Content uses scannable formatting
Why it matters
Dense blocks of prose are one of the leading causes of visitors leaving a page without reading the content. Eye-tracking research consistently shows that web readers scan in an F or Z pattern — they read the first line of each paragraph and skip the rest unless the first line hooks them. Paragraphs of 8-10 sentences are read by almost no one visiting a marketing site. Breaking copy into short paragraphs (2-4 sentences), bullet lists, and subheadings is not about dumbing content down — it is about matching how humans actually read on screens. A blog post with subheadings every 300 words allows readers to jump to the section they care about; one without subheadings requires sequential reading from the beginning, which most visitors won't do.
Severity rationale
Medium because wall-of-text formatting suppresses the amount of content visitors actually read, reducing the effective reach of marketing copy even when the words themselves are well-written.
Remediation
Audit your marketing pages for long paragraphs. Any paragraph visible in the browser that runs more than 4-5 lines on a desktop viewport is a candidate for breaking.
Formatting rules for marketing copy:
- Paragraphs: 2-4 sentences maximum
- 3 or more items in a row → use a <ul> list, not a run-on sentence
- Long explanatory sections: add an <h3> subheading at least every 4-5 paragraphs
- Feature descriptions: 1-2 sentences each, not a short essay
In practice, find long description components in components/AboutSection.tsx, components/FeaturesSection.tsx, or long prose in MDX blog posts under content/blog/. Break the paragraph at each new idea or argument, not at arbitrary length. If a paragraph contains more than one claim, split it — each claim gets its own paragraph or bullet.
DetectionPro
The detection method for this pattern is part of AuditBuffet Pro.
The full method (what to look for, pass and fail conditions, and how results get reported) ships inside the Content Quality Audit. The pattern definition, severity rationale, and remediation remain openly licensed under CC-BY-4.0.
Taxons
History
- 2026-04-18·v1.0.0·Initial import from marketing-content-quality·automated