Nielsen Norman Group

EvidenceBasedUserExperienceResearch,Training,andConsulting

Writing Digital Copy for Domain Experts

by HOA LORANGERand KATE MEYERonApril23,2017
Topics:WritingfortheWeb ContentStrategy

Summary:Thesetipsforwritingwebcontentforspecializedaudienceswillhelpyousound
authoritativeandbolsteryourcredibility.Professionalswantcontentthatiseasytoscan,
factual,andverifiable.

Clientssometimesaskwhethertraditionalwebwritingguidelinesapplytospecialized,highly
educatedaudiences.Weconductedausabilitystudytoanswerthisquestion.Weaskedexperts(e.g.,
medicalprofessionals,scientists,andengineers)toresearchtopicsrelatedtotheirworkandgive
feedback.Ifyouwriteforothertypesofspecializedaudienceswhoneedtechnicalcontent,youwill
likelyfindthattheseguidelinesapplyforthemaswell.

Ourstudyfoundthat,likegeneralwebreaders,highlyeducatedprofessionalswantcontentthatis
digestible,concise,andscannablethatis,formattedaccordingtotherulesofwritingfortheweb.
Themajordifferenceinpreference,however,liesinthesubstanceofthecontent(topicscovered
andthelevelofdetail)andtheimportanceofcredibility.

Ifyouwritecopyforhighlyeducatedorspecializedusers,followtheserecommendationstosatisfy
theirneedsandconveycredibility.

ProvideFacts,AvoidInterpretation
Whenitcomestowork,professionalsareonafactfindingmission.Mostofthetasksperformedby
expertsonwebsitesinvolveresearch:lookingupinformation,comparinginformation,discoveringnew
findings,andverifyingdata.

Twotypesofinformationparticularlyattracttheirattention:
1.Newinformationthattheyhaventconsideredorheardof

2.Contradictoryinformationthatiscontrarytotheirexistingknowledgeorbeliefs

Inbothsituations,professionalsapproachtheinformationcautiously,scrutinizinghowtheauthor
drawsconclusionsandseekingrelevantcontentwithfervor.Theylookforfactsandarewaryof
articlesthatdrawoutlandishconclusions,withoutsufficientdatatobackitup,asillustratedbythe
followingquotesfromourstudyparticipants:

Wildstatementsdonotleadonetocredibility.Youlookatcarefulstatementsreferencing
factsNowthereismoreonlinepublishingwithfewerreviews.Somearticlesarereviewedafter
theyrepublishedwithcomments.Itsanicenewwaytodoingthings,butImnotcomfortable
withthat.EnvironmentalScientist

Noonestudyismeaningful.Youcanlookatastudyandmakeaconclusionthatistotally
wrong.Medicalpeopledontwantinformationthatisonthewebthathasbeeninterpretedbya
journalistnoarticlestandsalone.DoctorofNursingPractice
MichaelJFox.org:Aclinicalresearcherinourstudybalkedatthisarticlebecauseitmadeaboldclaim,but
lackeddetailtoexplainthefindings.Shesaid,Thedrugisntnamed.Itdoesntsayanythingaboutgene
therapy.

NOAA.gov:Theglossyimagesandthenaveheadlinescausedanenvironmentalscientisttofeelthatthe
articlesonthispagelackeddepthandthereforewaswrittenforthegeneralpublic,notexperts:Theseare
morestories.Theremaybefactsinhere,buttheylooklikenarrativesandstoriesAnyonewhoknows
anythingaboutclimateknowsacoupleinstances[aremeaningless].Itsnotaboutoneyearoronestorm.I
wouldlookatthetemperaturerecord.Icantclickonanything.Thereisnothingtolearnhere.
 Climate.gov:TheunpolishedimagesandtabcalledMaps&Dataresonatedwithscholars.Thesame
scientistastheonementionedabovesaid,Thislookslikeitwasmadebyageekyscientist.Itlookslike
realdata,notmassaged.

Keepthetoneofyourcontentfactual,andfreefromunnecessaryfluffandvagueassertions.Lead
withdataandfacts.Researcherscanseethroughhype.Overstatingoutcomesdiminishescredibility.
Investinwritingindeptharticles,notshallowblogposts.

Provideproofforyourstatements.Presentingallofthedetailsonawebpagecanbetricky.Toomany
factsandfindingsmakecontenthardertoreadandcomprehend.Buttoofewdetailsmakeitfeel
shallow.Thesecrettopresentingcomprehensiveinformationwithoutoverwhelmingreadersistolayer
itsopeoplecangetthegistquicklyandthendelveintodetailsifnecessary.

Therearetwobasicwaystolayercontent:
1.Statethesummaryatthetop.Thenprovidemoredetailedinformationdownthepageprogressively.

2.Includehyperlinksthattakereaderstosupportingdetailsondeeperlevelpages.Expertsareparticularly
likelytoclickonhyperlinkstoincreasetheirunderstandingofatopic.

CitationsandSupportingEvidenceAreCritical
Citationsmakeyourwritingpersuasive,especiallyforacademicsandpeoplewhoneedtechnical
detail.Theybolstercredibilitybyprovidingsupportingevidenceforyourassertions.Citationsarean
indicatoroftheauthorsprofessionalismandknowledgeofthefieldinwhichtheywrite.

Domainexpertsoftenscanbylinesandcitationsfornamerecognition.Ifthecontentiswrittenbya
wellrespectedpersonorentity,readersaremorelikelytotrusttheinformation.

IchecktoseeifIrecognizeanameorknowthesourcesiftheyareknowntobecredible.
Environmentalscientist

Referencesalsofacilitateexplorationbyallowingreaderstotracethesourcesofinformation:
 Referencesareimportantinsciencesoyoureawareofpreviousrelatedworkorancillary
informationIlookthroughthereferencestoseewhatworkhasbeendonebetweenthisstudy
andpreviousstudies.Environmentalscientist

Toestablishauthorityandtrust,providereferencestoanyideasorinformationtakenfromasource.
Anddontjustsaywheretheinformationoriginatedwheneverpossible,givereadersaneasyway
tofollowthetrailofevidencebyprovidingalinktotheoriginalarticle,research,book,orjournal.

ScienceDaily.com:Thereferencesandcitationsonthiswebsitebolstereditscredibility.

Accenture.com:AninformationsystemsmanagerwasinitiallyintriguedbythestatspresentedinthePDF
document,butlamentedthelackoflinkstoreferences.Itwouldbenicetohavealinktothesourceofthat
dataYouhavetobepartoftheirworldtogetintothatdatasomehow.

ExpertsCareAboutRecency
Professionalsrelyonpublishingdatestodeterminerelevance.Muchofwhatexpertsresearchonline
istimesensitive,especiallyinfieldslikescienceandtechnology,wherechangeoccursrapidly.
Foundationalconceptscanliveawhilewithoutneedingupdates,buttimesensitivetopicsmustbe
currenttohavevalue.
AnITspecialistinourstudyleftasitethatcontainedoutdatedcontentandnoeasywaytofilterby
currentinformation.

Thedateswhenthesecommentswerewrittenarenotascurrent[].Somethingshave
stayingpower,butotherthingsmaybelostiftheyrenotcurrentwithinsixmonthsorayearIll
hitthebackbuttonandgotoresultstofindsomethingthatismoretargetedtowhatImafter.
ITspecialist

MakeUseOf.comclaimstobeaguideformoderntechnology.However,anITspecialistwaswaryofits
contentbecauseitwasoutdated.

Accenture.com:Aninformationsystemsofficersexcitementwassquashedwhenhecouldntfindthe
publicationdateforthisarticle.
Showdatesfortimesensitiveinformation(e.g.,newsarticles,statisticsandnumericalreports,
articlesfocusedonnewfindings,currenttrends,andspecificholidaysorseasons).Articlesthatdont
showpublicationsdatesdontpassmusterandoftengetbypassed.

Showdatesevenforevergreencontentthatcontinuestoberelevantlongpastitspublicationdate.
Domainexpertscandecipherbetweentimesensitivedevelopmentsandlonglastingconceptsand
olderdates.

SharedVocabulariesChangetheRulesforPlainLanguage
Expertsinmanyfieldsshareaspecificandwelldefinedcommonvocabulary,inwhicheachmember
ofthefieldhasbeentrained.

Whenwritingforgeneralaudiences,authorsmustconstantlyaskthemselves,Willmyaudience
understandthis?However,whenyouraudienceiscomposedofexpertsinonefield,youcanbreak
someofthewordusageandclassificationrulesthatusuallyapplytogeneralaudiences.Youmayfind
thisistrueaswellifyouwriteforpeoplewhoarehobbyists(birdwatching,crossfit,knitting,etc.)who
shareaspecificlexiconthatwouldbeincomprehensibletooutsiders.

Forexample,wealmostalwaysadviseagainstusingAtoZindexes,becauseusersdontoftenknow
theexactnameofthetopictheywant.Butwhenmedicalprofessionalsinourstudyparticipants
lookedforinformationaboutaspecificchemotherapydrug,alphabeticalbrowsingwasaneffective
organizationscheme.

chemocare.com:AnursepractitionerwithadoctorateinNursingPracticecouldeasilybrowsethrough
thisAZlistofchemotherapydrugstofindmoreinformationaboutaspecificdrug.
 chemocare.com:OneofourmedicalprofessionalparticipantsdescribedChemocare.comasafavorite
website.Forexample,shecouldsearchforadrugstradename(Jevtana)oritsgenericname
(cabazitaxel).Inadditiontotheeasynavigation,Chemocarehadstraightforward,flufffreecontentand
madegooduseoftextformatting.

Asanotherconsequenceofaformallydefined,sharedvocabulary,youdonotneedtoexplainbasic
terminologyorconceptsforexperts.Infact,doingsomayworkagainstyou.Ifatermissocommon
thatanymemberofthefieldshouldknowit,userswhoseeitexplainedatthebeginningofapieceof
contentmayconcludethatthecontentisnotmeantforthem.Rememberthatexpertuserswillalways
trytodeterminewhetheranygivenpieceofcontentiswrittenfortheirlevelorforthegeneralpublic.
 whoi.edu:AnoceanographicresearcherwithaPh.D.inPhysicalOceanographywastryingtofindupdates
ontheresearchprojectsofsomeofhiscolleagues.WhenhesawthesubtitleUnderstandingtheRoleof
theOceaninGlobalClimate,herealizedthatthesectiondescribedthedifferencebetweenclimate
changesandweatherchanges.Thisisforthegeneralpublic,Idontneedthat,hesaid.Thispassage
suffersfromanidentitycrisisitsunclearwhothecontentcreatorsweretargeting.Theyexplainthe
basicconceptofclimatechange,butthenfailtoexplainmoreadvancedconceptslikeclimateforcingand
heatsinks.

Therearesomecaveatstothisfinding,however:
Ifyouwritefornewmembersofthefieldorpeoplecompletingtheireducation,theymaynotbefamiliarwithall
basicconceptsandterminology.

Ineveryfield,therearesometermsandconceptsatthecoreofthefield(likeclimatechangefor
oceanography)andsomethatarelesserknownorlessfrequentlyused.Likeotherpeople,expertswillhave
difficultyrememberingtheexactdefinitionsoftermstheydontusefrequently.

Someexpertsenjoylookingupinformationabouttangentialfieldsinwhichtheydonothavedirectexpertise.
Inthosesituations,theymayneedmoreexplanation.Forexample,whenanoceanographicresearcherwas
readinganarticleaboutacidificationintheocean,hementioned,Itsnicetohavesomeonesummarizethis,
becauseImnotachemist.

Sometermshavemultiplepossiblemeanings,eveninwelldefinedfieldslikemedicine.
 ghr.nlm.nih.gov:Usingplainlanguageisalmostalwaysagoodideawhenwritingontheweb,buttheycan
beambiguousforexperts.Onesymptomofthebraindisorderdentatorubralpallidoluysianatrophyis
describedasinvoluntarymusclejerkingortwitching(myoclonus).Aclinicalresearchcoordinatorwitha
graduatedegreeinbiologicalsciencecommented,Ithinkthisisactuallyareallygoodpage,mainly
becausetheydoincludebothtechnicalterminologyaswellaslayterminology.Musclejerkingand
twitching,theycallthis,myoclonus.[Withoutthisterm]Imightvethoughttheywerereferringto
somethinglikedyskinesia,becausethatsalsodefinedasinvoluntarymovement.Soitsgoodthatthey
actuallydoputspecificnamesonhere.

Definingyouraudiencebeforeyoubeginwritingcontentiscrucialfordecidingwhenyoushould
explaintermsorconceptsandwhenyoushouldnot.Additionally,rememberthatprogressive
disclosureishelpfulinunclearsituationswheresomeofyouruserswillwantadefinitionandsome
wont.Consideraddinglinksortooltipswithquickdefinitions,sotheyrehiddenyetavailableforthose
whoneedthem.

GrammarandSpellingCount
Whateveryouraudience,itsagoodideatopayattentiontoyourgrammarandspelling.However,
whenyourtargetusersarehighlyeducated,theymaybemorelikelytocatchmistakesinyourwriting,
andtheymaybemorecritical.

Whileresearchingcomputerhardwareupgrades,anITmanagerwithamastersdegreecommented
onhisfrustrationwithpoorgrammar.
 NoteverybodywritesatthesamelevelTypos,grammaticalerrors.Peopledontalwaystake
thetimetoproofread.[]Here,theyveleftoutthedefinitearticle.[]ItsatinylittlethingIll
fixateonasIgothroughthesethings.IfIhavetopayattentiontohowIwrite,Iexpectitin
others.

Poorlywrittencontentwilldamagethecredibilityofyoursiteandofyourorganization.Ifyouwant
expertstotakeyouseriously,takethetimetoproofreadeverypieceofcontentbeforeitgoeslive.

WhatExpertsHaveinCommonwithGeneralAudiences
Asidefromthedifferenceshighlightedhere,highlyeducatedandspecializedusersstillexhibitsome
behaviorsandpreferencesseeningeneralwebusers.
Expertsdontreadtextlinearlyorcompletely.Likeotherusers,theyscantextandreadonlywhatis
interestingorrelevanttothem.Evenwhileconductingresearchandreadingscientificpapers,expertswould
jumparoundinthecontenttofindthesectionsofinterest.

Expertsdontlikefluffycontent.Theymayhavelargervocabulariesandfasterreadingspeedsthan
averageusers,buttheydonthavetimetowaste.Articleswithlongorhighlevelintroductionswithlittle
meaningfulinformationsignalageneraltargetaudience.

Expertsarentnecessarilytechsavvy.Unlessyouretargetingexpertsinthetechnologyfields,dontassume
thesesmartpeopleareautomaticallyadvancedwebusers.Forexample,wesawaPh.D.getstuckinaPDF
document.

Expertsappreciateshortcutsincontent.Theyusesummariesandsubheadingstohelpthemfindthe
informationtheywantanddecidewhentoreadmoreclosely.

Tolearnhowtocreatecontentthatsatisfiesandexceedstheexpectationsofyouraudience,check
outourfulldaycourseonWritingCompellingDigitalCopy.

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