Summary

The website content emphasizes the importance of brevity in online writing to cater to modern readers' preferences for concise and efficient information delivery amidst distractions and information overload.

Abstract

The article "Readers Want Brevity. Will You Help Them?" discusses the challenge of capturing readers' attention in the digital age, where the average reader spends a mere 37 to 96 seconds on a blog post. It highlights that despite the competition from other media, people still enjoy reading but prefer content that is direct and to the point. The piece argues that brevity is crucial due to the abundance of distractions online, the psychological dilution effect that can confuse readers, and the fierce competition for readers' attention. The author, Boateng Sekyere, suggests that writers should avoid unnecessary digressions, put themselves in the readers' shoes, and edit rigorously to remove superfluous words and phrases. While brevity does not mandate short-form writing, it does require writers to convey their message efficiently, respecting the reader's time.

Opinions

Darren Rowse from Problogger.com laments that the average reader spends only 96 seconds on a blog post, which is disheartening for writers.
Jim VandeHei, co-founder of Politico and Axios, believes readers prefer information to be delivered efficiently without unnecessary details.
The author, Boateng Sekyere, asserts that writers often undermine their message by including too much information, leading to reader confusion and disengagement.
Experts cited in the article acknowledge the impossibility of reading and retaining all available information due to the sheer volume of content produced.
The author suggests that brevity can be a competitive advantage for writers, helping their work stand out in a crowded content landscape.
Sekyere recommends that writers should critically evaluate each element of their writing to ensure it contributes to the core message, advocating for a reader-centric approach to writing.

Readers Want Brevity. Will You Help Them?

It’s time to show readers we care

I have good news and bad news for you. I’ll start with the bad news. As a writer who publishes your work online, most of your carefully crafted words go unread by the readers who chance upon them.

Those lovely readers are spending less and less time on blog posts these days: most of us are on a skimming spree. Or is it speed reading? We may never know.

If you have some advanced metrics to track read-ratio and read-times on your blog posts, you’ll learn more about this harsh reality. Readers only spend between 37 seconds and 96 seconds on a blog post.

“96 seconds is not a very long time. It is quite disillusioning to realize that after slaving over a post for hours that it is likely to be skimmed over in less than two minutes.” Darren Rowse, Problogger.com.

The good news? People still love to read, despite competition from audio and video. But there’s a catch.

According to Jim VandeHei, co-founder of new outlets Politico and Axios, readers want information delivered efficiently. No fluff, all brevity. And some articles and research papers need an injection of brevity.

Why brevity

It’s inexcusable for any writer to ignore the principle of brevity. Here’s why.

There are too many distractions in the modern era

For any reader to read your article on their smartphone, tablet, or computer, they must probably be online. And given the average user is super connected to many apps, distractions are rampant once online.

All it takes is an @ or a reminder of the latest OS update to pull a reader away from your sweet 1,600-word piece. And they may never return. Even if they bookmark your article, readers hardly retrieve bookmarks.

In short, zoom straight to your point before the reader’s focus pans away to something else. It’s not their choice; that’s how things have become.

The dilution effect is real

The dilution effect is a psychological bias that’s just as potent in writing as in business. Writers fall for the temptation to say too much, eventually diluting their message and leaving the reader confused. And a confused reader needs no second invitation to bounce.

One of the best cures to counter this challenge is brevity. If you learn to say more with fewer words, you’ll condense only your strongest thoughts into a few words.

And your points will stick with the readers faster, never mind the limited time those readers spend on your work.

The competition is fiercer

By the time you finish reading this post (unlikely, I know), thousands of others would have come up. The same applies to the next post you publish. And most other articles that see the light of day.

Experts agree there’s so much information available that to carefully read and retain everything would be impossible. These articles must thus cut one another’s throats to capture readers’ eyeballs. Brevity could be a weapon.

How to embrace brevity

Brevity is only a means to an end. By end, I mean effectively communicating your message to your reader. Here are a few tips to get you started.

Watch out for the biggest writer’s trap

Many writers love padding stories with needless digressions. You’d want to keep those instincts in check. Here’s a helpful test to help.

If you’re going to apologize to readers for digressing — or even mention it — ask yourself if you could do without the digression. Usually, at least from my experience, it’s a roaring yes.

Be the reader

Sometimes, embracing brevity starts with putting yourself in a reader’s shoes. Ask yourself if you’d spend as much time reading all the words in your draft if the tables turned. That should give you a clue.

Also, ask yourself what the reader absolutely needs to know, and work around that answer.

Never forget the usual ritual

If you run a fine-toothed comb over an average 2,000-word piece, the number of unnecessary words and phrases you’ll likely catch will surprise you.

And these words add up. The more dead words you can cull from your essays, the better. I’d love to give examples, but it’s less straightforward than asking you to cut all adverbs, sos, and thats (though they’re often culprits).

The less obvious ones are repeated thoughts in subsequent lines. Also, watch out for strange metaphors (I’m often guilty) and long-winding sentence constructions.

Brevity may well be relative

You can still write long form and get a pass from the brevity police. There’s no iron-clad word limit for brevity, and you don’t have to sacrifice critical aspects of your message on the altar of brevity. It all comes down to context.

Your target audience and message may provide some excellent context. Style guides and client requests may also be a factor. But at all times, set your sights on brevity.

That’s what readers are crying out for. They don’t have all day. If you don’t heed their cry and act accordingly, they’ll act in their best interests. And that may not be in your best interests as a writer. You’d better pay attention.

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