15 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
15 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

People are not reading as much.

by TheBigBee
12 replies
Check out this link

The Stats Are In: You're Just Skimming This Article – ReadWrite

To sum it up - this info is 5 years old. No iPad when this was written. No 3G when this was written (and subsequently no 4G and LTE). Facebook was still experiencing growing pains, there was no Instagram, I could go on and on.

I wonder what the numbers are now?

Is this a problem or an opportunity for copywriters?

Some of you may have come to know me from a recent post about a video... But stuff like this, data points like these informed my decision to "delve into the ridiculous."

I guess there should be some testing with a control done. Take a targeted group of people and have and equal percentage read the copy, vs. having an equal percentage have someone recite the copy... Then run a test on the subjects to see which medium performed better?
#people #reading
  • Profile picture of the author ContentWritingPhD
    Banned
    It shows that we are in a place and time where people can do almost everything online from reading e-books to paying bills.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8395531].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Pusateri
    Part of a writer's job is to present information in a way too interesting to skim.

    Most can't do it.

    That's all the study shows.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8395694].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Michael De La Nuez
      Not too much of a difference versus people skimming through the newspaper for something interesting - only it's digital now.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8395777].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author DavidG
      Originally Posted by Pusateri View Post

      Part of a writer's job is to present information in a way too interesting to skim.

      Most can't do it.

      That's all the study shows.
      Exactly. And I guess that's why those who do know how can make a pretty penny as a writer.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8395859].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author TheBigBee
        Originally Posted by DavidG View Post

        Exactly. And I guess that's why those who do know how can make a pretty penny as a writer.
        Here is another interesting statistic (will have to search my Evernote for link), 54% of Americans read at an 8th grade reading level!!

        How much does basic literacy complicate things!

        Just out of curiosity have you guys ever had to write "kindergarten copy?" Meaning - copy targeted towards adults who don't read well?
        Signature
        FILL IN THE BLANKS!
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8396275].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author DavidG
          Originally Posted by TheBigBee View Post

          Here is another interesting statistic (will have to search my Evernote for link), 54% of Americans read at an 8th grade reading level!!

          How much does basic literacy complicate things!

          Just out of curiosity have you guys ever had to write "kindergarten copy?" Meaning - copy targeted towards adults who don't read well?
          Yeah what Ken said..

          I think the difference here is whether you're pro-active in keeping the readers engaged with details.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8398939].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author Marvin Johnston
          Originally Posted by Ken_Caudill View Post

          Even people who read at an 8th grade level know when they're being patronized. Writing down to an audience is deadly for the writer.
          In the last US election, I did a Flesch-Kincaid reading level test on the emails of both presidential candidates. One wrote at about 8th grade, and the other about 3rd grade.

          Guess which one wrote the low grade level emails.

          Marvin
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8401218].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author stephenmarsh
    Agree with all posted above. People have always skimmed, that's how we're wired to read.

    But in terms of the number of words we take in on a daily basis, I'd hazard a (uneducated) guess that we're reading more than ever. All this social media and so on is made up of words.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8396277].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author The Copy Nazi
    Banned
    Oh gawd. Look dude. Get up to speed. Don't just post whatever takes your fancy. "People aren't reading as much". Gosh - really? Hold the front page. Yeah we all skim. Yeah we're all semi-illiterate (especially you Americans - check the figures). And yeah - the information is five years old - so why post it?

    Get a clue.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8400271].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author AndrewCavanagh
    People have always skimmed your sales letters and it has
    always been your job to have multiple elements designed
    and written to drag those prospects into your copy.

    It can be an education to go back to a copywriting book
    by someone like Joe Sugarman and read the tips simply
    asking yourself "will that help drag readers into my copy".

    A few years ago some of my split testing showed you could
    get a serious boost in response in sales letters by having
    captions under photos that had a call to action in them
    like "...read on to find out why..."

    People skim.

    They skim down to the photos that catch their eye.

    They read the caption under the photo.

    The caption gives them some intriguing have finished
    piece of information and tells them "read on to find out
    the rest".

    So they do.

    If you have enough of these little copy whirlpools that
    drag people in you're going to pick up a lot of skimmers.

    Kindest regards,
    Andrew Cavanagh
    Signature
    Old School Copy Like This Is BACK & Converting Like Crazy!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8418420].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Raydal
    As Andrew mentioned above, this is the reason why copywriters
    spend some time using appropriate subheads and layout to pull
    skimmers into the copy. I try to make my subheads read as
    a summary of the offer, so if you deleted the rest of the
    copy you will get an outline from just reading the headline
    and subheads only.

    -Ray Edwards
    Signature
    The most powerful and concentrated copywriting training online today bar none! Autoresponder Writing Email SECRETS
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8418844].message }}

Trending Topics