When considering the value of skimmable text on a website, it helps to imagine a different medium.
Picture yourself in a bookstore, in the cookbook section, holding the latest and greatest addition to the genre. You’re not sure whether you want to buy it so you open it to the table of contents. You quickly skim the chapter headings to see what is covered.
You might then flip ahead to a chapter that interests you. Within that chapter, you will encounter individual recipes, each laid out with its own heading. Within the recipe, the ingredients list might have its own subheading, and the cooking instructions another.
Now imagine that cookbook without a table of contents. Without chapter headings. Without recipe headings or subheadings. Imagine it as one continuous stream of text, separated only by paragraph breaks. It wouldn’t be very appealing, would it? Nor would it be particularly useful as a cooking reference.
Headings make all the difference in a book. They break down large volumes of text into easy-to-digest bits. They also provide navigation to the information most relevant to the reader.
The same principles apply to your website. Headings and subheadings help readers make sense and find their way. So it’s important that you are using them right.
Adding Headings to a Web Page or Blog Post
When you create a web page or blog post, it helps to start with an outline that includes the various headings and subheadings you plan to use when covering the topic at hand. (A heading is used for a main topic and subheading for a related topic within it. For more on this hierarchy, see my Think Like a Librarian post.)
Headings can always be tweaked and changed, but it’s best to have a general idea before you start writing. And if you can incorporate some keywords into your headings to help with search engine optimization (SEO), all the better.
When it comes time to prepare your content for publishing, be sure to use the heading tags in your content management system (CMS) to denote the various levels of headings you are using.
Heading Tags
For a website or blog heading, it is not enough to convert a line of text to bold or italics. You need to use the heading tags in your CMS. If you are not sure how to do this, consult the documentation for your CMS.
Generally, heading tags in a CMS work much like they do in Word or Google Docs. You can define the style for each one, including font size and weight. You can then apply that tag to sections of any page or post on your site. Here is an example from WordPress:
Heading Tags Are Hierarchical
When adding heading tags, you need to maintain their hierarchical order. On a website, there can only be one Heading 1 tag per page. In most content management systems, the Heading 1 tag is automatically created based on the page title. From there, you can use any of the lower tags, but in order. That is, don’t put a Heading 4 tag before a Heading 2 tag.
This hierarchical structure presents the information you are offering in a logical order, making it clear to people and search engines what you are discussing.
(For more information on the Heading 1 tag specifically, see this article from Semrush, also linked to above.)
Other Benefits of Heading Tags
Heading tags do more than break up text. Here are some other reasons to use them:
- Heading tags are important for accessibility reasons; they identify headings for people who use screen readers, allowing them to assess whether they want to keep reading while also giving them navigation options. (Yoast)
- Heading tags help search engines. They need an organizing structure to understand the context and meaning of a page or post, which they then use to determine rankings for particular search terms. Heading tags provide that structure.
- As noted by Yoast, there are also indirect SEO benefits from the skimmable text subheadings help create: improved readability and more accessible information encourages people to stay longer, reducing the bounce rate from a site. A lower bounce rate can, in turn, help a site rank better.
Headings Help Users Get Meaning Fast
Your website or blog exists to draw an audience to your message. Given that most people take less than a minute to judge the value of your site, you need to grab their attention quickly.
Headings and subheadings create skimmable text, providing both visual breaks and a roadmap that guides readers through the main points of your page or post, encouraging them to read more and extend their time on your site.
Photo of Union Station by Crystal Smith.