Attention spans are getting shorter. And thanks to the Internet, it will only get worse. Video, blogs, “aggregators” for blogs, news feeds and social network postings…it’s impossible to keep up.
Yet even with all of this clutter, many marketers are still excessively wordy.
My philosophy is simple: if I keep posts short and to the point, it increases the likelihood that people will read them.
I bring this up because one day you may find yourself writing a letter or an email or web copy…and you’ll be tempted to insert words that do nothing but take up space.
Don’t do it.
In today’s world, people read short sentences. Not long ones.
Yes! So true.
And people like short paragraphs too. Long tomes crammed into tight spaces are nearly impossible to read. I don’t even bother scanning them for content. I delete them.
Leave me white space. Get to the point fast.
Bingo! Write a 500 post. Then cut 100 words. Then cut another 100. The biggest way to show respect for readers is to not waste their time.
This is true. Finding a balance between not being too wordy yet informative at the same time, is an art.
Great post!
It’s challenging to write short blogs. I released a long one today based on a charity that I helped. I asked my editor to pair it back although she could not.
I’m going to make a conscious effort to write a few from time to time under 300 words.
Thanks for the challenge Ed.
Steve, thanks for the comment!