Surfers prefer simple websites

When it comes to websites we prefer plain text over arty designs every time, according to a survey carried out by the influential Poynter Institute.

The study tracked the eye movements of almost 70 volunteers while they surfed their favourite news sites. The experiment found that the eyes of online readers are first attracted to news briefs or captions and only then to photos and graphics.

Contrary to popular belief, banner adverts were well received with more than 45 per cent of surfers taking them in, although other graphics and pictures were only looked at 22 per cent of the time.

The survey also found that participants read shallow but wide, and choose to pursue selected topics in depth. It also found that traditional sources of news - printed newspapers, television and radio - had not been abandoned in favour of online news services.

This is the first in-depth study of online reading habits and follows similar work by the Institute into print media in the 1980s and 1990s.

These studies are widely credited with having played a key part in the way newspapers are designed today.

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