Website Headings
H O W T O C R E AT E
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Headings for your Website
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Heading Tags / Headings
The use of Headings on your webpage serves three basic purposes:
•
To divide up the content into sections of content so they can be identified
quickly by users viewing / scrolling the page.
•
To provide a table of contents for users with adaptive technologies
(screen readers) so they can “jump to” the section they are interested in.
To add additional keywords to your webpage and increase your sites visibility to
most major search engines.
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How to Use
Think of Headings like creating a table of contents for your webpage. They split
content in sections make things easier to read (breaking up large chunks of text)
and users scan the document for the more important points of the article.
You have the use of heading levels from H1, H2 all the way down to H6. The H2
through H6 tags should be used for sub-headings, drilling down further into an
article where applicable.
Your first line of text on your webpage must be your H1. You will never use
another H1 tag on the same page.
This web article shows an example of how headings are uses to sub-divide content
into sections.
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Technical Details
Using HTML, headings are identified using the <H1>; <H2>; <H3>; <H4>; <H5>; <H6>
Using i:Create, place your cursor on the line of text to be your Heading (read more
under Formatting). Select the appropriate heading level using the Font Format
options in the i:Create toolbar.
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Formatting
Heading serve a purpose and must flow in the correct order - always think “Table
of Contents” (read more under Accessibly). Therefore the use of Headings is
NEVER acceptable for the purpose of changing the font size and/or colour.
As an editor, your goal is to divide content up appropriately into sections or
categories using Headings.
Headings should always be left justified.
MORE >
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Headings should be a concise lead in to the subject material. Headings are not
meant to be a sentence (think of a newspaper headline) so they do not require
punctuation such as “For More Information”.
Throughout this document
we have labeled out
headers with graphic icons
to help you recognize
Punctuation in Headings
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where headers would
Consistency in the Case Spelling of Headings
A common way to write titles is using upper/lower case (except for prepositions)
such as “A Great Way to Spend an Afternoon”.
be placed.
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Links on Headings
Heading tags, for accessibility, cannot have a link on them. Try and link something
relevant in the body such as a name, place or “for more information” line.
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Headings and Accessibility
For people who cannot visually see webpage content, a screen reader will often
be used to have the webpage content read aloud. The proper use of Headings will
create a table of contents for the user to easily skip between sections when using
adaptive technologies.
There can only be on H1 tag on the page and it should be the very first piece
of text.
Headings (H1, H2, H3…) must always go in order on the page. Think of them like
mini tables of content for your page. You cannot skip to a particular heading just
because you might like the formatting better. Consider using bold and italic or
requesting a custom style to be developed for the site.
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Headings and Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
The major search engine now pull the H1 tag from your webpage and use that as
the page title. Ensure that the H1 is always present, always the first line of text and
is a clear and concise title for the content to be found on the page.
The search engines have accepted the use of heading tags as keyword terms for the
content of your page. A keyword-rich heading will significant improve your search
engine visibility. However, do not get over zealous with the use of Headings. If you
would not sub-divide content on your page into multiple sections, the do not use
additional headings beyond H1.
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Happily working together, for you.
In a highly competitive and complex online communications sector, we are uniquely
prepared and qualified to adapt and evolve to the continuously changing digital
landscape.
Call us anytime 1-800-265-6102 or Product Support 1-800-691-5528
[email protected]
www.eSolutionsGroup.ca
Alternative formats of this publication are available on request.
230002_fs_headings_V02 / 04.12