People don’t read websites!
That’s the comment that always comes up in any discussion of web writing and web content. And it’s true, if you let it be.
The average time on a site for all visitors has been estimated to be as low as 30 seconds. That means that the average person will only read a maximum of 100 words on that page. And if they spend time looking at the pictures–which you know they will–they may take only half of that looking at your content and read a measly 50 words.
So do you really need more than 50 or 100 words on a web page?
They Can Only Do Harm
Here’s the thing to remember about averages: they don’t always tell you what individuals are doing. This is the case with time on site. The average doesn’t reflect what every visitor on your site is doing, because the average is driven by two different groups of visitors: those that spend almost no time on a site–ten seconds or less–and those that spend significantly longer.
When people first come to your site, they are looking for any excuse to leave, any sign that you are a disreputable business. First, they will look at the site design. If it’s obviously broken, outdated, or just unattractive, they may leave. If not, people will begin reading or scanning your content. And your content has a high probability of driving business away. People may leave if your content is:
- Unprofessional
- Irrelevant
- Filled with errors
- Poorly formatted
- Too complicated
But if they like what they read, they may stick around and read some more. How long will they stick around? About two or two and a half minutes. Which means they’ll read a total of about 500 words, often spread over several pages on your website. Sure, there’ll be the odd person that spends four, five, or even fifteen minutes on your site, but getting people to spend two minutes on your site is a success.
So, again, you don’t really need more than about 100 words per page, because that’s all anyone is likely to read. Why would you need more?
All I Ever Wanted, All I Ever Needed
Putting aside search engine optimization (SEO), there are still many good reasons why you want to have significantly more content on your website than you expect anyone to read. The Internet is like Rick’s in Casablanca–everybody comes to it. And while you don’t have to worry about a Franco-Prussian anthem duel on your website, you do have to address visitors:
- At all stages of the buying cycle
- Of all education levels
- Of all ages
- Of all ethnicities
- Of all incomes
That come to your site and might be interested in your product or service. So, how do you do that?
First, you need more content. Your content should include something for everyone. You should include pages dedicated to the major concerns of possible customers at all stages of the buying cycle, which means basic education pages on your product or service, as well as “closer” pages that help customers ready to buy decide that you are the right person to buy from.
Every page should also combine information presented simply for people with a lower education level along with more sophisticated information directed at advanced readers that will come to your site. If customers for a particular service can be of any age, it’s important to recognize their disparate concerns. And it’s important to recognize that sometimes people of different ethnicities may have different concerns, especially if you’re selling cosmetics or cosmetic services.
You will also need to recognize that cost is a big issue for almost all customers, and you need to address it, frankly and honestly. If you can’t even give a ballpark estimate on your website, say so, but educate customers about the factors that will affect their price. This not only helps them, but also helps you when you do give them an estimate. Remember, although some people will be able to pay for your product or services outright, others will be interested in financing.
So, although you will have more content than you expect any one person to read, if your content is well-written, all of it will be read by someone. By using proper organization and formatting you can help customers find the content they’re looking for and skip past what’s irrelevant to them.
Properly written content will bring the noisy din of business to your website and your office. If you neglect your content or invest poorly, you can look forward to enjoying the silence.