Testing Readability
When optimizing a website for usability content should be easy to read. Writing web or email copy should be easy to scan and written on a 6th to 8th-grade level. You might want to knock that down a couple of grades if you are writing for the average redneck. Regardless of your audience, it is important to test the readability of your copy. I try to score a 60 or above on the Flesch–Kincaid readability tests there’s a great online tool or you can use Microsoft Word to test this.
To check the readability of your copy in Microsoft Word
- Make sure “Show readability statistics” is checked under “File > Options > Proofing”
- Open Microsoft Word and paste your text in the new document
- Click “Review > Spelling and Grammar”
For this post, I scored 69.3 on the test, and it looks like I am writing on about a 7th-grade level. I am guessing my audience is not the average redneck; I’m guessing they are classy and sophisticated or at least like me — an above average redneck:)