Attention matters, argues Faris Yakob, but using it to its full potential is a case of balancing fast and slow media to work across both high and low attention environments.
How fast are you reading this? A meta-analysis of 190 studies suggests the average adult reading speed in English is 238 words per minute for non-fiction (it’s slightly higher for fiction). Whether you are reading this and how rapidly is a function of a number of elements.
The fact that you are reading it at all suggests it is probably relevant to your interests and therefore you probably work in or around advertising. How much attention you focus on it is dependent on the interplay of how much the headline suggests the topic is of particular interest to you, what your pre-existing associations are with the publication and me as the author, and how it is written, displayed and the broader context of consumption.