This document discusses best practices for writing mobile content. It notes that mobile usage is growing rapidly, with over 6 billion subscriptions globally. Users have high expectations for quick load times and a good mobile experience. When writing for mobile, content should be concise, scannable, and cut the fat. It provides tips for small-space writing like using short sentences, links, and white space. The document outlines eight principles for good mobile content: it should be appropriate, useful, user-centered, clear, consistent, concise, supported, and satisfy both customer and business needs.

1. Mobile Content Writing
Spring 2013
Mette Fuglsang

2. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Agenda
› Usage & expectations
› Mobile usage context
› Small-space writing
› Mobile content writing
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3. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Usage & expectations
› At the end of 2011, there were 6 billion mobile cellular subscriptions globally
› Equalling 87% of the world’s population having a mobile phone!
› By 2014, mobile internet usage is predicted to take over desktop internet usage
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4. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Usage & expectations
› Across regions, mobile browsing and application usage are growing at a rate of
7-9% per year…
› At the end of 2011, almost 30 billion apps had been downloaded worldwide
› The average smartphone user in the US has 22 mobile apps downloaded
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5. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Usage & expectations
› 71% expect quick load times
› 5 sec. is the max time mobile users will wait for a website or application to load
› 74% will leave a mobile website if it does not load within 5 sec.
› 1/3 will go to a competitor’s website
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6. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Mobile platform:
Usage & expectations
› Trying a website or an application 2 times is the max. for about 80% of mobile
users
› Nearly half of mobile web users are unlikely to return to a website that they had
trouble accessing from their phone
› Mobile users do not have much patience for retrying a website or application that
is not functioning initially
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7. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Mobile usage context
Mobiles are used
› on-the-go
› anywhere else…
› for getting information
› for entertainment
› for browsing
› for…??
› as the only device
(netmagazine.com)
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8. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Small-space writing
› Cut the fat!
› Be interesting, relevant, surprising
› Be right on!
› Create short sentences
› Edit
› Offer plenty of links
› Use compelling headlines
› Structure
› Avoid too many images
› Use plenty of white space
› Create scannable blocks of text
› Get rid of clutter
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9. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Mobile content writing
PATIENCE!!
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10. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Mobile content writing
Question:
‘How do we create mobile content that satisfies users’ needs
while being on the go?’
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11. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Mobile content writing
Question:
‘How do we create mobile content that satisfies the company’s needs and
purposes?’
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12. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
How about…
….combining the two!
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13. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Starting point
‘How do we create mobile content that satisfies the
1) customers’ AND
2) company’s needs ?’
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14. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
1: Good content is appropriate
How do we know when content is right for the user?
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15. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Good content is appropriate
Content is appropriate for the user when it helps them
accomplish their goals!
Content is perfectly appropriate for user when it:
- Offers them precisely what they need
- Exactly when they need it
- In just the right form
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16. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Assumptions about users…
…are never 100% perfect SO
->
Always give users the option of seeing more if they wish
AND
Be generous when supplying links
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17. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
2: Good content is right for the business
How do we know when content is right for the
business?
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18. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Good content is right for the business
When your content helps you accomplish your
business goals in a sustainable way, it is right for
your business!
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19. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Sustainable content
Is content you can
› Create
› Manage
› Maintain without spending too many resources
› Maintain without lowering quality gradually
› Assign to other employees
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20. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Business objectives - examples
ü ‘improve technical support service’
ü ‘increase sales’
ü ‘reduce printing costs for educational materials’
ü using sustainable processes
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21. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
3: Good content is useful
FOR EACH PIECE OF CONTENT:
1. Define a clear, specific purpose
2. Evaluate content against this purpose
GREATER SPECIFICITY PRODUCES BETTER RESULTS…
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22. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Content purposes - examples
› ‘Sell products’
› ‘Sell this product’
› ‘List and demonstrate the benefits of this product’
› ‘Show how this product helps nurse practitioners’
THE PURPOSE MUST BE ABSOLUTELY CLEAR!
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23. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
4. Good content is user-centered
This implies:
ü Meeting users’ genuine needs
ü Avoiding creating content that is self-centered
ü Omitting content designed for internal organizational use
ü Using words/language without jargon
ü Using words/language actually used by the users
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24. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
5. Good content is clear
Clarity in communication generally means:
ü That we are easily understood
ü That our users ‘get’ our message
ü That they can react to our message
ü The structure is easy to follow
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25. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
6. Good content is consistent
CONSISTENCY/ALIGNMENT/COHERENCE
Reduces users’ cognitive load -> eases their understanding -> one of our primary
goals as communicators
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26. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
7. Good content is concise
Assumption:
Loads of content = great effort = interesting!!
Situation:
The Internet (endless ‘container’)
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27. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Too much content…
Creates:
› Difficulties finding just the right information for users
› A drop in quality
› The notion of ‘let’s publish as much as we possibly can’
› Disturbs ‘the picture’
› Distracts the user
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28. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Better…
ü Publish what we know our users need
…and let that be the guiding light!
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29. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
8. Good content is supported
…or ‘watered’ on a continuous basis…
› Updated
› Removed
› Released on schedule
› Maintained
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30. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Content plan
Or a ‘support plan’
‘Weak function’ - underestimated
- Produce
- Revise
- Publish content
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31. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Benefit of a content plan
› Human attention +
› Content management systems
› Time-consuming
› Complex
› Included in job descriptions
› Job function
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32. Mobile Content Writing March 2013
Mette Fuglsang
Senior Lecturer
Sources
w.alistapart.com/articles
www.warc.com
› Halvorson, K. & Rach, M. Content Strategy for the web. 2nd ed. New Riders
› Berman, M. The Copywriter’s Toolkit. 1st ed. 2012 Wiley-Blackwell
› www.alistapart.com/articles
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