The layout method for new media copywriting 10w+ popular articles!

Excellent 10w+ articles each have their own merits, but there are certain patterns in the layout of good articles. Today I will share with you the typesetting techniques for WeChat public accounts. You can layout an article in as fast as 3 minutes. Before I begin, let me share a little story with you:

I previously took over a corporate public account. Each tweet had around 2,000 readers, but the number of completed reads was less than 1,200. The first thing I did when I took over this account was to optimize the article layout. Later, the reading completion rate of each article increased greatly. For an article with 2,000 readings, the average number of completed readings was around 1,800.

So you see, good typesetting can make people want to read the article, but a bad article will hinder the good article.

What is considered “good typography”? You can refer to the following standards:

1. Be able to express the message that the article wants to convey more clearly;

2. Highlight the key points, make the article easier to read, and improve the user's absorption efficiency;

3. Improve user's visual experience.

How to design a good typography? I will share from three parts: pre-typesetting preparation, fixed module and main text module.

Preparation before typesetting: 1. Determine the typesetting style

Before we start typesetting, we need to determine the overall typesetting style based on the content of the article, because different article styles will result in very different fonts, font sizes and pictures. Generally speaking, we will determine the typesetting style based on the content of the article, such as whether it is fresh and simple, or high-end and concise? Is it full of design sense or rigorous and simple? For specific choices, you can base them on the company's style requirements, or keep the company's theme color consistent. If it is a personal account, design the layout based on the account positioning. Based on the uniqueness of the official account's positioning, most official accounts require that all articles be laid out in the same style, as this can deepen the user's reading impression and create a brand effect. This saves a lot of trouble for the operations staff, because after determining the unified template, each time we do typesetting, we only need to spend 3 minutes to change the content and pictures of the template, which saves a lot of time.

2. Do you want to use the article editor?

It is said that every new media operator has at least one article editor tool in his or her favorites. Because these tools are powerful and there are a lot of materials. However, we should use it selectively and not abuse it in the process of typesetting. When the editor does not have enough materials or cannot find a suitable template, we go to other places to piece them together, which will make the layout look weird and lower the overall effect. Therefore, if you want to improve your typesetting skills, first maintain independence from the editor, and then design your own unique template.

3. Reader-centric

When typesetting, always think about "how to make it more comfortable for users to read?" For example, should the overall color tone be black or white? If I use gray fonts, will users be able to read the article content clearly in dark mode? Which of the two titles, A or B, will make users feel more comfortable? What templates do users like? Is our template style what users like? You can refer to the layout style of competitor accounts and learn from it; you can also post several articles in different styles and choose the best one based on the data.

Fixed module layout

1. Fonts

Different fonts will create different styles. For example, Lishu can create a better ancient texture than Songti; Microsoft Yahei has a more business atmosphere. Nowadays, the more commonly used fonts are Microsoft YaHei and Songti, but users will inevitably find them boring after reading them too much, so if you can use a more novel font, you can attract readers' attention. In the article, try to use one font, and no more than two, otherwise it will appear messy. When we choose two fonts, we can use one for the title and one for the body text. However, try to use the same font family, and try to keep the characteristics and blades of each font consistent in style.

2. Font color

Be sure to pay attention to the similarity between the background color and the font color, otherwise it will be difficult to see if you are not careful, as shown below.

Especially since WeChat launched the dark mode, we should be more cautious in choosing font colors. It is recommended that you choose black that is not particularly dark in purity, and colors that are relatively soft visually, otherwise it will be a bit "eye-irritating".

▲ Red and yellow on black and white background

If you don’t know much about color matching, you can use the color matching website Color SchemeDesigner to make a choice. (www.peise.net/tools/web/)

The biggest advantage of this website is that it provides a color query comparison table, which helps us query color values.

3. Font size

Choose 16px or 17px for titles, 14px or 15px for body text, and 12px or 13px for comments. The above is a more comfortable font size. Any smaller font size will easily cause visual fatigue, while too large font size will lose its beauty.

4. Word count

There is no specific requirement for the number of words in WeChat pictures, but statistics based on users' reading habits show that 1,000-3,000 words is generally best, and long articles should not exceed 8,000 words.

5. Word spacing

Character spacing refers to the distance between two characters. The smaller the font size, the larger the spacing between characters should be to make it easier for users to recognize. If the font size is large, you can reduce the character spacing. It is recommended that you set the character spacing to 1px or 1.5px, and the maximum should not exceed 2px. For example, you can feel it for yourself in the following picture.

6. Line Spacing

Line spacing refers to the distance between lines. Just like word spacing, there needs to be a certain sense of distance between lines to make them comfortable. Because our eyes move in a "Z" shape when we read, maintaining an appropriate line width can improve our reading experience. It is recommended that you set the line spacing to 1.5px, 1.75px or 2px.

7. Paragraph spacing

Paragraph spacing refers to the distance between paragraphs. Because long paragraphs will make users feel stressed when reading, we add a blank line between each paragraph to give users a sense of breathing. Appropriate paragraph spacing can also distinguish the logical levels of paragraphs, making users think that this is a well-structured article.

Note: Never make a whole paragraph exceed one screen, otherwise people will lose the desire to read.

8. Page Margins

Page margins refer to various alignment methods, mainly left alignment, right alignment, justification, diamond alignment, and centering. The recommended indent size at both ends is 1.0px.

9. Alignment

There are four types of alignment options: left alignment, right alignment, center alignment, and justification. The titles are mostly left-aligned or centered; the main text is generally justified, so that both sides of the article look more neat and unified, meeting the needs of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Using justification for email addresses may cause the spacing between words to look strange. In this case, you can switch to centering or left alignment, and make good use of line breaks to improve the layout. If it is a poem or an advertising copy, you can choose left-aligned, center-aligned, or right-aligned. Right-aligned is less used, but it is easier to attract readers.

10. Article pictures

The role of illustrations is to help users understand the content of the article. Generally speaking, using illustrations of the same color and style in an article is more visually comfortable. The inserted pictures do not require special processing, but it is recommended to use high-definition, watermark-free pictures. If the photo quality is poor, you can perform post-processing or even consider changing the picture.

11. Emoticons

Emoticons are a great way to lighten the mood and make the content less monotonous. However, when using emoticons, we must pay attention to the image size. If it is a square, the maximum should not exceed 200*200px.

12. Image size

The size of the article cover image is 900*383px, but in different usage scenarios, the cover image will be cropped into different sizes, so it is recommended that you center the important content when designing the cover image. If you feel you have no ideas for cover image design, you can go to Chuangketie or Gaoding Design to look for inspiration. There are many cover image templates there to meet the needs of various industries. The recommended sizes for the illustrations in the article are 16:9 and 4:3. If you want to change the image size, you can right-click on the image, select the Edit button, and change the size. It is very convenient. It is recommended that you try not to use vertical illustrations, unless they are long pictures, otherwise the entire screen will be filled with article pictures, which will greatly affect the reading experience.

13. Punctuation

The inappropriate use of punctuation marks will not only cause visual discomfort, but may also lead to ambiguity, so it is important to use punctuation marks correctly. If you want to indicate omission, you can use... or..., the former is the Chinese ellipsis, and the latter is the English ellipsis, but you must never use them. . . . . . Using ellipsis doesn't look sophisticated at all. The correct way to use a dash to introduce the following content is "-" instead of "-". The former is a dash, and the latter is two connectors. If it is to express time or connect two numbers, you can use the connector "-". In an article, there are often contents that represent parallelism. If it is an ordered list, it can be represented by Roman numerals 1.2.3. If it is unnecessary content, the following 3 methods of representation can be used. We often see the two symbols ▲ and ▼ in articles. The first equilateral triangle is used below the illustrations in the text as a note, and the second inverted triangle is often placed in a single line as a dividing line.

14. Space

Sometimes, making good use of spaces can make our content look clearer, such as in the following situations: Spaces are needed between Chinese and English, for example: She just returned from Canada yesterday. Spaces are required between Chinese characters and numbers. For example: In the end, he was elected president of the student union with a lead of 103 votes. Spaces are required between English words, for example: I have a dream.

15. Highlight the key points

If we want users to read a certain paragraph, or want a paragraph to leave a deep impression on users, we need to highlight the key content. There are four common ways to "highlight the key points": bold, change font size, change font color, and use font background color; in addition, underline, italics, and increasing word spacing can also be used to emphasize, but the overall feeling is not as comfortable as the first four.

16. No need to indent the first line

When we write articles, we are always used to leaving two spaces on the first line. However, for WeChat public accounts, two spaces do not look good when reading on a mobile phone.

Text module layout

The main text layout is mainly divided into three parts: top guide, body text and bottom guide.

1. Top guide

The top guide is the first thing we see when we click on an article to read. It not only determines whether readers will continue to read the article, but also carries the following two functions: guiding readers to follow, like, and pin accounts; and implanting logos or brand culture.

When using top guides, you need to pay attention to the aspect ratio of the image to avoid taking up too much space.

2. Content layout

We have already written in detail about the content layout above, and here we emphasize three points: pay attention to the font, font size and font color; pay attention to line spacing, character spacing and page spacing; use illustrations correctly.

3. Bottom guide

You don’t need to worry too much about the length of the bottom guide. You can choose more designed or interesting content to retain users. Generally, the bottom guidance includes the source of pictures and texts, topic interaction, previous recommendations, QR codes, appreciation, reading the original text, etc. For specific typesetting styles, you can refer to similar accounts, or design your own.

The above is the guide to typesetting public accounts. I hope it can help everyone. Because the layout of my own account is not particularly fashionable, the content I share with you is mostly basic settings rather than specific layout practices. If you want a particularly high-end, grand, and classy layout, you need to continue to improve your aesthetics and design sense.

Related reading:

1. New media content planning process and writing steps!

2. B-side new media operation skills!

3. Tips for selecting topics for new media operations in 2020!

4. Five key points of the new media operation matrix!

5. New media operation: Find hot spots in 3 directions!

Author: Operation is a pit

Source: Operation is a pitfall