What Is Microcontent?

Definition: Microcontent is a type of UX copywriting in the form of short text fragments or phrases, often presented with no additional contextual support.

Microcontent usually communicates key messages in a concise form: it can be used to describe an article or long blog post, add clarity to an interface, or encourage a desired behavior.

Examples of microcontent:

  • Page titles
  • Page headings (headlines)
  • Taglines
  • Email subject lines
  • Summaries, decks
  • Hints, tips, explainers

Although sometimes it is presented in the context of a larger piece of text (e.g., if it’s an article title), microcontent often stands alone, such as in tweets, RSS feeds, and search-engine results.

Microcontent is UX copy because it’s actionable and relates to a broader piece of content. It exists to encourage users to take some action, usually because they want to see an in-depth (fully-written) piece of content that’s represented in the user interface by a piece of microcontent.

Not all forms of UX copy can be considered microcontent in our sense of the word, though: menu items and other commands, field labels, and error messages are self-sufficient, as opposed to being stand-ins (or summaries) of bigger things.

Why Is Microcontent Important?

These short text phrases can pack a big punch. Information-rich microcontent can be extremely persuasive, especially in the digital space, where viewers scan and move quickly. Studies (see, for example, a recent one by researchers at INRIA) suggest that most readers share articles that they never read. This phenomenon is frightening but true: people form opinions based on headlines and summaries, without putting in the effort to dig deeper. This is even worse than judging a book by its cover — it’s judging a book (or at least a search engine hit) by its title.

Well-written microcontent, when presented at the right time, can draw people in, emulate a courteous customer-service agent, and humanize the user experience. When the usability of your interface is not perfect, microcontent can step in and help save the day, leaving lasting positive impressions.

Microcontent Helps Sites Reach Business Goals

Little details can make or break the user experience. Microcontent should be an ultrashort abstract of its associated content, written in plain language, with no puns, and no "cute" or "clever" wordings.  Although it can be punchy, most importantly, it must deliver good content, keep people’s interest alive, and provide value.

Users have been burned too often on the web, and won’t wait for a page to download unless they have clear expectations for what they will get. In print, curiosity can get people to turn the page or start reading an article. Online, there are too many other temptations: links that are more promising and transparent.

Below I discuss individual guidelines for different types of microcontent.

Page Titles

Page titles are HTML title tags that are essential for SEO. The 40–60 characters that make up the page title influence how well the content ranks in search results and whether  people click the links.

The words used in the page title help search engines determine what the page is about and index it accordingly. This microcontent is the representation of your content that people see on the search-result page. It needs to be a pearl of clarity to entice viewers.  Make sure to:

  • Remove nonessential words to improve scannability
  • Move the keywords to the front the of the title to catch people’s attention and to support scanning
  • Include keywords that boosts the content’s ranking

Skip leading articles like "the" and "a" in page titles (but do include them in headlines that are embedded within a page). Shorter text is easier to read (and scan).

Page titles on search results influence what people click on. The title of this search result begins with nonessential words, Here are the …, making it more difficult for people to scan the sentence.
What can this possibly be about? At first glance, you might guess that it’s about cars, but then again maybe not. This generic page title is too broad to pique interest. The summary blurb mentions bars and restaurants, but is still not adequate at giving clues.

Be aware that what might be a good title for SEO is not necessarily good for social media. In social media, optimizing for search engines might not be as important as getting immediate clicks from social-platform users. Understanding the words that trigger interest among users is important in capturing their attention.

Page Headings (Headlines)

Headlines are microcontent — readers should be able to scan them and get a clear idea of the underlying information. Headlines are your pick-up lines. There are many guidelines for writing solid headlines. These are my two favorites:

Make sure the headline works out of context.

Online headlines are often displayed out of context: in news feeds, social media streams, blog posts, and so on.  Headline text has to stand on its own and make sense when the rest of the content is not available. Sure, users can click on the headline to get the full story, but they are too busy to do so for every single headline they see on the web.

JetBlue.com: (Left) Can you guess what the middle headline refers to? The headline has low information scent — that is, few cues to suggest what the story is about. (Right) It is not until you get to the article that you realize the headline is about bringing back an old-style jet.

Tell readers something useful.

When faced with a barrage of links, people click on headings that have the highest probability of providing value. Useful headings are specific. They provide facts or information that pique the readers’ interest. Avoid broad and generic headings.

This headline is too broad:

Alternative Treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Contrast it with:

Birds Heal Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Or
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Healed by Birds

The second one is better because it is more specific and provides concrete information that might arouse the reader’s curiosity. The third one is even better because it sets the context first (the article is about PTSD, not about birds) and supports scannability. (Front-loading the key phrase is an example of where passive voice can be used, even though it’s correctly despised by editors.)

Avoid teasers (click bait) to entice people to click, but don’t deliver on the promise. Sensational headlines that are meant to generate advertising revenue at the expense of quality and accurate content erode trust. You can fool people to click once, but you can’t fool them repeatedly, and people will leave (and not return) if they get disappointed by the destination content too often.

Taglines

A good tagline can help reassure site visitors that they are in the right place, and provides context for the detailed content.

You might be surprised by the number of people who don’t know about your company or what it does. Don’t assume that your site’s visitors know who you are when they arrive. They could be following up on a promotion or an article, and may need context or explanation.

Good taglines communicate the purpose of the site by conveying what the site is about and what visitors can get from it in a succinct manner. Remember, web users are impatient. Taglines should be brief, simple, and to the point. Brevity is good for both new and returning users. Say who you are and what you do quickly, so people can continue with the task that brought them to your site.

This tagline is too vague:

Making life easier one tip at a time

This tagine is better:

Clever life hacks to tackle everyday snags

The second tagline shows off the blog’s whimsical personality while providing information about the type of tips the site offers.

Email Subject Lines

People are bombarded daily with a deluge of email. They will delete messages unseen if the email subject line doesn't make sense or seems unappealing. For subject lines to resonate with customers, they need to be phrased as a user benefit or seen as addressing the user’s need. Clearly explain what the email is about in terms that relate to the user.

Bad: This subject line is generic and doesn’t give the reader anything specific to be excited about.
Bad: This subject line doesn’t sound very interesting. How does this message vary from past messages, and why should the reader care?
Good: Most people who shop online want to know when to expect the product to be delivered. This subject line directly addresses a real user question.

Note: Many of the writing tips for page titles and headings apply to subject lines. Be concise and start with keywords — otherwise people may not bother to read the line or the email client may cut it off.

Summaries and Card Content

Short overviews can introduce readers to long content that they might otherwise not read. Summaries can aid in comprehension by providing context for the information in a longer article. Additionally, summaries provide shortcuts for people who want to glean the main points but don’t wish to read the entire document.

PBS.org: Cards like these present chunks of information that introduce content.  High-value microcontent such as titles, summaries, and images can entice users to click through. 
NNgroup.com: Based on user feedback, we accompany each article with a summary to set the stage and help readers get the gist of the longer text.

Hints, Tips, Explainers

One or two words (or phrases) can hugely impact business.  They can supplement content in headings or titles, and may help alleviate the customer’s concern. Think of them as a live customer-service agent who anticipates people’s questions and addresses them in context. In usability testing, we’ve seen explainers save the day by gently guiding people through a process.

Nimble.com: The site addresses common questions (cost and credit card requirement) exactly when  people might think of them. Increase conversions by providing reassurances at the right time.
NCL.com: The Norwegian Cruise Line website explains why someone might benefit from entering information apparently irrelevant to the booking process.

Conclusion

Tiny lines of copy can make an enormous impact on business. They introduce interesting content which otherwise could be easily overlooked. And when presented in context, they can turn a mediocre user experience into a delightful one. 

Learn more about writing for the Web in our seminar on Writing Compelling Digital Copy.

Reference

Maksym Gabielkov, Arthi Ramachandran, Augustin Chaintreau, Arnaud Legout. Social Clicks: What and Who Gets Read on Twitter?. ACM SIGMETRICS / IFIP Performance 2016. https://hal.inria.fr/hal-01281190