There are things you don't know about your customers. It's not you, it's them. But you need to figure it out. Here are some hard lessons I've learned over the years - they apply to usability, pet peeves and other fun stuff. Learn these and you'll have more, happier customers/visitors/readers/fans:
1. Reading onscreen is hard, for everyone
The most basic principle of usability: It's hard for folks to read online. Much harder than reading in print. Remember this. Burn it into your brain. Small typefaces, weird page layouts and odd color schemes may seem great, but they're bound to hurt your business in the long run.
2. They like short paragraphs.
Oldest rule of marketing, from way back when we printed on paper and used mail and stuff: Write no more than 4-5 lines in a paragraph. Read My Life in Advertising and Scientific Advertising (Advertising Age Classics Library)
3. They like short lines
Reading onscreen is hard. The typical person can best read 10-20 words per line. No more. If you're using microscopic fonts to fit every word possible on a line, change your ways.
4. They like wide line spacing and nice margins
Also know as 'leading', wide line spacing makes text easier to read. Margins shorten the lines so that you get fewer words per line (see above).
Folks actually read faster when line spacing is really tight, but they retain and comprehend less. A fantastic piece of research by the University of Wichita proves it.
Read more: 22 Things You Don't Know About Your Customers | Internet Marketing Strategy: Conversation Marketing http://www.conversationmarketing.com/2009/08/22-things-you-dont-know-about-customers.htm#ixzz0czuY2H7y
22 Things You Don't Know About Your Customers | Internet Marketing Strategy: Conversation Marketing
