Having a responsive mobile friendly website is often at the top of the priority list for our clients and making sure their content works for mobile is one of the biggest challenges.
As designers, developers and content editors we are constantly looking for ways to produce great content and tell our clients’ stories across different devices and screen sizes. It’s for this reason, and we think it’s pretty big one, any business who’s audience is predominantly mobile should put their mobile content strategy first.
Writing for mobile takes the challenge of content writing to a whole new level. Make sure every word counts and follow these tips…
Write short headlines
Keep headlines short and snappy. A headline longer than 50-60 characters can look too long when viewed on a mobile screen. Keep it concise and make sure you include the most important details.
Grab attention with the first sentence
The first sentence can be one of the hardest to write. It’s also the most important so it’s worth spending your time and efforts to make it work. Follow the journalistic rule of Who, What, When and Where. Strip out any superfluous words and get to the point of your story as soon as you can. You can expand on the detail in later paragraphs.
Break up your content into smaller chunks
Shorter posts and news stories tend to do better on mobile so aim to keep your posts between 200 to 500 words in length. Anything longer can be off-putting for busy mobile users who are on the go. If you have lots of information to get across break up your article into a series of shorter chunks with one idea or topic per paragraph.
Use links for further reading
Inline links are essential in mobile content, particularly for business with a large amount of technical or specialist information to communicate. Avoid the temptation to include every detail, instead use inline links to source material and references. A 12,000 word white paper is going to be a headache to read on a mobile device, so summarise the main points on your web page and allow people to download the full document to read later.
Include videos or images
It’s easier to watch a 5 minute video or tab through a slideshow of images when you’re on the move. Mobile audiences are more likely to engage with and share a piece of content on mobile with images or videos attached. It’s definitely worth setting aside some of your marketing budget to produce your own videos or hire a good photographer to tell your story and build a library of content you can publish across different platforms and social media.
Struggling with Content?
If you’d like some help getting your content ready for mobile, we offer a range of website content and copywriting services. To get started simply give us a call today ››