Designing Blog Posts That People Read
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Transcript of Designing Blog Posts That People Read
Designing Blog Posts That People Read
Brian Chappell
Overview
• Important Statistics and Research to consider
• Tactical Design Improvements
• Blogs Doing It Right
900,000 Blog Posts Created On A Daily Basis
Src. 2010 Technorati State of The Blogosphere
“On the average Web page, users have time to read at most 28% of the words during an average visit; 20% is more likely” - Jakob
Nielsen
Src: useit.com/alertbox/percent-text-read.html
Most Visitors Are Using a Screen Resolution Higher Than 1024 x 768 Pixels
Src. W3Schools
Check your analytics to see how your audience is consuming your content
The average page visit lasts a little less than a minute.
Src: Jakob Nielsen Useit.com Sept. 2011
What Do All These Stats Mean?
Initial Perception Is Very Important
Blog Post Perception = Content + Look and Feel
• Test Perception with Fivesecondtest.com
Less Is More
• Minimize clutter and utilize just a few call to actions
Clearly communicate your value proposition within 10 seconds.
Play To Peoples Emotions With Blog Post Titles
Don’t Be Ugly By Accident! > What Makes A Great Photo > 4 Ways To Take Great Pictures Of Yourself
Craft a Great First paragraph
• First paragraph should explain what the reader will get out of the post
Pro Tip: Utilize Right Aligned Images in Intro
• Usability standards shows 60-70 characters is optimal
• Hard to do because you dont want the width of your blog to be less than 500 pixels
Make It Easy To Scan
• Headings and Subheadings• Bullets• Images• Quotes• Color• Bold Important Words
Whitespace is Your Friend
Whitespace in Design: Before
Whitespace In Design: After
Line It Up!
Stick To Standards To Alleviate Confusion
Grid: After
High Quality Images Can Set Your Blog Apart
Utilize Paid Stock Photo Sites
See Full Chart: http://bit.ly/qn0YQ1Src: SmashingMagazine.com
Typography Considerations
• Choose fonts that are easy on the eyes.
• Bad fonts can take away from the quality of your content
• Read More here: http://bit.ly/nVOYDQ
Avoid YAWS • Yet Another
Wordpress Site
• Creates User Blindness
• Be creative with WP design while applying standard usability practices
Length Of Blogposts Matters Right?
No right answer, but always try to incorporate variety.
What Does Success Look Like?
Summary• Create consistency to set user expectations
• Make it easy to read by following standard usability practices
• Keep It Simple
Thank You
Find me on Twitter @brianchappell
or contact me at