When it comes to promoting your business, your website should be a very high priority for you. It’s one of your key selling tools, and your way of getting on the virtual map with your potential customers.
But it’s not just sleek design and good graphics you need to worry about. What do the words on your website really say, and what effect are they having on your customers?
It’s really simple – bad website copy will be dull, drab and doesn’t do anything for you. It doesn’t sell your products, and your visitors just click away without enquiring further. It’s like reading the instructions on a tin of soup, when it could be the thrill of reading the twist of a bestselling novel. It’s an art form that is often overlooked when websites are being designed, but we are determined to shed some light on this and show you just how important your copy is.
So, good website copy…
Gets Some Attention
A lot of people don’t see the difference between writing web copy and writing a letter to your customers explaining what you do. And while you might like to go down that route for the novelty of it – the fact is that web copy is like no other kind of writing.
Instead of writing for an audience that the author knows actually wants to read their text – web copywriters face the challenge of appealing to the bored, sceptical, over saturated reading audience with an incredibly short attention span. If your copy doesn’t grab your audience in the first 15 seconds then you’ve lost your reader. So instead, your copy should be easy to read, communicate effectively, and above all it should hold the reader’s attention and compel them to read just a little further.
Improves Search Engine Rankings
In recent years, Google have made it very clear that content is now the key for achieving high search engine rankings. The introduction of Penguin 2.0 sent SEO gurus scrambling to erase bad links from their sites and get blogs up and running. Gone are the days of stuffing your web copy with key words and paying for links to get to page 1.
Now, businesses are forced to think about the quality of their copy, and how they can craft it to stand out from their competition. Websites that are full of keywords, poorly written or containing basic errors (spelling, punctuation and grammar) will be evaluated as lower quality, and Google will select other sites to promote above it. Bottom line – if your copy is bad, so is your search ranking.
Increases Sales Potential
Too many businesses today treat their website as a pretty brochure for their business, but pay no attention to what it actually says. There are hundreds of different ways you can make good copy great – and great copy sells.
Your website is like your shop window – it needs to be enticing, dynamic and enchanting. To convince the reader to pick up the phone, send an email and make that elusive enquiry. You could have the best product in the world and the most beautiful website of all time – but it’s your copy that turns the dynamic duo into the justice league of sales. Good copy is powerful and compelling, and it can send your conversion rates through the roof – so what are you waiting for!
My Website Solutions understands the importance of the copy that goes into your website, and our customers agree. We use a fantastic copywriter who specialises in web copy and blogs from creative content agency Eleven Eight , and work in close partnership with them and our clients to provide the best possible website solutions.