When you first land on a web page, the first thing you notice is the design. Your eye is naturally attracted to things you find visually appealing, you know, pretty things. But once you get past how something looks, much like a person, you have to get down to their core, and in this case, that core is your website’s copy.
Before you even start writing copy, it’s important to be aware of who you are writing to. If your website is about fashion geared towards millennials, then your writing can be more conversational, witty, and down-to-earth. Whereas if you are writing an informational site about the history of Florida, you are going to have to write in the proper format, using clear, concise, and informative language, with sources (if necessary). If you are selling a product or service, then flashy language and slogans are a must.
Before you start reading anything, what do you read first? It’s not a trick question… the answer is simple, it’s the headline! The headline is what catches your eye and makes you want to read more, after all, how else do we end up spending hours on BuzzFeed quizzes? Keep your headlines concise, yet enticing. You want your reader to know what they are getting out of your webpage, but you also want them to keep exploring what’s on there. Don’t give up everything in the headline, just a tease. Numbers work well, after all the blog topic is called 5 Reasons Why Copy is Critical on Your Website.
This is the question to be asked right away. Some clients have more time to have their websites done and are willing to take it slow. Others need the site done on a quick turnaround time frame and will need to work with the designer by supplying all relative information very quickly. In either case, it is important to set up a deadline right away.
SEO (search engine optimization) is what can bring search engines to your site. Use keywords in your copy to ramp up your SEO and to get the illustrious Google on your side. Be sure to use on your site, keywords you know people are searching for. For example, “3 New Fitness Trends for 2020” or “Tips for Beautiful Wedding”. It’s important to make the keywords words that not only attract search engines but will also relate to your readers.
Call to actions (CTA’s) are important buttons to have on your website because it gets the reader to do something. Whether you want them to buy now, order now, learn more or subscribe, you need a CTA to make the reader take an action, after all that is the purpose of your website. When writing your CTA, it’s important to use as many words/verbs as reasonably as you see fit. For example, ‘Start Your Free Trial” is much better than “Start Now”.
All in all, copy is what can set you apart from looking like a scam. No matter how legitimate your site may be, if your copy isn’t something worthwhile, no one is going to believe you or believe in what you are selling, promoting, or informing. Now, copy just doesn’t mean just sounding intelligent or snappy, when done correctly, copy can garner results in many different ways.
