Do users read all the text on a page?

It doesn’t take much research to realize that not all visitors to your site are willing to take the time to read articles. In most cases, the user intends to quickly scan the material and find answers to his questions. However, preparing articles for pages plays an important role as this is how brands promote their services.

To understand how texts on the site are read, you can use research results. At the same time, the year of the experiment does not greatly influence the conclusion. Diagonal reading is a common option for studying advertising materials.

How users read on PC

Since today, it is possible to access a website from different devices, it is necessary to evaluate the preferences of your target audience. This way, you will be able to prepare articles that are easy to view from the “big screen”. Information about the following scroll features helps to implement the strategy:

1. The first screen is the most important. The beginning of the text receives the most attention, so a short summary should be placed in this part. Also, knowing how people read online, you need to be careful about having structure. Especially for articles in longread format.
2. Many people do not read, but scroll. If the user’s gaze does not stop at a certain place, then the page will be closed very soon. You can attract attention with data in numbers or with a well-thought-out structure.
3. The narratives are easy to understand. Selecting images and displaying the main points on the first screen is a way to get the attention you need. With this in mind, posting on social media brings benefits in the form of increased engagement.

Through research, you can determine whether users read all the text on a page or just skim the content. Knowing this makes it easier to prepare readable materials for the desktop and improve results.

How mobile users read

The mobile version of websites receives more attention from customers. This is due to the fact that a smartphone connected to the Internet is in your hands almost constantly. Less and less often do users turn on their PCs to find out about sellers or products offered.

A 2016 Nielsen Norman Group study found that mobile texting is attractive because of its convenience. This was achieved by improving the structure and optimizing text materials for smartphones. Thus, preparing content taking into account the behaviour of mobile users will increase your audience reach.

In addition, there are other observations of how users texts on websites are read. They are as follows:

• large articles are inconvenient to study from mobile devices, so it makes sense to divide large texts into parts;
• the choice of device does not affect memorability, since in these cases the indicators are approximately equal;
• you need to immediately involve the reader in the topic of the page, since users are not ready to scroll through the material in search of important paragraphs.

Brand promotion using mobile texts is an important element of the strategy. In this way, it is possible to increase traffic, and with proper preparation of materials, to replenish the list of regular customers. Also, the choice of design affects whether people read articles on sites. Researchers show a ton of evidence, so take a little extra time to format it.

Text design and impact on engagement

The amount of time a user spends on a page depends on several factors. Personal characteristics and motivation play a determining role. Thus, a new reader who is interested in solving his problem has an increased level of attention.

When creating content for your website, you need to take into account your design preferences. This is the reason why web users do not view text completely. With this in mind, pay attention to:

1. Structure. Short paragraphs and strong headings will help keep the reader on the page. To do this, make sure that the title matches the content. Simplify the perception of materials so that the user correctly distributes attention.
2. Formatting. We will not say that the “canvas” of the text is difficult for readers to perceive. Use additional formatting methods – lists, tables, quotes.
3. Images. Visually demonstrating products can increase engagement. So, the reader pays attention to the pictures or videos, and then proceeds to study the review. The effectiveness of visual elements has been proven in practice.

Understanding how people read text on the Internet helps create a convenient service. In addition to the usual pleasant interface or functionality, the format of presenting information increases the level of interest. Structure and convenience help motivate you to read the article.