#004 - Reducing drag, increasing skimmability

Last week, I explained how Miller’s Building Your StoryBrand brought a number of things into focus for me, but one in particular related to website copy: people don’t read websites anymore; they scan them. This titbit helped me understand my initial perplexion regarding the single-sentence paragraphs that my new copywriting friends all seemed to be doing: it allows text to be skimmable.?

Most people would have figured this out much faster than I did, but I had a deeply rooted bias against short paragraphs. It’s what my training in higher education had instilled in me: large paragraphs had more gravitas. More oomph! More importance.

And while there is an argument for that, large paragraphs don’t allow for skimming and they sure as hell don’t sell.?

TL;DR Reduce the effort it takes to read your copy using bulleted and numbered lists carefully and bold and italicized text strategically.

Think of making your copy more aerodynamic. Racecars are sleek, smooth, and stripped of all the clutter to reduce the drag and maximize their power.

Bullets vs. numbering

Getting this one out of the way because one of my connections,, Matt Thomas , has made it so easy. He distilled two basic rules:

??Use a bulleted list for unordered items.

??Use a numbered list if the quantity or order of items is important.?

Click this link to read the full post delineating the differences with examples.

(Psst! Follow Matt! You’ll get a new video every Friday of him drumming along with a song. He even takes requests. I’m waiting on a rippin’ version of Foo Fighters’ “Evermore.” Click this link to hear him playing “Mr. Brightside” by the Killers.)

What Matt’s advice implies is that a numbered list can distract people from your content when order doesn’t matter: “numbers = order” → “I’ve got to remember this in order” → “Wait! What the hell is the order again?”

Bold vs italics? Time to rage.

I was excited to write this newsletter because the research would would tighten my own writing, for which “haphazard” best describes it. And I think I’ve got something that will help reduce the drag.

Here’s the question I want you to think about: what visuals do you need to help you read information you’re only mildly interested in?

This is where bold and italicized fonts can spruce up your copy. If you look up general guidelines on the use of bold vs italics, you’ll get something like this:?

• Use bold text to draw attention to important words or phrases, such as subheadings or call-to-action statements.
• Use italics to add emphasis to words or phrases, to indicate foreign words or phrases, or to set off long quotations.

Okay, italics can make things sound on the page the way they sound in my head, amiright? Bold is for the important stuff, but that’s not always helpful because we think every word we write is important. That’s why writers use phrases like “Kill your darlings” to describe the editing mindset.?

I need something more.

Here’s what I found in a ConversionXL blog post despite the link being broken. (Will anyone notice what I just said?). Several guidelines regarding the effective and ineffective use of bold and italicized texts:

Effective use of bold text:

• Bold text can be used to draw attention to the most important elements on a page, such as a call-to-action button or a key feature of a product.
• Bold text can also be used to emphasize a word or phrase in a sentence, helping to guide the reader's attention and highlight important information.

Ineffective use of bold text:

• Using bold text too frequently can be overwhelming and confusing for the reader.
• Bold text should not be used as a substitute for clear, concise language and strong visual hierarchy.

Effective use of italicized text:

• Italics can be used to create emphasis and add visual interest to a piece of writing.
• Italics can also be used to set off quotes or references within a longer piece of content.

Ineffective use of italicized text:

• Using too much italicized text can be distracting and difficult to read.
• Italics should not be used to replace good writing or clear communication.

Putting? a bow on it

I want to return to the image of a race car, and to help here’s a picture of a 1965 Ferrari 212 Barchetta. So vintage. So smooth. Rush fans will figure out why I chose this car. (Click the pic to be taken to a musical treasure by musical geniuses.)

My point is that this car was built for one thing: get from A to B as quickly (and stylishly!) as possible. Drag is minimal. Look at how small the windshield is!

We could make our copy a lot more powerful if we used bold text and italics like the makers of this Barchetta: What is essential??

Think of it this way. Perhaps my audience is in a hurry. They don’t have time to read everything I’ve put together. Would they–if they only read the bold and italicized text–seriously consider the CTA?

That’s it for now. Go on making the world a better, more compassionate place.

Michael

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