Table of contents

Writing good web texts and link texts

Visitors read a web page differently from a letter: they scan the headings and the links. With these tips you write texts and links that read well, are easy to find in Google and also work for people who use a screen reader.

Headings

The title of the page is already the main heading (Heading 1). So don't start the text with the title again.
In the editor, use Heading 2 for a section and Heading 3 for a subsection below it.
Don't skip a level: don't put a Heading 3 directly below the title.
Make a heading a real heading, not just a bold line. Search engines and screen readers recognize the structure of your page by its headings.

Write as if there are no links

A text should also read well without the links. Don't announce a link and don't describe how a link works.

Good	Not good
Without links, the World Wide Web would never have been a success.	Click here for more information about the web.

A clear link text

The link text should make clear where the link goes, even if you don't read the text around it. Screen readers can read out all the links of a page as a list. A list with read more ten times then says nothing.

Not good: Read more
Good: Read more about accessibility

Ask yourself: do I know where this link goes if I read only the link text? Then it is a good link text. A clear link text also helps you get found in Google.

In the editor, first select the words that should become the link, then click the chain (Link). If you choose a page without selecting anything, the title of that page becomes the link text.

A link to an email address

Put the email address itself in the link text, for example info@example.com, not email us. Not everyone has an email program that opens when you click the link, for example on a computer in a library or when you use webmail. Those visitors can then copy the address. And everyone sees right away that it is an email link.

A link to a file

With a link to a PDF or other file, tell:

what is in the file;
the kind of file, such as PDF or Excel;
how big it is, especially for large files;
the date, if it is a file that changes often, such as a timetable.

Example: Download the annual report 2025 (PDF, 1.4 MB).

Images

Give an image a short description (alt text). In the editor, click the image and then Image properties. A screen reader reads this text aloud, and Google uses it too.

A few more tips

Put the most important thing at the top. Many visitors don't read further than the first paragraphs.
Write short sentences and short paragraphs. Use a bulleted list when you name several things.
Let links in the text open in the same window. That is the most pleasant for visitors.

# Writing good web texts and link texts

Visitors read a web page differently from a letter: they scan the headings and the links. With these tips you write texts and links that read well, are easy to find in Google and also work for people who use a screen reader.

## Headings

- The title of the page is already the main heading (Heading 1). So don't start the text with the title again.
- In the editor, use **Heading 2** for a section and **Heading 3** for a subsection below it.
- Don't skip a level: don't put a Heading 3 directly below the title.
- Make a heading a real heading, not just a bold line. Search engines and screen readers recognize the structure of your page by its headings.

## Write as if there are no links

A text should also read well without the links. Don't announce a link and don't describe how a link works.

| Good | Not good |
|---|---|
| Without links, the *World Wide Web* would never have been a success. | *Click here* for more information about the web. |

## A clear link text

The link text should make clear where the link goes, even if you don't read the text around it. Screen readers can read out all the links of a page as a list. A list with *read more* ten times then says nothing.

- Not good: *Read more*
- Good: *Read more about accessibility*

Ask yourself: do I know where this link goes if I read only the link text? Then it is a good link text. A clear link text also helps you get found in Google.

> In the editor, first select the words that should become the link, then click the chain (Link). If you choose a page without selecting anything, the title of that page becomes the link text.

## A link to an email address

Put the email address itself in the link text, for example [info@example.com](mailto:info@example.com), not *email us*. Not everyone has an email program that opens when you click the link, for example on a computer in a library or when you use webmail. Those visitors can then copy the address. And everyone sees right away that it is an email link.

## A link to a file

With a link to a PDF or other file, tell:

- what is in the file;
- the kind of file, such as PDF or Excel;
- how big it is, especially for large files;
- the date, if it is a file that changes often, such as a timetable.

Example: Download the *annual report 2025* (PDF, 1.4 MB).

## Images

Give an image a short description (alt text). In the editor, click the image and then **Image properties**. A screen reader reads this text aloud, and Google uses it too.

## A few more tips

- Put the most important thing at the top. Many visitors don't read further than the first paragraphs.
- Write short sentences and short paragraphs. Use a bulleted list when you name several things.
- Let links in the text open in the same window. That is the most pleasant for visitors.

## See also

- Formatting text in the editor
- Creating a link
- Putting a PDF or other file on a page
- HTML and CSS: the basics

*Checked: November 2026*

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Bron: https://help.xanti.nl/en/reference/web-texts