First 2 Words Are All That Matters

Users typically see about first 2 words for most text items on the web; they’ll see a little more if the lead words are short, and only the first word if they’re long.

This rule applies especially for title links so be careful how you write titles for your posts if you want to attract readers attention. It’s also good for SEO as search engines give better relevance to first couple of words and read just 50 characters or so.

Good Links

• Use plain language
• Use specific terminology
• Follow conventions for naming common features
• Front-load user- and action-oriented terms
• Examples:
  • “Gift Cards & E-Gift Certificates “
  • “New customers apply online now”
  • “First 2 Words Are All That Matters”

Bad Links

• Bland, generic words
• Made-up words or terms
• Starting with blah-blah and deferring the information-carrying text to the end
• Examples:
  • “Working while you study: paying tax”
  • “Introducing Chase Exclusives”
  • “Profit Accelerator Overview”

Guide Users to Correct Links

• Allow users to confidently predict what they’ll get if they click.
• Be clearly differentiated from the other links.
• Not be misleading or promise too much.

Nanocontent (first bit of a link) just needs to be good enough that users will sniff the most promising links in full.