reading beyondthe words using text formatting to increase persuasiveness and actionability of copy

1

Using  text  forma/ng  to  increase  persuasiveness  and  ac5onability  of  copy

Kath  Straub

Reading  between  the  words...  

Roadmap

1.  The  concept2.  A  few  studies3.  Why  technical  writers  might  care

TEXT FORMATTING MATTERS.

Text  forma6ng  ma7ers.

There are typographic formats that (some) people “like.”

There are typographic formats that help them perform better.

8/31/2009Governor Rendell orders state flags to fly at half-staff in honor of fallen soldier

Governor Rendell offers adult basic coverageto 35,000 uninsured pennsylvanians

8/30/2009Governor Rendell orders says largest solar power facility in eastern US will be built in Bucks County

8/31/2009Governor Rendell orders state flags to fly at half-staff in honor of fallen soldier

Governor Rendell offers adult basic coverageto 35,000 uninsured pennsylvanians

8/30/2009Governor Rendell orders says largest solar power facility in eastern US will be built in Bucks County

8/31/2009GOVERNOR RENDELL ORDERS STATE FLAGS TO FLY AT HALF_STAFF IN HONOR OF FALLEN SOLDIERS

8/31/2009GOVERNOR RENDELL OFFERS ADULT BASIC COVERAGE TO 35,000 UNINSURED PENSYLVANIANS

8/30/2009GOVERNOR RENDELL ORDERS LARGEST SOLAR POWER FACILITY IN EASTERN US WILL BE IN BUCKS COUNTY

To  tech  writers  forma6ng  means  typography.

Lorem ipsum, Dolor sit amet consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi.Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Wassanus plebus deploribus unix.

Lorem ipsum, Dolor sit amet consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam

nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis

autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi.Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut

aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Wassanus plebus deploribus unix.

Lorem ipsum, Dolor sit amet consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam

nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci

tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis

autem vel eum iriure dolor in hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel

illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue

duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi.Ut wisi enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci

tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Wassanus

plebus deploribus unix.

To  tech  writers  forma6ng  means  jus<fica<on.

To  tech  writers  forma6ng  can  mean  layout.

When  I  say  forma6ng  (for  the  next  30  minutes),  I  meanthe  size  of  spaces  between  words  and  le7ers.

Eye movements during reading

Corrective movements

The  cogni*ve  burden  of  reading1.  Track  to  the  right  next  line.2.  Keep  track  of    who  is  doing  what  to  whom.

We  recognize  this  cost  as  complexity  of  language.

We  typically  don’t  even  think  about  this  cost.

11

The  horse  raced  past  the  barn  fell.

,Some*mes  ,commas  can  solve  the  problem.

The  horse,  raced  past  the  barn,  fell.

The  horse,  raced  past  the  barn,  fell.

OK,  some*mes,commas  can  solve  the  problem.  Note  to  self:  This  example  serves  only  to  distract  Bri8sh  Technical  Writers  ....

The  chauffeur  annoyed  the  man  with  the  cigar.  The  chauffeur  annoyed  the  man  with  the  cigar.  

Who  has  the  cigar?  

The  task  of  reading1.  Find  the  right  next  line.2.  Keep  track  of  who  is  doing  what  to  whom.3.  Sort  out  (syntac*c)  ambigui*es.

16

Processing  spaceis  limited  ...  like  thetop  of  a  workbench.If  we  format  textso  that  it  take  less(mental)  space  to  sort  out  who  is  doing  what  to  whom  ...  we  have  more  space  to  understand  what  we  are  reading.”

The  chauffeur  annoyed          the  man  with  the  cigar.  

The  chauffeur  annoyed  the  man            with  the  cigar.  

For  example,  when  can  vary  space  size  between  words  to  reflect  their  (syntac*c)  grouping.

The  horse      raced  past  the  barn        fell.

The  horse  raced  past  the  barn  fell.

It  may  not  always  work  ....

? ?

Readsmart  is  a  patented  text  forma6ng  algorithm    that  uses  linguis<cally  informed,  psychologically  validated  rules  to  vary  the  size  of  spaces  between  words  and  le7ers.  Read  smart  does  not  alter  your  font,  typography,  jus<fica<on  or  layout.

Example  rule

Example  rule

!"#$%#&'()"*

Reading Short Essays

Study  1:ReadingComprehension

People  read  fasterand  remember  morewhen  they  are  readingtext  that  is  forma7edusing  ReadSmart.

!"#$%&$'()*

Direct Mail Donor Acquisition

Study  2a-­‐e:Direct  maildonor  acquisi<on4  studies~390,000  households

People  read  respond  morefrequently  and  give  morewhen  they  read  solicita<onle7ers  that  are  forma7ed  with  ReadSmart.

People  can’t  tell  that  text  has  been  ReadSmart  forma7ed.

Study3:  Email  Newsle7er 380  par<cipantsw.  opt-­‐in  post  exposure  survey

People  who  read  ReadSmarted  Essays  answered  comprehension  ques8onsmore  accurately  than  people  who  read  text  that  was  not  ReadSmarted...    on  7  out  of  7  ques8ons.

People  who  read  ReadSmarted  essays  reported  that  they  were  10%  more  likely  to  send  the  essay  on  to  a  friend.

This  work  was  done  while  I  was  s8ll  @  HFI.  A  more  complete  descrip8on  of  this  study  can  be  found  here:  hRp://www.slideshare.net/guest5e65b4/straub-­‐read-­‐smart-­‐findings-­‐plus-­‐example-­‐text

Most adult Americans read at about an 8th grade level or below

Many read BELOW the 5th grade level•1 out of 5 adults•2 out of 5 older adults or minorities

Most websites are written at the 12th grade level or above (AAAS report)

Why should tech writers care?

ReadSmart formatting helps readersto get past the reading process and to get to the content.

Tech writers expend a lotof time and effort tocommunicate just the right content.

Find  out  more  about  readsmart  at  www.readsmart.com.

Contact  Tom  Bever          tgb@readsmart.com  or                                  Lee  Berendt    lee@readsmart.com

More  about  ReadSmart:  www.readsmart.com