High-quality content with a wealth of relevant information is essential to attract and retain readers. However, this is not the only factor that keeps readers glued to the screen.
To maximize reader engagement, you also need to pay attention to the design and structure of your content.
Regardless of what your blog looks like, what CMS you use or the general design of your website, there are ways to make your content more accessible and engaging.
Below are eight tips for structuring content that are useful for both website owners with a limited budget and those who can afford to invest more in their content.
1. break through walls of text
Intimidating text without paragraph breaks, bullet points, images and other formatting elements will overwhelm your audience and cause them to lose interest in reading. Even if they try, they'll have a hard time following along and understanding your message - especially on mobile devices.
A study has shown that almost 80 % of people only skim web pages, while only 16 % read the entire page. In other words: If you don't optimize the readability of your content, your visitors won't stay on your website for long.
This not only affects your conversion rate, but also your ranking. Google will notice a high bounce rate and a short dwell time and conclude that your website does not offer users what they are looking for.
Here are tips on how to remove these text-heavy barriers to reader engagement. For more information, check out this comprehensive guide to writing long-form content.
Use plenty of pictures
When you combine information with an image, people remember about 55 % more than if you convey your message with text alone. The human brain is programmed to process visual content better. Therefore, when structuring your content, make sure to insert images, infographics, diagrams, tables or gifs between paragraphs.
However, caution is advised with this tactic: It's not a good idea to rely too heavily on stock images. They tend to be generic and somewhat impersonal, not to mention that they only serve to break up the text without adding any value to the content.
Therefore, whenever possible, include images that are relevant to the content and help readers understand it better.
Take, for example, this blog post from Fix about pairing cheese and wine. Instead of scaring readers with an endless list, the brand translated the content into an easy-to-understand infographic and let the information flow like merlot.
Experiment with background colors for content.
Images are powerful, but creating high-quality images, infographics or videos can be a significant investment. Fortunately, for brands that can't invest in top-notch images, there is an affordable way to make their content attractive and readable: Background Color Blocks.
With this simple trick, you can highlight the important parts of your blog post and draw readers' attention to where you want it to be. You don't have to be a designer to do this.
Check out how Career Sidekick highlights examples of post-interview thank you emails in its blog post on the four best post-interview thank you email examples. The brand highlights these useful, customizable templates by placing them against dark green background blocks. This color scheme not only helps readers identify quality content, but also breaks up the visual monotony.
Use headings and subheadings
Another structural tactic you can use to make your content more reader-friendly (and SEO-friendly) is to structure your main ideas using headings and subheadings. This will make it easier for your readers to navigate through the content and find the information they need quickly.
Headings and subheadings also summarize what each section is about, so readers - and search engine crawlers - know what to expect.
Focus on proven typographic practices
We've already talked about avoiding monotony, but when it comes to typography, it's actually better to rein in your creativity if you want to stay on the safe side.
The rules you should follow are as follows:
- Do not use more than three fonts on your website.
- Stick to traditional fonts as these are designed for readability and do not distract from the content.
- Set the line spacing to 1.5 times the font size.
- Do not use similar colors for text and background (this is important for accessibility).
- Do not use capital letters, as this greatly impairs the reading speed.
- Limit the length of a line of text to 50-60 characters (including spaces) to improve readability.
Use the power of white space!
White space or negative space can have a very positive effect on the readability of your content. Don't be afraid to empty your web pages, even if you have the impression that they appear empty as a result.
Take a look at how Buffer makes the most of white space in his blog «Better Habits». The layout is relatively simple and there is plenty of white space around the page elements, which creates a balanced look and allows the reader's eye to focus on the content.
Create jump links
Jump links are hyperlinks that refer to a specific part of the web page, e.g. to the subheadings of sections or to something you have already mentioned. They make it easier for the reader to navigate through a long, detailed text. They are particularly useful when creating long guides. To make your content more accessible, create a table of contents (as in this article) with jump links that lead to the different sections of the article and place it next to or near the introduction.
Backlinko is a resource known for its ultimate guides on all SEO topics, and this article on 200 ranking factors is no different. But the structure of the content is well thought out, making even such a lengthy article reader-friendly and engaging thanks to the jump links that divide it into several clear categories.
2. separate your advertising message from your content.
Overly promotional content that touts your products or services is a surefire way to alienate your website visitors and ruin your chances of keeping them. People who visit your blog are looking for answers and solutions to their problems, not thinly disguised advertising.
The first step is to understand your target audience, their problems, needs and interests. This will give you the right context and a basis for creating helpful content that educates and informs them. Remember that the needs of your readers should be at the center of your content marketing strategy - not your attempt to generate sales.
The trick is to objectively address readers' problems, not to find a way to insert a call-to-action button and pitch your product or service. Focusing on your readers' needs and giving them free tips and advice won't immediately lead to sales, but it will do wonders for your readers' engagement. Plus, your blog will become a go-to resource for your potential customers.
You can even go one step further and spice up your content with a free interactive tool that will boost your engagement rates. These widgets are intuitive and easy to use and give visitors personalized answers to specific questions.
NerdWallet's mortgage calculator is a perfect example - it is extremely helpful, user-friendly and free of advertising messages.
3. answer the main question at an early stage.
According to some studies, technology is making us increasingly impatient as it takes instant gratification to the next level and makes us crave short-term rewards and pleasures. In the context of content marketing, this trend means that reader impatience is increasing and attention spans are decreasing.
Many blog visitors won't even read your carefully written posts filled with valuable information if they don't find quick answers to the questions that led them to this post.
To avoid high bounce rates and low retention rates, you should give your readers the answer they want right at the beginning. Don't force them to read a long article if you can summarize the most important findings right away. In journalism, this type of structure is known as the inverted pyramid.
You're probably wondering if this approach is getting in the way of your sales goals and reducing your chances of attracting new customers. It would be unfair to say that it doesn't, but the truth is that 92% of website visitors don't make a purchase on their first visit. However, if you respect your readers' preferences and address their pressing issues immediately, you will encourage them to come back and explore your website further in the future.
Forcing someone to read a 5,000 word blog post before they get the answer they so desperately need, on the other hand, will damage your credibility and potential for engagement. Not to mention, readers will seriously wonder if you really want to help them or if you have devious, sales-oriented motives in mind.
In its comparison of InstaPage and ClickFunnels, DreamGrow accommodates readers who need an answer as quickly as possible. Directly below the overview is a section with a quick verdict that summarizes the entire article in a few sentences.
You can find more tips on structuring blogs in this article, which contains a formula for successful blog posts.
4. do not always force your visitors to read
Aside from the fact that you shouldn't force your readers to read long blog posts in their entirety, it's also a good idea to not always force them to read. Point.
Integrate other content formats into your marketing strategy and watch your metrics grow. A big advantage of videos and podcasts is that you can publish the transcripts on your website and thus have two content formats at your disposal.
Video
Nothing drives engagement like video, and that's not just a guess - 91 % of people say they want to see more video content from brands in 2023.
There are various reasons for this trend, some of which are:
- Videos can combine movement, sound, images and text, which makes them very memorable and attractive.
- Videos are able to evoke emotions by appealing to both the auditory and visual senses, making them more immersive and memorable than written content.
- Thanks to their ability to illustrate complex ideas and processes, videos are a great way to inform your audience and demonstrate product features and benefits.
- People can watch videos while they are doing something else, e.g. on the way to work, in a queue or doing sport.
- It's easier to get the message across because videos don't lose the non-verbal cues, body language and prosody of communication; the tone of voice, facial expressions and gestures add to the overall authenticity of your message and capture the audience's attention.
It is undisputed that videos have enormous educational potential.
Although most of the content of the Shop Solar Kits learning center consists of text, videos are occasionally used. And when this happens, the audience is enthusiastic. For example, the instructions for installing a 100 W solar kit for beginners have been viewed 770,000 times and liked 15,000 times. The comments praise the simplified step-by-step instructions, which make it easy for laypeople and technically inexperienced viewers to understand a complicated installation process.
Infographics
We've already mentioned how effective infographics can be in breaking up your text-heavy content and making it more appealing to your audience.
This is especially the case when you need to include a lot of data that is often difficult to understand.
These aesthetically pleasing and colorful visual representations of information and knowledge will transform your potentially boring and hard-to-read blog post into a compelling resource that will captivate your readers.
Another advantage is that infographics are shared three times more often than other types of content.
Tower Electric Bikes' infographic on the most and least bike-friendly cities in America summarizes all the facts and figures that would otherwise feel daunting in a blog post and puts them in an engaging format. This is a great example of how data-driven content can be presented as eye candy without making the reader feel inundated with information.
Podcast
According to forecasts, there will be 504.9 million podcast listeners worldwide by the end of 2024. This figure is a strong argument for including this type of content in your marketing arsenal.
What makes podcasts so successful and popular?
- Podcasting is an affordable and low-threshold option - you don't need expensive equipment or complicated software to compete with the big players in the industry, and there are numerous distribution platforms.
- While other types of content require the listener's undivided attention, podcast episodes can be listened to wherever it suits their lifestyle: at work, in the car, at the gym or while cycling.
- The high proportion of conversations explains the high level of engagement - 88 percent of listeners tune in to almost every episode.
Basecamp's mission is to help start-ups run their businesses, and their podcast The Distance reflects this. The podcast consists of 58 episodes in which experienced entrepreneurs reveal their secrets to success in a highly competitive environment. This «fireside chat» format lends itself to success stories like no other.
5. enable skimming
How do people read online content?
Not really at all! The average website visitor only reads 20 % of the words on a website in a single visit. They skim your content.
If you don't want your hard work to be in vain, you need to adapt your content to the needs and preferences of skimmers.
Here are some quick tips:
- Use short, concise sentences and paragraphs.
- Divide the content into bullet points.
- Create an easily navigable table of contents with hyperlinks.
- Collapse certain content to hide sections with details that are not relevant for everyone.
- Summarize the most important content early and often visually.
Can you put all this into practice to help users get the most out of your content? Take a look at how Eachnight built its guide to the eight best adjustable split-sleeper beds.
For each product in their review, there is a visual breakdown of the key points. Although these TL;DR sections essentially repeat the content of the test, they make it easy for the reader to understand the essentials of what makes each product unique without having to read the lengthy text.
6. pay attention to your language
While using industry jargon and fancy terminology may seem like a good idea to make you appear expert, it can hurt your engagement. Remember that your audience is not made up of like-minded people - except in some industries, such as SaaS sites aimed at IT decision makers, your readers are often novices who are unfamiliar with the jargon.
If you don't want your readers to feel left out, you should write clearly and take into account their level of understanding.
To achieve this, you should take the following steps:
- Research and understand your audience. The tone and language you use will depend on their level of education and interests. If you know your audience, avoid being condescending or confusing them with complex terms.
- Spy on your competitors and find out how their best content is written.
- Use tools such as Grammarly and Hemingway Editor, identify and highlight words and phrases that you should simplify and adapt.
- Use storytelling, to explain a particular concept using images and terms that are familiar to your readers.
Wordstream's beginner's guide to the basics of search engine optimization is a prime example of content that hits the mark linguistically. It is adapted to the knowledge level of the target audience, meaning there are no fancy words or complicated paragraphs. The author uses analogies with non-SEO examples and storytelling to get the message across. Infographics and other visual elements illustrate the topic.
7. think about your data-driven content
While infographics are a great way to enhance the reading experience and present data-driven content, they are not suitable for every purpose. Sometimes you really need to show all the numbers and figures so your audience can compare and analyze.
To illustrate, let's take MarketBeat's comprehensive table that lists penny stocks and specifies various parameters that are important to potential investors. Such content can easily be cluttered and confusing, but MarketBeat shows the way.
This example is very good from the point of view of content accessibility:
- Each row and column is visually separated without using conspicuous dividing lines.
- Dynamic content filtering allows the reader to switch between different parameters and select what they want to see.
- Each line is provided with a symbol/logo to illustrate the difference between the individual entries and to break the monotony of the numerical data.
- Text size and filling have priority, even if this means a longer list and more scrolling.
8 Don't forget your landing pages.
Structuring content doesn't just apply to blog posts. Landing pages also offer a lot of useful information and play a decisive role in conversions and sales.
- Combine written content with videos, animations and other interactive elements - variety is important to arouse interest.
- Find a balance between describing your product or service and avoiding too much complex information.
- Use white space to draw attention to important messages and avoid distracting clutter.
- Double your CTAs and make them stand out from the rest of the content with a contrasting color.
Thankbox took all of these design principles into account when creating its landing page for online retirement cards. There's plenty of negative space, giving the copy room to breathe and drawing visitors' attention to the key elements: CTAs and multimedia.
The brand has broken up the text with images, videos, emojis and illustrations. The «How it works» section, together with a short video, provides just enough information about the service without confusing potential customers.
Packaging
The structure and design of content can have a big impact on reader engagement.
While there are different methods and tactics you can use, it all boils down to understanding your audience's needs, improving readability and creating content that is suitable for both skimmers and those who prefer video.
