Tablet storytelling

Sara Quinn, a visual journalism teacher at Poynter, gave another really engaging talk, this one about how her research using eye-track devices could inform the design of tablet news sites.

   All of this talk simply won't make sense if you don't own a tablet, haven't ever read the paper on a tablet, have no input into how your paper (our paper) displays our work for tablets, have no role in that process, are not even being allowed to try to learn how to help.
   But now I am ranting.

She talked about about a decade of eye-tracking research she's been part of that seeks to see how people choose what they read, and once they choose, how they read it and for how long.
Recently she's researching touch tech. Does it help the reader understand and remember better?

Here's a link that might make more sense:
http://www.poynter.org/how-tos/newsgathering-storytelling/visual-voice/191875/new-poynter-eyetrack-research-reveals-how-people-read-news-on-tablets/

  • People enter a site or a page through the dominant element. The inverted Z is invalid. Whatever is biggest on the page, people look at that first. People look at faces when there is no obvious dominant element.
  • Moving graphics in ads annoy and distract people because human peripheral vision is pretty good.

Assessing how users approached the three basic layouts (look at the screen grab at left), the researchers learned that people fixated on 18 things before they chose what to read. Those "fixations" were too quick for the reader to be aware. Older people tended to fixate methodically, younger people hopped all around, looking at display elements. Both groups, once they committed to a story, really read methodically.
 •  Do not let anyone tell you young people don't read, she said. They merely choose what they will read differently.
 • Also, there is plenty of reading happening online. Digital readers read more than print readers.

People who pick a story but drop out partway through tend to drop out about 80 seconds in. People read about 250 words a minute, so right about 400 words in is where people bail.
So that's a good point for designers to place a "gold coin," a summary sidebar, another option to engage, a pullout quote, animated graphics, a photo.

Another observation, even when there are navigation tools, people use the browser's native back and forward page arrows to navigate stories. So maybe designers should make the nav tools look like back and forward arrows.

ALSO — 61 percent of readers keep touching the screen as they read. Some use their fingers like a teleprompter. They're looking for focus.

Summary:

• Tablet users have a high number of fixations before selecting what to read, especially young users.
• Make it a satisfying choice — not too hard to find the right entry point for the main story.
• You want to provide lively design with lots to look at (tiles are too simple) but don't overwhelm the page.
• 80-90 seconds is a bailout point (1:10 in videos). Reward the reader right about 400 words, to keep him engaged.