They Laughed When I Printed Off Web Articles–I’m a 25% Faster Reader
I just finished “Grant” by Ron Chernow. Mr. Chernow wrote “Alexander Hamilton.” Yes, the blockbuster play is based on a 900-page book. I don’t think Lin-Manuel Miranda will base a play off Grant’s book, but for Civil War nerds, this is a real treat.
It’s 1,000 pages with narrow-margins. This is not a book for skimmers. Some asked why I didn’t download the behemoth book on my iPad. In this digital age, I read the hard cover and loved it.
According to the Norman Nielsen Group (nn/g), “reading from computer screens is about 25% slower than reading from paper.” Yikes, it took some time for me to churn through Grant, now add 25% more time.
Speed reading has never worked for me on the web. I’m a much faster reader using print and now I have proof. I hope I don’t have to rename this blog to the “1 minute and 15 seconds Marketer.”
So what to do for web readers:
- Use lots of headlines and subheads
- Bullet copy
- Cut 50% of your copy
- Add white space
- Use call-out headlines for the skimming public
- For important points, boldface, highlight or emphasize with graphics
Also, know when to stop writing.
Mark Mathis
Mark wrote his first direct-mail fundraising letter in 1981 for the University of Iowa Center for Advancement. The effort raised a few million dollars in undiscovered wills and legacy gifts. From that day forward Mark discovered a love of the big idea that moves the needle. After 12 years at KWWL, Mark became a business owner as a co-founder of ME&V — rebranded as AMPERAGE in 2015. After 25 years of leading creative teams in video production, graphic design, PR, writing and web development, Mark transitioned out of ownership in 2021. Today he serves in an employee role as special projects consultant. He is creatively ambidextrous — son of an artist and engineer — and famous for distilling complex ideas down to a few words and a few visuals. Mark is a writer. When he found that many nonprofits struggled with complex branding puzzles, he wrote the book, “NonProfit-NonMarketing .” He also wrote a novel called “Reenactment.” Mark is an active blogger OneMinuteMarketer® with nearly 1,000 readers each week on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter. One of his most popular YouTube videos is on “How to Look Good on Zoom.” One of Mark’s fondest business memories was being named to INC 500 two times and attending the INC 500 conference with other winners. Mark is considered by some a Civil War expert (and that explains his novel). Mark also served as an adjunct professor in the business and in the communications departments at Wartburg College. Mark is a graduate of the University of Iowa and is currently vice president of the University of Iowa Journalism and Mass Communications Advisory Board. Mark is married to state Sen. Liz Mathis, and the two love to travel, even when it means being trapped by a volcano in the Czech Republic for three weeks.
