People generally tend to only read half the content online that they would on paper. I find this really interesting because there are so many factors that lead to this; studies have shown that computer screens make people tired after a certain amount of time and, of course, it's also a lot easier to get distracted with so much information at your fingertips.
What Can We Do?
Some of the most popular solutions to these problems are shortening text and making it scannable by adding features such as highlighted and underlined keywords, along with keeping the fonts and images consistent so as not to overload the reader. Having tested this by reading a newspaper article and an article by the online version of the same newspaper, I think that these methods are very effective. The online article was shorter and images, along with words in bold, helped keep my interest.
So It’s That Easy?
It may sound like it's a lot easier to write for the web than for traditional print mediums: just shorten your text and make certain words stand out.
However, I think it may actually be more difficult. This is due to the fact that you have to be twice as selective when choosing how to phrase things and you must always have the reader's attention span at the back of your mind. In contrast to this, traditional print writers have the luxury of expressing themselves via long, uninterrupted articles in which they can word things how ever they like (with an editor's approval!).
This, however, is just one aspect of writing for the web that I find particularly interesting. I hope to write about other aspects over the coming weeks.
P.S. If you've made it to this point in the article, please give it a like to show that I've managed to keep you're attention (market research!).