The 7 Deadly Sins of Writing for the Web. 7 Quick Reasons Why No One Read Your Last Article

Turn around now if you don't like mirrors. Read further and you may see your own reflection. Dare you press on? You will learn something about yourself and your writing. You will learn how to get your article ignored. If you are honest, you will learn how to get read.

This is not about keyword optimization. That gets your article indexed by the mindless search engines. Keywords have their place. This is about making a human being want to read your writing. Last time I checked, robots don't read.

Humans invented and survive on language. We need it. We love it. If we find reason to loathe it, we run from it. Here are the top 7 reasons why a breathing, literate human may pass by your article even after they've found it floating in the fluid space of the Internet.

The Title
This is where keywords play a part in getting your article seen. Search engines and humans alike want descriptive titles. "Fuzzy Bunnies" does nothing to make anyone look once, much less twice, at your article. "Raising Rabbits for Profit. Starting a Rabbit Farm for Less than $1000" is a laser beam to your intended audience. Rabbit farms are not everyone's cup of tea, but you are now going to draw the attention of your serious readers.

The Abstract
A well crafted, easy to read paragraph is crucial. It should highlight the main theme of the article and entice the reader. Think of it as your article's resume. If it gets the reader's attention, they are likely to "hire" your article.

Short, pithy sentence are not going to get your foot in the door. "A funny look at milkshakes," will lose eyeballs faster than nickels in a slot machine. Better to go with, "Find out why milkshakes are taking over the world, controlling the weather and may elect the next President of the United States." That may pique someone's curiosity just enough to make their finger fall on the mouse button.

Paragraph One
This is Writing 101. The first paragraph should not only grab the reader's attention, but draw them down to the next. Compel these humans to read your article by whatever means necessary. Shock them. Taunt them. Tell them this article will change their life.