration
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 23
Content strategy = Coordinating across devices and platforms
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 24
Content strategy = Messages and more
Messages
Tones
Styles
Right contentin the right amountto the right personat the right timein the right medium
Media
Voice
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 25
To learn more about content strategy
Halvorson and Rach, 2012
Wachter-Boettcher,2012
McGrane, 2012
Leibtag,2013 (Nov.)
Redish, 2012
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 26
Plan before you write
Think before you write.
For every piece of content,answer these questions:
Why? (Purposes)
Who? (Personas)
What? (Conversations)
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 27
Why? (Purposes)
Align with the organization's overall strategy and goals.
Be measurable.
Focus on your site visitors and what they should do.
Be specific.
$
$
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 28
Focus on your site visitors and what they should do
to tell people how to make an appointment
anxious patients to call the correct numberto make an appointment easily and quickly
to give instructions for the … form
our very busy site visitors, whom we know don't have time to read carefully, to fill out the form correctly and completely without calling us up
We want
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 29
Be specific
www.manageyourwriting.com
Kenneth W. Davis
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 30
Who are your site visitors? (Name the different groups.)
What should you keep in mind about these people? (Write down adjectives or phrases.)
not what content they are looking for − that's the question after this one.
Who? (Personas)
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 31
What is a persona?
a fictional person who realistically representsa major group of site visitors
composite
based on data about demographics goals and tasks contexts of use (environments) values
Art
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 32
What? (Conversations)
Site visitors come with their own goals, tasks, questions.
See the site visitor coming to your content.
What does that person want?
Organize
Flickr cc photo by Polandeze
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 33
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 34
Organizing content for the small screen
Put your key message first.
Anticipate and answer site visitors' questions.
Keep it short.
Break it up.
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 35
If you don't answer your site visitors' questions,they may not "hear" your messages.
For successful conversations, you must mesh…
Successful web content
site visitors' questions
Your key messages
2011 version from a state agency
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 37
Put your key message first
Typical document
(narrative style)
topic, history, background, rationale
narrative of what you did
main point as conclusion
Better workplace document
(style for busy users;
inverted pyramid)
key message first
answers to questions readers would have (even if you don't write question headings)
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 38
Anticipate and answer site visitors' questions
Eva − one of the personas of the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner Try it!
Eva and Cobra
2013 version on a laptop
2013 version on a smart phone
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 41
Keep it short
Short sections
Short paragraphs
Short sentences
Short words
Short list items
www.marylandhealthconnection.gov
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 42
Break it up Your seventh-grade English teacher
never wrote for the web− and definitely not for the small screen.
A one-sentence paragraph is fine on the web.
Help people "grab and go."
fragments tables
lists images
linksTry it!
WriteDesignReview and test
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 43
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 44
Write the conversation
Use all the plain language guidelines.
Talk with your site visitors. Use "you" and "we."
Write in the active voice (most of the time).
Put the action in the verbs.
Cut unnecessary words.
✔✗
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 45
Everyone benefits from plain language
Summers, K. and Summers, M., 2005, Reading and Navigational Strategies of Web Users with Lower Literacy Skills, available at http://redish.net/images/stories/PDF/summers_asist2005.pdf
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© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 46
Design for the space you have
Keep small amounts of space between paragraphsand between list items.
Keep headings next to the text they cover.
If you use lines, put them over (not under) each heading.
Don't center text. Align text on the left.
Cut out large, meaningless pictures.
Use small, meaningful pictures.
Use visual design to save words.
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 47
Review and test your drafts
Read your draft out loud.
Share with colleagues.
Walk personas through their conversationson different devices.
Do usability testing with different devices.
Always keep your ego in a drawer.
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 48
Walk personas through their conversations on different devices Be the persona.
Come to the site with a realistic conversation.
What would the persona do?
How well would the site satisfy the persona's need?
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 49
Do usability testing with different devices
Do not rely on readability formulas (computerized grade levels).
Great writing for the small screen may score poorly.
Usability testing:Watch and listen as relevant people (one at a time) try to use the site to do realistic tasks.
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 50
Always keep your ego in a drawer
egoSuccessful communicationmeans creating contentin which your site visitors can
find what they need,
understand what they find, and
act appropriately on that understanding
− in the time and effort that they want to spend on it.You succeed only
when your site visitors succeed.
Redish & Associates, Inc.
© 2013, Janice (Ginny) Redish Writing for the Small Screen Slide 51
Thank you!More questions?Write to me: [email protected]
@GinnyRedish
Ginny Redish
Janice (Ginny) Redish, Ph.D.Redish & Associates, Inc.Bethesda, Marylandwww.redish.net