Writing web site content might look easy, but let me tell you – it’s harder then you think.  Most people can write.  Our high school degrees require it.  The challenge is – most people can’t write well. 

In many instances, companies don’t spend money on professional copywriters / marketing writers (especially in start-up technology companies - where the content is highly technical and budgets are tight), so it’s usually up to a random marketing person to pony up. If you live in that reality, below are some quick tips that can assist in making content generation a bit easier.

How important are keywords?

Yes. Keywords are absolutely important.  With that said, don’t overload your web site content to such a degree that readers can’t understand what you’re trying to say.  For example:

MarketingLAUNCH marketing services are the most effective marketing services in the industry.  Marketing services is what we do, and our proven marketing techniques assist small business in marketing their services.

TIP: Before you start writing, research and decide upon a handful of keywords (for a specific page) you want to include and keep that list in front of you when you’re writing.  Then integrate those word/word groupings if and when you can — avoiding the saturation point.  Strike a balance, informative content with keyword descriptors only as it makes sense.

Don’t waste people’s time!

When writing for the Web, get to the point – and fast!  Remember that reading on the Web (short content blocks are best) is entirely different than print (mostly long elaborations).  You have to keep it short to maintain interest (think Cliff Notes version).  Not too much, not too little – again, the key is finding the right balance per quality and quantity of content.

Focus on your key strengths

Instead of writing about “ALL” the benefits your product/service offers and being all things to all people, find a “FEW” of your key differentiators and focus on those.  If you try to present too many competitive advantages, people won’t remember any of them.  Stick to a top few and hammer them home and you should be on your way to effective online messaging.

Create a functional layout - critical for readability

There are some key elements you should always include when writing for the Web. 

1.  Make sure to include a header and/or title.  Something at the top of the page to tell me (and search engines) exactly what I’m going to be reading about.  Make it specific.  Use words I understand.  No cute phrases or fluff that has no relation to what I’m about to read. 

2.  Also include the main message within the first few sentences.   If I have to spend more then a few seconds on your content, I’m clicking <back>. (Bye-bye customer.)

3.  In turn, to ensure I do move forward as I read, make sure you include relevant links within the content I’m reading, that move me from one content block to another “related” content block.  Seamless messaging is key.

As you can imagine, there are many more techniques you can use.  Hopefully these will keep you focused on a top few that can make a difference - right now.  Have your own ideas, please share…

Below are 10 tips to ensure you produce effective copy. (Excerpt from article posted by PeteSavage.com)

 1. “You” can make a difference. The word “you” is perhaps the most important word in copywriting because it involves the reader with your message. So instead of writing about what your company offers, write about what the customer gets. [Instead of: “We offer the most advanced…”, write: “You get the most advanced…”]  

2. Features tell, benefits sell! Good copy clearly communicates the benefit that your product or service delivers to the customer. Poor copy merely lists features. Here’s how you avoid that trap.  As you write about the attributes of your product, ask yourself, “So what?” Your answer will lead you to the benefit.  

3. Keep your message clear. Focus your message on [only few key] benefits that deliver the highest value to your customer. Otherwise, you’ll overwhelm the reader.  Write (just) about the main benefits [the product / service] helps deliver to the customer.  

4. Energize your copy with action verbs. Action verbs help readers picture themselves using your product or service. “Our expert investment advisors provide reliable advice,” is dull. “Get expert guidance from our investment advisors and watch your assets grow,” is much more exciting.

5. No grades for grammar. Good copy not only avoids many conventional rules of grammar, it torments the daylights out of them! This means you can do things that would make your third grade teacher squirm. 

6. Reinforce your USP > Unique Selling Point. Make sure you remind customers of the reason(s) why they should buy from you. Your Unique Selling Point (USP) is the characteristic of your product or service that sets you apart from the competition.  

7. Prove it! …with testimonials. Naturally, new prospects may be skeptical of your offer, especially if they have not heard of you before. One of the best ways to overcome this skepticism is with testimonials. Make sure the source of the testimonial is someone the reader can relate to.

8. “That’s” a problem. When you’ve written your copy, look it over for all occurrences of the word “that” [and delete]. You can often make a sentence much more readable [with this simple trick].

9. Tell your reader what to do. Your ad or promotional piece must have a call to action, which tells the reader what to do. Some examples are: “Call today for a no-obligation quote.”, “Call now while supplies last!”, “Visit our website and enter this password for your free subscription!”  

10. Ask for help. Everyone needs an editor. When you’ve created your copy, have someone you trust review it. This person need not be a fellow employee; in fact, look for someone who reflects your target audience (a friend, spouse, business contact, or client). [Give it to them "cold", listen to feedback, edit and start again.]

Read entire article at PeteSavage.com >>

If you have additional tips, we’d like to hear from you!  

Effective web site content should be relevant and robust and pages should have supporting themes to provide value to both site visitors and search engines.  Both want substance. 

Content is one of the most significant success factors to any web site.  In general, the more focused and robust your content is - the better off you are.  Target your writing to one primary topic (or a subset of a topic).  Your web pages should contain enough text content on each page to support the messaging and overall theme.  Shoot for a minimum of 300 words.  Less ‘can’ work, but it’s highly unlikely. 

With that, you should also create a theme amongst a group of pages within your web site to give each page legitimacy and relevance.  A search engine ranks ‘each’ page within your site and a big deciding factor is whether the pages share relevance to and support one another. Planning for 6 pages of supporting content is a good minimum for creating a theme.

Summary:  Create enough relevant, engaging content and you will have a web site your visitors will enjoy reading and to which search engines will assign high rankings.

In a post at The Lonely Marketer, Patrick Schaber, talks about his criteria for choosing the blogs he reads. With so much engaging content available, he’s frequently tempted to expand his reading list. To help him stay focused and decide what to read, Schaber developed a list of blog must-haves.  Here’s some of his advice:

• Provide unique, actionable content. “To be honest,” writes Schaber, “I don’t care if you’ve been blogging for five years or five minutes, if I feel I’m going to leave a site having learned something new, count me in.” He gives extra points for highlighting recent content in a sidebar.
• Post frequently. This doesn’t mean that you have to blog every day—a few each week will do the trick—but if multiple weeks pass between each post, readers will stop checking in.
• Maintain focus. Nothing says you have to restrict yourself to a single topic, but you’ll confuse readers if you hop randomly from subject to subject without explaining why.
• Add visual interest. You’ll notice that many bloggers include an image with each post. Follow their lead. “So much of social media is visual perception!” says Schaber.

Summary: Good content is good content. Even the busiest people make time for their favorite blogs.

Source: The Lonely Marketer. Read the entire post here.

People don’t read online they scan.  It takes 25% more time to read online vs. printed materials.  Adapt your writing style for the Web.

1. USE INVERTED PYRAMID: Write the most important info FIRST. Readers may never make it past the first few lines.

2. GRAB READERS WITH HEADLINES:  Good headlines grab readers and make them stop.  Subheads help break up text on a page, making content easier to read. (Note: For SEO, try to include key words / search terms in your headers & subheads)

3. WRITE STRONG LEADS:  The first sentence on the page is called a lead.  Hook readers with the benefits, telling them what they’ll find on your web site. (Note: For SEO, include 3 to 4 key words / search terms in first paragraph).

4. STAY ABOVE THE FOLD:  Keep most important info above the fold (area before people have to scroll down).  Less then 50% of audience scrolls below the fold.

5. AVOID LONG SCROLLING PAGES:  Lot’s of short pages are preferable to few long pages.   If you have to use long text, consider allowing readers to print and read.  Another option is use FAQ format, that anchors a specific text link at the top (table of content) to a text block below.

6. LIMIT USE OF PDF FILES:  Not great for users.  Restrict PDF files for distributing long docs intended for print.

7. USE ACTIVE VOICE:  That is, the subject performs the action (ACTIVE) instead of receiving it (PASSIVE).  (Example: [Y] Search engines skip Flash pages, [N] Flash pages aren’t read by search engines.)  You might be using passive voice if you’re using verbs like: to be, there is, there are, or -it is.

8. EMPHASIZE 2ND PERSON:  Second person forces you to talk about benefits not features.  Use your or you explicitly as the subject or implicitly with imperative verbs, such as buy, review, call or sign up.  Possessives imply ownership, empowering consumers.  Get personal… your marketing copy must break the boundaries of the screen.

9. USE 1ST & 3RD PERSON SPARINGLY:  You can slide in some 1st person (our or we) - just don’t spend too much time talking about yourself and your business.  Your readers don’t care.  And don’t be impersonal or create distance with third person.

10. STAY INFORMAL:  In most cases, an informal, conversational tone works best; however,  that’s no excuse for obvious grammatical errors -such as subject/verb agreement.

11. KEEP IT SHORT:  We’re busy people.  Use short words, short sentences, short paragraphs and short pages - always placing the most important words and information near the beginning.

12. USE BULLET LISTS:  Think powerpoint style NOT essay; sentence fragments are fine.

13. INCLUDE TEXT LINKS: Link frequently to other pages within your web site, this helps people quickly find information they want and help move them through your site.  (Note: For SEO, if you happen to create links using some of your key words you may earn extra points for improved search engine ranking.)

14.  WRITE VIVIDLY: Use nouns and verbs rather then strings of adjectives and adverbs.

15. SKIP JARGON: Write language your readers will understand.

16. BE YOURSELF:  Let your personality shine through; use wit and humor to keep readers plugged in.

17. CHECK SPELLING & GRAMMER:  Start out in Word, check spelling, paste in text or csv to remove formatting and paste into web files.

18.  HAVE OTHERS READ WHAT YOU WRITE: It’s easy to get too close to your writing.  Have someone else read it for clarity, accuracy and omissions.

19. PROOFREAD: Read your text outloud.  It’s the fastest and easiest way to find mistakes.