Reinventing Print: One-Day Program

I. Learning to publish from the web.

  1. Imagine we're at a cyberspace convention …
  2. What have we learned about writing for readers online?(59 percent scan rather than read word by word; move on in less than 20 seconds if they can't find what they want.)
    1. Think both verbally and visually from the onset.
    2. Provide information quickly and easily.
    3. Write in a non-linear way; write in chunks.
    4. Cut copy 50 percent. (Online – 50 percent more time.)
    5. Use lots of lists, bullets, short sentences.
    6. Use hyperlinks. (No writing is ever complete.)
    7. Give readers a chance to talk back.
  3. The media mix
    1. Mix of media – more retention, more action
    2. Where does print fit in the media mix?
  4. Strengths of Print
    1. Not news! (viewpapers)
    2. Complementary, supplementary, confirmatory
    3. Credibility – correct, consistent (exercises)
    4. Availability – portability
    5. Legibility

II. Communication – Four Goals:

  1. Attention– heads, blurbs, captions
  2. Comprehension – clear
  3. Retention – saying things twice, multi-sensory
  4. Action

III. Some theory

  1. Use and gratifications theory
    1. Readers choose what is useful and usable
    2. Readers choose what is entertaining
  2. The play theory

IV. Some practice

  1. Tell readers:
    1. Who you are. (mission)
    2. What you do. (objectives)
    3. How you are doing it. (strategies)
    4. What you can do for them. (benefits)
  2. Save readers time
    1. Clear — define terms — glossaries
    2. Concise (cut one-third? one-half?)
    3. Table of contents (menu), color-coding — no jumping
  3. Address different levels of news interest
    1. Layer the news — don't give everyone everything
    2. Target different audiences — in the same publication,
      — in the same article: new, old, women, minorities
  4. Address niche audiences more effectively
    1. Age of niche-picking.
    2. Age of mass customization
  5. Become more personally useful and immediately usable.
    (Remember: The opposite of useful is useless.)
    1. Lists
      1. Do's, don'ts
      2. Advantages, disadvantages
      3. Five ways (quantify the benefits)
    2. Question and Answers
    3. Subheads
    4. Blurbs – external, internal
    5. Sidebars & boxes
      1. Reference boxes
      2. Notes
      3. Glossaries
      4. Biographies
  6. Become more accessible.
    1. How to reach us – call, write, email, fax
    2. Print about hotline, info services, brochures
  7. Become more user-friendly
    1. Cross-reference frequently
    2. Color code
  8. Think presentation - become more visual and graphic
    (We're still writing as if we have manual typewriters.)
    1. Remember: attention, comprehension, retention, action
    2. Graphic journalism
      1. bar charts, line charts, pie charts
      2. Pictograms, infographics
  9. Become more engaging and interactive
    (Promise readers something – FREE!)
    1. Quizzes
    2. Games
    3. Crossword puzzles
    4. Contests
  10. Have more fun!

Why do all of this? Because it works! Getting readers involved creates active and loyal readers.