What is the purpose of using headings properly in a document?

Using headings properly in a document serves the vital purpose of creating a clear content structure, which significantly enhances navigation and comprehension for readers. Headings act as signposts that guide readers through the content, allowing them to understand the organization of information at a glance. This structured hierarchy helps users identify the primary topics, subtopics, and their relationships, enabling them to find relevant sections more easily.

For individuals utilizing assistive technology, such as screen readers, well-structured headings convey crucial information about the document's layout. This allows users to skip to relevant sections without having to read through the entire text, thereby improving their overall experience and access to information.

While larger text sizes may enhance readability, it doesn’t provide the structural clarity that headings do. Similarly, maximizing keyword use is more pertinent to search engine optimization (SEO) strategies and does not directly influence how content is organized for user understanding. Improving color contrast is important for accessibility but does not relate to the structural organization of a document. Therefore, the focus on headings for clarity and navigation remains essential in document design, largely underpinning the significance of using them properly.