Crafting copy which engages your website visitors

‘The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do.’ – Thomas Jefferson

Writing is something everyone can do, right? And writing about your own business, that’s simple. But how easy is it to write concise, engaging copy that grabs interest in seconds. Because that’s often how long you have for people to engage with your business in the fickle world of the Internet.

Visitors to your website want you to tell them what they want to know in as few words as possible, cut the rambling and give us the facts. Every piece of information must have purpose. However, they also want you to tell them absolutely everything they want to know, and without having to work too hard to find it!

And what about creativity? Having carefully crafted copy that uniquely and creatively conveys the personality of your business can make your website stand out from the rest.

It can be more challenging than you first think to write simple, but effective copy that sums up who you are, what you’re about and what you can offer.

There are a few important things to remember in website copywriting:

The website is not primarily for you and your company

It’s not just the modern day version of a glossy brochure that no one but the proud directors actually read. If you want to attract attention to your business, you need to know who you’re writing for. Who is/who are your target audiences?

As well as knowing who they are, you need to understand them, what do they need to know? Some information might look impressive to you but not actually help someone decide to use your company. What are people looking for when they search for a company such as yours on the Internet?

What can you tell people that is unique to you?

It’s very helpful to define your unique selling point(s) as this can be crucial to communicating why someone should choose you over the other companies doing similar work. The only caveat to this is not defining yourself in such niche terms that others dismiss you.

How you write about your business defines how people perceive you. Getting the right tone of voice that truly represents you is vital. Is being highly professional a hallmark of your business? Are you a creative, energetic, fun business? Whatever you are, the words you choose to explain your business will help convey the personality of who you are and what you do.

How you write is helpful not only to potential customers but also to the way the Internet works

You’re not writing literary prose, you’re aiming to communicate simply but effectively what you do. Your site needs to contain meaningful and useful copy that helps people find you in an online search. Repeating key words about your business can be crucial in improving your chances in search ratings.

Don’t be tempted to fill up pages because it makes a bigger site, chances are there’ll be a descent into waffle at some point. Rather write well and write convincingly about the important things you have to say. One of the most important elements of copywriting is having good headlines. They should be eye catching and search engine grabbing.

And finally

Make sure your copy is grammatically correct and there aren’t any typos! And avoid jargon unless absolutely necessary. It’s about not assuming knowledge whilst not patronising.

As someone arrives on your site, provide helpful, concise introductory copy that grabs attention and entices people to read. And remember as you sell yourselves, it isn’t about comparison with others and proving how much better you are. Instead focus on what you offer and how you are solving their problem.

And once you’ve hooked them, tell them what they should do, how they can respond either by purchase or contact.

And on that note, sometimes it’s simpler to leave the crafting of words to those whose job it is to do just that.