Writing for the web – successfully – involves many things, but in this post let’s just concentrate on two: breaking up the text on a page and adding headers, sectioning off the page in a logical, legible way. This is part of better blog writing and will improve the look of your blog as well.
There are benefits to doing this, and I’ll break them down here but mainly what it comes down to is making your post easier to read by more people. The truth is that die-hard readers are going struggle through reading your content no matter what, but the rest of your intended audience is going to get eye fatigue, give up, and go find something easier on the eyes and on the brain! Don’t lose your readers just because your content is difficult to digest.
Here are some benefits to breaking up your post using sections with headers.
#1: Headers Make Content Easy to Scan
We as readers tend to scan before we settle in. That’s why magazine covers are full of headlines. People are scanners. We scan, determine whether or not the content appeals to us, and then dive in if it does. When your text is not sectioned off, readers are forced to decide whether they should buckle down and read something that may not be of interest, or leave without knowing whether the content was useful. That’s a tough choice to make.
#2: Headers Are Search Engine Friendly
Not only do headers help people scan your post more easily, they also assist search engine spiders in understanding what kind of content is on your page, for better indexing. <h2> and <h3> are HTML headers that will help search engines determine the context of the page more accurately, possibly leading to more targeted search engine traffic for your blog. In WordPress, these are the Heading 2 and Heading 3 styles.
#3: Sections Can be Anchored and Linked to Individually
Reading on the web is highly interactive, and your content should be laid out in such a way that people can jump to different sections on your page easily if they need to. You can use anchors to identify a particular section, and link directly to that section from another place on the page. For example, if you had a section called Feedback, you could use the tag
<a name="feedback"></a>
in your HTML directly before the Feedback section, and then subsequently link to that section using
<a href="#feedback">Feedback</a>This is a great way to create a table of contents or create jump tags for a particularly long post. Example: Go back to the top
#4: Sections Make a Long Post Seem Shorter
According to this Wikipedia entry on words per minute (which does have a source cited), the average person can read 180 words per minute on a monitor. That’s pretty good. That means a 700 or 800 word post takes less than five minutes to read.
Still, people frown at long posts because it seems like they take a long time to read. You can make your post look shorter and easier to read by using sections with headers.
Questions?
Let me know if you have any questions or need ideas on how to lay out a post so it’s easier to read. If you know of other tools/resources for using sections and headers, please leave a reply in the comments!
About Tia Peterson
Lists are very helpful to have easy to read content as well.
Just our 2 cents.
Blog Division recently posted..????????? ????? ?????? ???????
Sorry for coming to this late, but it has some good points about how to present information in blogs, making them easier to read and more attractive to would be readers.
nick goddard recently posted..HMRC Launch VAT Campaign
I love so much your blog! Every time I read something new about article writing and tips, I feel better and enthusiastic to apply the new advices!
I’m dropping by upon L. Eleana’s recommendation. I can see why. I need to spend some time on your site. There’s tons I can and need to learn. You certainly make you point in this post by practicing what you preach. Just excellent. I’m following you on twitter and facebook. Curious, why two twitter accounts? Different audiences? Have a great weekend!
A Daddy Blog recently posted..Daddy Needs New Wheels
Headers should also be interesting so visitors will be engaged with the website articles and some way it will make them come back.
Great tips Tia. Header tags are a great tool to use. I think sometimes bloggers who have never actually had to write HTML code miss these little things. You’re right-on with your tips! – Great use of headers too.
Sherryl Perry recently posted..Tips to Organize & Manage Your Documents and Email
Hi Tia,
Great tips here, thanks for sharing.
I have neglected using headers for a while but your post inspired me to start using them again. They improve the reader experience.
Ryan Biddulph
Ryan Biddulph recently posted..6 Reasons Why You Should Rush to Start an MLM Business Today
I force myself to use Headers for SEO. Even though at times I would prefer to be a little more “clever” with words, the search engines see each one as a Title in its own right.
There are times though, when I rebel and just write what I want :-) There must be a balance between writing for people and writing for an algorithm.
Rick LaPoint recently posted..10 Reasons Your Local Business Needs a Website
It will be interesting once HTML 5 becomes more common as it new elements that define sections such as headers, footers, navigation, etc. It also revamps the entire heading system, which can impact SEO as well.
I don’t anchor my text as much as I used to, but I think maybe I should look into doing it more.
Paul recently posted..10 Important Things I Learned About Blogging
Hi Tia
Very timely post for me. I have just written a longer than usual post that I couldn’t really condense down and I decided to use headers to break it up and also let ppl choose the parts they are interested in.
Will now go over it again before I publish to make sure I’ve done the best I can.
Thanks for such helpful information. For newbies like me it is so good.
Patricia Perth Australia
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Hey Patricia – Glad to hear it! This blog has tons of great info for newbies!
Tia Peterson recently posted..How I Achieved Blogging Success In 30 Days
Twitter: Ileane
says:
Hi Tia, I have a crazy header question. Which header did you use in this post, was it H2? Someone asked me why I would want to use a H1 header inside a post and that has me somewhat confused.
Thanks for the tips!
Ileane recently posted..Exploring Stats on Blogger in Draft
Hey Ileane – Right, these are H2s up there. There’s never a need to use more than one H1 tag, and with WordPress, the H1 tag is usually your post title, so it’s hard-coded into the page. It depends on the theme but that is usually the way it is.
Tia Peterson recently posted..How I Achieved Blogging Success In 30 Days
Twitter: Ileane
says:
Thanks Tia. I think I get confused because in the post editor the first heading tag on the list is H1. I stopped using it because it was so huge that often people did mistake it for the title. I’m not sure why it’s even an option. But I’m using H2 tags now but sounds like a good idea for one of my “beginners” posts.
Ileane recently posted..Basics Of Theme Selection For A Blog
Awesome! I learned new stuff in this post. I am pretty good about headers for reading ease but had not thought of them in terms of search engines before. :)
Clearly Composed recently posted.. Tuesday’s Thought
Right! Someone brilliant somewhere thought, “Hey shouldn’t search engines be using the headers to properly index and retrieve search engine listings?”
So headers are good all around. I always use them, no matter how long or short the post is.
Some pretty good tips. I especially like the part about anchoring the text and linking to different sections. I tried to figure that out before but I think you did a good job of explaining it. Thanks!
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Hey Wayne,
Cool! As always, let me know if you need any help.
Anchors and links are great, and I’m pretty sure they can help you rank for keywords a bit more easily as well. I often use them in FAQ sections, and find that they enable you to increase the keyword density without seeming unnatural, include some h2 tags, and often get a few back links from some Q&A sites as well!
Tim recently posted..Knee Lift Surgery
Very helpful information! I typically use headers but I haven’t ever used HTML headers. I will have to give that a try.
Kevin M. recently posted..Im Scared To Guest Post
Hey Kevin – Glad I could be of some help! Let me know if you have problems.
Tia
Great post Tia! Another part of #4 Making it seem shorter, is that readers can skim longer posts and really focus on portions they want to read. We would all like to think that every reader reads every word of our posts, but the fact is that people are busy and want to get the information they want and get on to the next thing. If you can make it easier for them to find what they are looking for, at least they will have gotten their information from you. And they are more likely to read more of your posts in the future.
Trevor B. Reed recently posted..WP Themes Review of Thesis 18
Hi Trevor,
That’s right. And it’s especially true of search engine visitors. They find your post looking for something really specific and they are definitely more likely to skim the post trying to find it, so breaking it up really serves them!
Posts like the one I put about today about comment plugins, I design especially for search engine traffic in the future.
Tia you have properly analyzed the readers’ behavior. No matter the information is in hard copy of in soft form. We do scan posts, read headings and if found interesting, we keep reading or leave that page/blog. Your technique is more suitable for lengthy posts. Dividing long posts in small sections with appropriate headings will keep the reader on page.
Great thinking Tia, I really appreciate your analytical skill. Keep it up.
Hi Imran – Thanks! I’m definitely analytical (probably too much at times). :)
I appreciate your comment.
Cheers,
Tia
Tia Peterson recently posted..What Are You Trying to Say
Nice post.. showing how to section a post by actually breaking up the post into sections.. By the way, I love your free report. that was some good content
James Tayo recently posted..Ignore the Real World – Welcome post to SPI readers
Thanks, James! Were you talking about a free report here on WeBlogBetter or the one on BizChickBlogs? Either way, awesome! :)
Glad you liked this post. Thanks for your comment.
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Hey Tia
Super cool blogging tips thanks for sharing them.
I didn’t know any of the tips you shared about the anchor text, or linking.
I do try to keep my posts short now, as comments from readers suggested sometimes my posts were too long, even when I broke them up with headings etc.
But if I ever write a big lonnnnnnnggggggg blog post again I will try to use your tips.
Thanks Sally :)
Sally recently posted..Writing Testimonials Benefit You Too
Hey Sally – You should hang around BizChickBlogs.com, lol. My posts are extra long. :) It will make you feel at home.
Try using H2 tags even in short posts, if you can. There is value!
Cheers,
Tia
Tia Peterson recently posted..The NEW Thesis and Why You Should Consider It
Breaking up a post into sections with unique headers is something I love to see people do and probably should do more of myself. When you are reading a post about something that is second nature to you, it can get boring. You still might want to read it though if you really like that person’s material.
In those situations it is easier to skim headings to see if there was one little component of that article that you are a little more interested in than the rest. By breaking a post into sections and using headers you accomplish that and make the information more valuable to someone like me.
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Thanks for the comment, Kathy!
I think about that a lot – breaking it up can actually keep a reader around that might have said, adios, because there is a part/section that is interesting to them while the rest is not.
Cheers,
Tia
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I didn’t know about sections and being able to link to that area from another place on the page. It’s only appropriate that I should learn something new since it’s the first day of September and back to school time. Thanks, Tia!
Jean Sarauer recently posted..Making Your Personality Shine Through Your Blog
I can attest that it works! Using proper H tags can have a very positive impact on your SEO. I’m glad you brought it up Tia.
Trevor B. Reed recently posted..WP Themes Review of Thesis 18
You’re welcome, Trevor!
Tia Peterson recently posted..Two Cents Tuesday- Insecurities Will Kill Your Blog
That’s right! The 1st of September. It was a beautiful day here.
Glad you learned something new from the post!
Cheers,
Tia
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I got used to formatting my posts before actually posting them. Not only that they give the post a nice clean look, but also make it easier for the reader to follow it. Also, when it’s necessary I add more color.
Hi Mia – Color is a great idea! Thanks for that tip!
Making the text easy to scan is pretty important. I always check out the article’s length and scan around to get to know the page and heading before I start reading.
Using the right length is very important too. Big articles can compensate with more heading, sections, images and other interesting stuff, but it is still hard to begin reading them (seeing their length).
And I would also recommend using links to sections of the article. It is not only useful, but it helps SEO. Google will actually show that link in the snippet in the SERP (well only if it is related to the search). And when clicked visitors go to this section right from the SERP.
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Yes! Great added tip about Google SERP.
My posts are freaking long. But I don’t care. I feel alright about my readership. They were always long, so it’s not like a huge surprise to anyone!
As long as the posts are actually helpful (stuff they could bookmark and come back to later), that works.
Cheers,
Tia
Tia Peterson recently posted..Two Must-Have Plugins to Make the Most of First Time Comments