A new study by software provider VisibleThread found that 58% of nearly 5,000 pages of website content for 50 U.S. banks is “inaccessible” to the average American. Even the most readable websites studied were more difficult to read than Moby Dick, the report said.

Jargon, complex language, long sentences, and excessive use of passive voice received most of the blame for dragging down readability scores.

According to the report, the average American reads at an 8th grade level, but most of the retail banks studied publish content at a 9th grade level or higher. Content on the websites for Heartland Financial, Northern Trust and Bank of New York Mellon averaged a 12th grade reading level.

An academic paper on chess received only a slightly lower readability score, at 40, than the bottom 10 banks in the study, at 40.5. Even the top 10 banks in the study only received a score of 50, well below Moby Dick (57.9) and far below Harry Potter (72.8).

M&T Bank, First Citizens BancShares and Simmons First National all ranked high overall, but saw their scores drop due to their excessive use of complex language, meaning words not easily recognized by the average person.

“Financial information doesn’t need to be complex,” the report said. “Even compliance notifications can be written using simpler vocabulary.”

Of the 50 banks analyzed, M&T Bank was the only one that used long sentence levels at the recommended rate of 5% or less for clear communication. Overuse of long sentences dragged down 3 of the top 10 overall performers, Wintrust Financial, Commerce Bancshares and East West Bancorp, each of which scored 3x the recommended levels or higher.

The report found almost 90% of the banks studied guilty of using passive voice at excessive levels. VisibleThread said use of passive voice should be at 4% or lower, but only six banks in the study achieved this goal. The survey average for all banks was 9%, while three banks, Investors Bancorp, Capital Federal Financial and Northwest Bancshares, scored at 16% or higher.

“Passive voice conveys an academic tone, and is not as direct as active voice,” the report said. “Using active voice makes messages clear and simpler to comprehend for all readers.”

JPMorgan Chase, the only Big Four bank on the list, ranked just 43rd out of the 50 banks for content clarity. According to the study, the bank’s website content is at an 11th grade reading level with a readability score of just 40. Its passive voice use is at 9% and its long sentence use is at 33%. The bank’s best category ranking, at 19, was for its use of complex words, which make up just 2.3% of its content. Chase is the largest U.S. bank by total assets.

At the top of the list was Texas-based Prosperity Bancshares, with content at a 7th grade reading level, a readability score of 54, use of passive voice at 4%, long sentence use at 8% and complex word use at 2%.

Bank Innovation reached out to Prosperity for comment but did not hear back as of presstime. The bank’s website uses bullet points and short sentences to describe nearly all of its personal banking offerings.

Oregon-based Umpqua Holdings was ranked second, despite outperforming Prosperity with content at a 6th grade reading level, a readability score of 64 and complex word use at just 1.62%. It faltered, however, with use of passive voice at 8% and long sentence use at 11%.

Rounding out the bottom of the list was BNY Mellon, with content at a 12th grade reading level, a readability score of 35, use of passive voice at 11%, long sentence use at 34% and complex word use at 3.14%.

VisibleThread said its findings show the majority of bank content is simply not clear enough to build trust. It said transparency can help banks achieve compliance, increase consumer trust, improve close rates and lower acquisition costs, and edge out banks slower to change.

“Low trust levels and poor customer loyalty mean banks will spend more to attract and retain customers,” the report said. “Competition from payment and mobile wallet start-ups, free from complex language, threaten to gobble market share.”

Ron Shevlin, director of research at Cornerstone Advisors, had a different take on Twitter, suggesting the average reading level of Americans was the “real problem.”

New study finds that "58% of U.S. retail bank [website] content is too complex for the average American."https://t.co/OoIY2w8vwW

According to the study: "The average American reads at the 8th grade level."

(Maybe THAT'S the real problem here)

— Ron Shevlin (@rshevlin) January 3, 2019

Advances in artificial intelligence and natural language processing, the report claimed, could lead to more successful plain language programs that used to be expensive to implement, time-consuming for staff, and difficult to oversee.

The report said the pressure to sell products may encourage “vague or overly complex” descriptions of product offerings, often with the intent of impressing would-be consumers with industry jargon and technical detail.

“But leaders should resist this approach,” the report continued. “Banks should ensure customers can easily understand content.”

There seems to be no reason why readability couldn’t touch on the domain of a bank’s innovation group, just as usability has.