Actionable tips to improve your website copy
Great website content is becoming harder to find. Yet it’s still one of the most effective ways to improve user experience, sell your company and ultimately generate more conversions online.
If you can craft copy that makes you stand out from your competitors, you will undoubtedly reap the rewards.
ADD WEIGHT
Adding facts and figures to your copy can do so much to improve a searcher’s perception of your business. Rather than making broad brushstroke statements, quantify your content with exact figures. For example, statement A is always better than statement B:
A: “We have worked with 650 leading UK businesses.”
B: “We’ve brought results for many UK businesses.”
Working your copy using specific, concrete facts will help you to differentiate your company from the competition.
OFFER OPINION
Your website is primarily there to offer value and insight to visitors. To make sure it does this effectively, you need to offer your expertise wherever possible.
When crafting the copy surrounding your business, don’t doubt yourself. When it comes to it, you’re the expert and you know the most about what you do. Write from the heart and don’t overthink the content. If you’ve set up your own company, the knowledge you need will be inside you.
BE FORCEFUL
Providing expert opinion ties in nicely with this next point - it’s important to be forceful in your writing. This will help you to establish authority and appear more persuasive to the reader. Opt for the language in example A, rather than example B:
A: It is, it will, make sure, it won’t
B: It may, it might, try and make sure, probably won’t
Bear in mind that this is more applicable for backing up your own services - and statements related to your industry - rather than for assuming user habits and telling people what they like to do. You don’t, for example, want to say:
“You know that you need (insert product) because you’re failing to improve your life without it in (insert way).”
PAY ATTENTION TO GRAMMAR
Copy that’s rife with poor grammar and spelling will undoubtedly harm your reputation. Whilst you might not consider it to be a priority, it will suggest to your website’s visitors that you don’t pay attention to the finer details. It can also create the illusion of a lack of professionalism.
Whilst this won’t be applicable to everyone that visits your site, it’s undeniable that some people won’t be able to get past such errors.
DO PROPER RESEARCH
Whilst you should know enough about your own company to create content for product and services pages, research is important if you’re writing an article for your blog that needs substantiating. Make sure that you fact-check any key statements not related to your company.
This blog post guide we put together with Dove Properties is substantiated with useful resources and well-researched facts.
TRY AND AVOID TIRED CLICHÉS
“The (insert service) of your dreams”
“Bringing your dreams to reality”
“Bespoke service tailored to your needs”
Sound familiar? That’s because you’ve seen and heard these phrases countless times on the internet and TV. Statements that promise much but really don’t mean anything. Rather than telling people what their dreams and needs are, identify a common problem that you know they’re struggling with (through proper research of your target market) and offer an appropriate solution:
“Our craftsmen construct all of our furniture by hand, because we believe in the importance of every detail. This means that our products provide character and distinction that you simply can’t obtain from sellers of bulk-buy, generic flat-pack furniture”
STOP WAFFLING – BUT DON’T TAKE OUT ALL THE CREATIVITY
There’s a difference between being cleverly creative and simply indulging in waffle. Whilst it’s true that people primarily skim-read online, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t add a bit of individuality to your text. Just make sure that you don’t ramble when you do. Stick to the point, but feel free to throw in the odd adjective here and there.
It’s worth noting that many examples of overly-lengthy copy tie back to worries about SEO. Whilst it’s true that you want to avoid content being too thin, you don’t want to go the opposite way. If a page or blog article is meant to be long, it will fall into place without you trying to force it.
BE EMOTIVE
Within your copy, don’t be afraid to be passionate about the products or services that your company offers. It’s great to have a professional tone, but you don’t want your copy to be so dry that it drives potential customers elsewhere.
So much business-centric website content ends up becoming formulaic. Don’t underestimate the value that a bit of character can add. A great way to encourage engagement is to use language that evokes an emotional response.
Galactic Fireworks write with passion when describing their products and it adds a distinctive level of charm to their copy.
DON’T FORCE IN KEYWORDS
Whilst keywords undoubtedly remain an important SEO factor, the way in which they should be included within your website copy has changed.
Thankfully, the days of keyword stuffing have become a distant memory. The inclusion of a specific amount of keywords per page has also been discouraged for some time too. So what’s the formula?
As hard as it may be to accept, the best way to focus on keywords is to not focus on them at all. That might sound cryptic, but the key to creating the sort of page Google wants to ‘see’ is to make sure your copy reads naturally. If your keywords need to be in there, you’ll find yourself including them without even thinking about it.
This product page for Intelligent Hand Dryers is perfect for ranking for the company's target keywords, but they flow naturally within the text.
DON’T BE PURELY CONVERSATIONAL
Sometimes a casual writing style makes a page more readable.
Sometimes it’s what people are looking for.
You know, those really short sentences, with loads of commas, which make you feel like you’re right there with the person.
But not everyone on your website wants to be your best friend. Whilst some sites solely champion an informal style, don’t underestimate the amount of people that are looking at your copy simply wanting some formal professionalism.
Ultimately, you want to mix it up. Relying too heavily on one style can be damaging, so adjust the tone appropriately for the page in question. A conversational style is generally more suited to a blog post, but even then don’t overdo it.
BREAK UP LARGE CHUNKS OF TEXT
An obvious, but necessary point. Too many websites still include lengthy blocks of text that people just won’t read. You want to make your copy as accessible as possible by breaking it up into short, dynamic paragraphs.
This will help you to communicate your point more effectively and lower your bounce rates at the same time. A winning combination.
We keep the news articles on the Evoluted website clear and concise, breaking content up with short, easily-digestible paragraphs.
BE WARY OF CLICKBAIT-ESQUE ARTICLES
Plenty of the most profitable websites on the internet have been made successful using clickbait-style content. In the right place, these sites are giving users exactly what they want. They’re not for everyone though - and people are generally becoming more cynical towards articles that promise much and deliver little. Stick to offering your expertise in a creative way.
STOP THINKING COPY IS SECONDARY
An aesthetically-pleasing, functional website only forms part of your online profile. What you populate it with is equally important.
The copy on your website is where you truly get to add weight to the products and services you offer. It’s also essential to ensure that your website ranks with the search engines.
If you’ve paid lots of money for a new site, don’t let it go to waste by rushing the copy that goes on it. Either allocate the time its creation deserves or set aside an additional budget so that an industry professional can complete it for you.
If you do decide you’d like someone else to complete the copy you need, make sure you get in touch with our team at Evoluted.
