So you think you have a dynamite lay-out for your Blog or web-page(s)? Pretty happy with the headers, headlines, target stories? Images . . . are your images up to par? Doing what you need them to do?

I bring up these questions because I have come across a study of what people actually;

• Look at 1st on your page.
• Read on your page.
• What areas readers really focus on when looking for information.
• Images, the difference between what men and women focus on.
• Images, what kind of images are wasted on the page, are effective on the page.
• White space, as in any other type of design . . . the negative accentuates the positive . . . are you listening-Landscape Designers?

I’m also bring this up because I had several discussions with folks who wanted to Blog and were very hesitant to jump in. I promised any info I ran across that I thought would help . . . I would pass along.

The article;

Eyetracking points the way to effective news article design . . .

Applies to any type of web writing. I think it really hits home with those of us who are writing a Blog to:

• Provide information about our chosen profession.
• To promote what we do for a living.
• Credibility . . . I don’t know, this is a sticky one.
• To expand our professional presence on the web.
• Putting yourself out there to open up other avenues of/for finding work.
• Use this opportunity to give back to our professions.
• It’s fun, a unique opportunity to communicate with others of a like-mind . . . globally.
• Plus many more reasons I can’t even think of.

The article is from the Online Journalism Review, with great examples and explanation. and is associated with USC. I find this a great read, and a great resource for web writers like me with absolutely no training, formal or otherwise.