Using Bullet Lists

Original article by Ron Scheer at saywhatyoumean.com

The great advantage of bullets is that readers can see a list coming long before they get to it. They can see how information is structured even before reading it—how long the list is and how many items are in it. This takes some of the work out of reading, and for that reason bullets are especially welcome on websites. Easy as they look, there's a skill to creating bulleted lists. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Use bullets only when the order of the items isn't important. When priority or sequence matters, such as the steps in a process (Step 1, Step 2, etc.), use numbers instead of bullets. And simple round bullets are just fine. The bullet is only a marker, not a decoration that is supposed to draw attention to itself. Web pages that use bits of colored graphics or icons for bullets increase download time, add visual clutter, and often challenge readability. Especially shun the pulsing, animated ones.

Two bullets are a minimum. Six are pushing the max. One item doesn't make a list. If it wants to be set apart somehow from the surrounding text, consider indenting the entire item or putting it in italics or boldface or colored text. Rule books for print will argue that two items don't make a list either. And can be easily read as part of a sentence. But when your two items are many words long, feel free to ignore this rule for the Web. Your readers will be thankful.

Meanwhile, a bulleted list begins to look overwhelming when it reaches a certain length. The limit for print tends to be eight. On the Web, have a very good reason for going over six items. Consider breaking longer lists into shorter ones. Remember how it helps to group a grocery list items into produce, dairy, frozen, etc. If this isn't an option, order the items so that related or similar items appear together in sequence.

Try not to mix phrases and complete sentences in the same list. Make the list either all one or the other. This may affect some readers more than others. But coming to a complete sentence after a series of phrases (or vice versa) is like climbing stairs and discovering one step slightly higher than the rest. The reader tends to stumble.

For readability, make all the items parallel. This is probably the toughest part of list making. It requires knowing parts of speech, a kind of grammar knowledge that has gone the way of typewriter ribbon and hoola hoops. Lists are parallel when each item begins with the same part of speech (e.g., verb form, noun, gerund). Here is an example.

# Signal before switching lanes.
# Stop and look before turning right on red.
# Stop for pedestrians at intersections.
# Yield to traffic that is entering a freeway.

The first word in each case is a verb that gives a command (signal...stop and look...stop...yield). Now consider the next example, a list of noun phrases.

# application form completed and signed
# driver's license
# insurance card
# $25 payable in cash or by check

In the above list, the first words represent things (nouns). The following list is yet another common example, using an -ing verb form called a gerund.

# observing safety regulations
# wearing appropriate clothing
# attending regular training sessions
# reporting all irregularities

Each example above illustrates parallel construction. Tricky business, but it can be mastered.

Lead-ins can be either phrases or complete sentences. Generally a list is introduced by a few words (a lead-in). The first example below uses a sentence as a lead-in; the second uses a phrase.

Remember these key rules for city driving.
# Signal before switching lanes.
# Stop and look before turning right on red.
# Stop for pedestrians at intersections.
# Yield to traffic that is entering a freeway.

For city driving, always remember to
# signal before switching lanes
# stop and look before turning right on red
# stop for pedestrians at intersections
# yield to traffic that is entering a freeway

When to use "include" and "including." "Include" or "including" mean there are many examples, of which yours is only a partial list. Consider this one.

Topics to be covered in the training course include
# observing safety regulations
# wearing appropriate clothing
# attending regular training sessions
# reporting all irregularities

Use of "include" is OK here if it means that other topics not listed will be covered. It's not OK if these are the only topics to be covered. Be aware when items in a list are mutually inclusive or exclusive. Most lists tend to be inclusive; list items may not be equally important, but they all apply together.

Each of our units has the following:
# balcony with ocean view
# king-size bed
# jaccuzi
# cable TV with HBO

In an exclusive list, only one item applies at a time, and you may want to be explicit:

To register, you need ONE form of identification:
# picture ID, OR
# passport, OR
# driver's license, OR
# utility or phone bill with your name and address

As much as logic permits, be positive. Avoid using lead-ins or list items with negatives (no, not, never, don't, etc.). For many readers they add an unwelcome layer of complexity.

Fine points - punctuation for lead-ins. In the lead-ins below, notice that the complete sentence ends with a period. It's also correct to end it with a colon (:).

Remember these key rules for city driving.

Remember these key rules for city driving:

Lead-ins that are not complete sentences get no end punctuation.

For city driving, always remember to

The idea is that the items in the list complete the sentence.

For city driving, always remember to signal before switching lanes.

In practice, there are exceptions to the rule for punctuating lead-in phrases when they end with the words "as follows," "the following," "for example," "that is," and "such as." In these cases, a colon (:) is preferred as punctuation. For example:

If you arrive early, options for parking are as follows:

To register, bring with you the following:

There are several ways to begin a lecture, such as:

Fine points - when to use capitals. Lists of complete sentences require uppercase (capital) first letters.

Remember these key rules for city driving.
# Signal before switching lanes.
# Stop and look before turning right on red.
# Stop for pedestrians at intersections.
# Yield to traffic that is entering a freeway.

Lists of phrases use lower case for the first letter of each item.

For city driving, always remember to
# signal before switching lanes
# stop and look before turning right on red.
# stop for pedestrians at intersections
# yield to traffic that is entering a freeway

They may also begin with uppercase (capital) letters. Just be consistent; don't mix and match. Fine points - punctuation for list items. When list items are complete sentences, put periods at the end of each item. In print, there are options for punctuation at the end of list items that are phrases. These range from commas and semi-colons to none at all. On the Web, where less is more, you may feel free to use none—as in the example above.