Many small business owners write their own website copy and do a great job, but it can be very tempting to use too many words to get the message across. These then have to compete for the reader’s attention with videos, buttons, pop-ups and adverts.
It doesn’t matter how many bells and whistles you have on your website, it’s the words that carry visitors past the initial ‘wow factor’ and on to the process of buying. These words need to be concise.
Think like a minimalist
The best way to engage visitors is to lead them through your site with simple, concise writing – you stand a better chance of retaining their interest and converting them from visitor to customer.
‘Less is more’ is a worthwhile principle to hold where web copy is concerned – by keeping to the main facts about your service or product using short sentences and a few bullet points, the reader can scan your page and quickly obtain the information they need.
Leaving plenty of ‘white space’ on the page and including a few attractive images also ensures the reader isn’t overwhelmed by the sheer number of words. Simply put, thinking like a minimalist will often produce uncomplicated web pages that can be quickly scanned and are easy on the eye.
Know your target market
It may sound obvious but getting inside the head of a potential customer is the best way to deliver a marketing message that resonates. Achieve the biggest impact by carefully choosing your tone of voice so readers identify with what you have to offer, and continue to look for a solution to their problem on the site.
Clicking away to a competitor website because they’re bored or can’t find the information quickly is a lost sale, and unfortunately this can simply be due to miscommunication or using the wrong style.
Solve problems
Although your readers need some information about your products or services, essentially they’re far more interested in how you can solve their problems. Start by addressing a known issue they’re experiencing and you immediately grab their attention.
It’s natural to want to convey every last detail about your business but if you think about your own experiences of surfing the web, it’s probably the clean and most attractively-presented pages that stay in your mind.
If you think like a customer when writing your own website copy, keep information concise, and solve a few problems along the way with your knowledge, products, or services, you might be surprised by the great results good website copy can bring.