How to create readable and accessible content

Have you ever Googled a recipe? Did you find yourself scrolling past the writer’s life story and a load of adverts before you reached the ingredients list?

 

These tactics keep your users tied up far longer than they need to be. That might be good for the website’s advertisers, but it is terrible content design for someone baking a cake in a hurry.

 

If you’re selfish with your users’ time, they’re not likely to rush back. It’s also bad for the environment.

 

 

Give users what they need

 

Contrast that with the Gov.uk website. Their user research told them that users often want to know the date of the next bank holiday.

 

They redesigned their UK bank holidays page to show the next date at the top of the page. The full list of dates is below, but many people do not need it. One glance at the page and they are gone.

 

What may have looked like a terrible bounce rate in Google Analytics is a sign of high-quality, accessible content.

Writing for the web should not be about making people scroll through content they do not need.

 

People want to get to the important stuff.

 

 

Readable content is good for everyone

 

Your information should be available to all. Accessible content helps people with cognitive impairments or learning difficulties. Likewise, it is better for people who speak English as a foreign language.

 

Some people worry that simple language is ‘dumbing down’. But there’s lots of evidence that readable content benefits everyone. Your most advanced readers might understand complicated prose, but do they need it? Busy people like to get to the point. You’re not patronising, you’re removing barriers.

 

 

Keep your writing readable

 

Using clear, simple language makes your content accessible to most users. A good rule is to write for the reading level of a typical nine-year-old. Check out our advice on tools for measuring readability.

 

Here are the basics to consider when creating accessible written content:

 

 

Make your content scannable

 

Good content design helps the user to see if a page has what they need. A good summary at the top, plus subheadings to break up the content, will tell people if they are in the right place.

 

It means losing or redirecting the wrong users, as much as giving the right users what they need.

 

 

Keep sentences short

 

Avoid long sentences with lots of subclauses. You can break down most long sentences. Aim for sentences with an average 15 words.

 

 

Consider your vocabulary

 

Long words are harder to understand, while some have more than one meaning. Avoid complicated language. The Plain English Campaign has an A-Z of alternative words.

 

Consider the words your users use. If they are looking for a doctor, will they land on your page about ‘Finding a GP’? Read how Content Design London researched wording around domestic abuse for Hestia.

 

 

Avoid vague words and jargon

 

Avoid using jargon or, if you must, explain it in plain language. And spell out acronyms in full. Latin terms and metaphors are also confusing. Check out the Readability Guidelines advice on words to avoid.

 

 

Be active and positive

 

Passive voice is harder to understand than active voice, although it works well for headlines.

 

Many users find negative contractions like ‘don’t’ and ‘can’t’ hard to read. They may take your message to mean the opposite. Stick with ‘do not’ and ‘cannot’ wherever possible.

 

 

Write numbers as digits

 

Many of us were taught to write numbers under 10 in words and then switch to numerals. Many publications still follow this convention. This makes information harder to scan and it’s more difficult to compare numbers. For clarity use numerals everywhere, from 1 to 1,000,001.

 

 

Use commas, not dashes

 

Writers love subclauses enclosed by en-dashes. Sadly, they contribute to those long, complex sentences we need to avoid. Also, screen readers tend to read them as ‘en-dash’. That’s clumsy for the user and gets in the way of your message. Screen readers treat commas much more naturally.

 

Also avoid hyphenating words, unless leaving them out causes confusion. For example, are you recovering from an illness or re-covering a sofa?

 

 

Consider other types of accessible content

 

All content creators should aspire to use plain language and there are lots of resources to help from the Plain English Campaign.

 

Some organisations will need to take this a step further based on their users’ needs. You already ensure your videos have subtitles. In the same way, you might create content in Easy Read or use Makaton symbols.

 

 

Relearn your approach to content

 

Some of this advice may conflict with what you’ve heard before. User centred content design often means unlearning what you think you know.

 

You have to balance succinct accessible content with conveying your brand’s personality and being found by Google. Try it out and see what works for you and your users.

 

The more ‘essential’ your content is the more accessible it should be. A blog about a cake sale does not need to be worded as carefully as a guide to social distancing.

 

So, think about the impact of excluding vulnerable users from your content.

 

 

Find out more

 

Check out the Readability Guidelines for a collaboratively developed, evidence-led style guide.

 

There are many other ways to make your website accessible, from the way it responds on different screen sizes to your use of colours and Alt text. Delve into the W3C web accessibility initiative to explore further.