How to Write Effective Copy for Your Website
For the vast majority of our clients, providing content is the hardest part of the process. While clients know and can articulate their message very well in person, putting that into a format which is both concise enough to hold readers’ attention spans and relayed in a consistent voice and tone can be quite difficult. Most developers will either help you with copywriting or contract those services out to dedicated professionals. For projects with budget restrictions, clients may opt to write their own content. Here are some tips to help craft a message…
Establish a voice. Your industry will help decide “who” will be speaking, in which person, and the general tone of the content. For example a large law firm would not choose a trendy voice filled with buzzwords because it is not relatable to their audience. No matter personality of your content, the feel should remain consistent.
Speak to your ideal audience. Is it customers? Investors? Volunteers? Speak directly to those with whom you hope to engage. Do not use precious real estate trying to speak to every person who may visit your site. You will drive your visitors away because they are overwhelmed trying to decide which direction to go.
Craft concise, quality-rich content. Web trends have evolved not because developers are bored. They have moved toward more white space because research shows that we are very impatient people! We like short paragraphs, lists (yes, this blog post was intentionally numbered) and graphics. Cumbersome, wordy content will drive our audience away. We all know the phrase “keep it simple, stupid” and it should be applied liberally where content is concerned.
Appeal to your visitors’ emotions. This is especially true in the nonprofit sector, but can be applied across the corporate sector as well. They’ve already made it to your site, so they must have some idea of your mission. Most don’t necessarily care how amazing your fundraiser was. They care that because they attended, a little girl was able to get the leg braces she could not otherwise afford.
