One of the most important characteristics of any website or online material is it’s readability. In order for the content to be effective and to do its job, people must be able to easily read it. It sounds simple, but with the amount of distractions that are online and the difficulty that some people have with reading from a screen, it’s not uncommon for a site to suffer from poor readability.

If you want to learn more about making you website readable, this article will cover some of the most important factors.

Spacing

Spacing is a big issue online. Many times too much text and too many images are crammed in to small areas, which makes it very difficult for the text to be read. When it comes to readability, less clutter equals more effective text.

Whitespace around blocks of text and images is key, as is line spacing. Give your text plenty of room to breathe and don’t try to cram too much in to any area.

Font Size

Not everyone prefers to read fonts of the same size. People with poor vision typically like larger fonts because it prevents straining of the eyes, but others may prefer to read smaller text. Styling your text in percentages or ems instead of pixels will allow visitors to use their browser to change the text size.

Font size is also key for making important text stand out. However, use this technique sparingly as the less you use it the more impact it will have.

Font Selection

Unlike when you are working with print design, in web design there are a relatively small number of web-safe fonts. If you use other fonts your visitors may not be able to see it as you have it designed. There are ways around this through things like sIFR that allow you to replace fonts.

If you are trying to get creative by using a lot of different fonts, chances are you are hurting the readability of the site. Stick to about two or three basic fonts to avoid readability issues.

Line Width

Modern websites are typically being design a good bit wider than they were just a few short years ago, due to the common widescreen monitors that so many interent users have.

Generally speaking, text columns should not be wider than about 700 pixels, otherwise than can get very difficult to read. Likewise, very narrow lines and columns can also cause poor readability.

Font Weight

It is a known fact that bold text stands out when compared to text with a normal weight. Use bold to make an impact when needed, but don’t use too much bold or it will have no impact and make it hard to read.

Distractions

If you want the text of your website to be highly effective, make it the focal piece and minimize distractions. Putting too much on the site will cause a lessened impact for everything. Keep the text emphasized by using less elements in the design that could be a distraction.

Steven Snell is a web designer and blogger from New Jersey. He maintains a design blog called DesignM.ag. If you’d like to see more about text and fonts you can find collections at his blog of calligraphy fonts and bold fonts.