Writing in the Digital Age: When Good is No Longer Good Enough

Writing in the digital age requires clarity, structure, and intentional design to match how people actually read online. Because digital readers skim, scan, and switch attention frequently, effective writing must surface key information quickly and guide readers toward clear next steps.

Good writing is good, and good plain writing is better. But writing that will be presented on digital media — rather than on paper — must clear an even higher bar. This is because people no longer read articles end-to-end, books cover-to-cover.

Digital readers don’t usually read. They skim for the information they need and often stop when they think they’ve found it. Or enough of it. This is more important for articles and web-writing because the simple act of picking up a hardcover or opening an e-book probably indicates a higher level of commitment to the activity.

So how do we engage today’s fickle readers? By writing clearly, simply and well. That was always the formula for engaging prose, but there was never as much competition for the readers’ attention as we face today.

This puts a premium on good document design and good economical story-telling. Effective writing brings the key information to the forefront, which allows the reader to skim. And readers are much less inclined to read every word of your story than they might have been 10 or 20 years ago.

Structuring Writing for Digital Readers

Good, interesting writing is important, but it’s not enough. PMC Training writing skills instructor Moira W. has developed a method for structuring all writing — even e-mail messages — to engage the reader. She calls it the whats. This structure helps readers quickly understand purpose, relevance, and next steps:

What?

Tell your readers what you’re talking about.

So what?

Tell your readers why it matters to you. Even better, explain why it should matter to your readers.

Now what?

Tell your readers what you want them to do. You’ve identified a problem and given your readers information or insight. Now provide a call to action.

Good digital writing — good writing, period — that will engage readers, even at a time when people lose interest quickly, may sound simple. But “good” will not mean the same thing for every reader in your audience.

Attention and Writing in the Digital Age

Cognitive psychology research distinguishes several core types of attention. These attention patterns help explain why traditional writing often fails in digital environments. Most readers rely on each of these approaches to varying extents, and effective communication takes into account how they operate together:

Sustained attention

Tech-savvy, multi-screening (using more than one digital device at a time), social media users may have difficulty paying attention for extended periods of time, but they can do more with less using bursts of attention and efficiently coding to memory.

To reach these people, be clear, personal, relevant, and to the point — core principles of effective writing.

Selective attention

Readers’ ability to filter out distractions isn’t related to technology or social media usage, or to media consumption. But it declines with multi-screening. You need to hold readers’ attention to compete with other stimuli, and also to steal attention from other interests.

To reach these people, do the unexpected, keep things moving, and focus on a clear message.

Alternating attention

Digital lifestyles improve the ability to switch between tasks, but readers can feel overwhelmed.

To reach these people, embed calls to action, be interactive, continue experiences onto other screens, and use sequential messaging.

Digital media expose Canadians to massive amounts of information. Multi-screening and social media are the new norm for readers of all ages.

Business writers who see the growth of digital media as a threat have already surrendered. To thrive you need to see it as a challenge, see it as a higher bar and see it as an opportunity.

Consumers of digital information are not fickle. They’re just getting better at doing more with less. And less is what they want.

They’ll pay attention to you and your message as long as you give them what they want.

Improve Your Professional Writing in the Digital Age

If you’re looking to improve your writing skills, check out the business writing courses offered by PMC Training.  If you’re not sure which workshop is right for you, give us a call at 613-234-2020 or email us at opentraining@pmctraining.com and we’ll help you choose.