Blogs+-+Best+Practices

The word "blog" comes from "Web log", which started as a kind of diary, journal, or (ship's) log about events, thoughts, and ideas a person would record. With the Web, of course, many people want to "post" these for others to see, and possibly to comment on.

In this respect, blogs are not the same as notices, discussions, comments, or emails. They are closer to actual serious writing, since they may be personal, have a theme or point, and follow general rules of writing. The following suggestions for writing are from the [|Yahoo! Style Guide].

=Get to the point!=  Readers assess webpages in an instant. ** **Your content has a few seconds—three or less!—to encourage people to read more,** ** to take action, or to navigate to another of your pages. Impatient readers will click the ** **Back** ** button in a hurry or will stop skimming and go to a search box. To get to the point fast and keep people on your site, follow these ** **three guidelines for effective online writing** **: **1. Keep it short.**
 * Use short words, short sentences, short paragraphs, bulleted lists, and short pages.
 * Slim down copy from print sources (a company brochure, for example) to suit the online format.

 **2. Front-load your content.**
 * In general, put the most important content in the upper-left area of the screen. Put other important pieces of information at the top of the page.
 * Decide what’s most important to communicate, and emphasize it with prominent headings, boldface type, and other visual cues.
 * Put the most important information at the beginning of headlines, paragraphs, and sentences. Don’t spend time leading up to your point.
 * Place the most important words at the beginning of page titles, headlines, subheadings, and links. The most important words are typically your // //keywords// //, which are the words and phrases people may use in search engines when trying to locate your type of content. For information on keyword selection and placement.
 * Place important but supplemental or tangential material in a secondary position on the page.

 **3. Keep it simple.**
 * Include only one or two ideas per short paragraph.
 * Choose common words over more difficult ones. Even if more technical or sophisticated language is appropriate for your site, your readers will appreciate simpler language in the areas where their eyes are scanning to determine what a page is about.
 * Delete fluff. Direct, objective text—not promotional copy—is more helpful to the site visitor, and readers perceive it as more trustworthy.

 Short, simple, and front-loaded: These qualities are Web-writing essentials, whether you’re crafting text for an email or a webpage, whether readers are viewing your copy on a mobile device or a desktop computer. As we delve into different types of content, we’ll mention these principles again and again.