Skimmable content boosts understanding, memory, satisfaction
When usability guru Jakob Nielsen wanted to measure the effects of scannable web copy, he studied a webpage about Nebraska.
Before
One of the original passages said:
Nebraska is filled with internationally recognized attractions that draw large crowds of people every year, without fail. [Last year], some of the most popular places were Fort Robinson State Park (355,000 visitors), Scotts Bluff National Monument (132,166), Arbor Lodge State Historical Park & Museum (100,000), Carhenge (86,598), Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer (60,002), and Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park (28,446).
Not very skimmable.
After
So Nielsen rewrote the webpage, adding subheads, bold-faced text and bullets, among other scannable elements:
Nebraska is filled with internationally recognized attractions that draw large crowds of people every year, without fail. [Last year], some of the most popular places were:
- Fort Robinson State Park (355,000 visitors)
- Scotts Bluff National Monument (132,166)
- Arbor Lodge State Historical Park & Museum (100,000)
- Carhenge (86,598)
- Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer (60,002)
- Buffalo Bill Ranch State Historical Park (28,446)
Bottom line
Then Nielsen tested both pages for metrics including:
- Task time: How long it took users to find answers to questions like “On what date did Nebraska become a state?”
- Errors, or the number of questions they answered wrong about Nebraska after reading the piece
- Memory — How much they remembered two days later
- Subjective satisfaction, or how participants felt about the reading the information and interacting with the site
The result: The skimmable rewrite was 47% more usable — nearly half again faster, more understandable, more memorable and more pleasant. Not a bad ROI on some bullets and bold face!
How skimmable are your messages?
How can you make them easier to skim?