Copy is any text appearing on your website. It has one job, to get people to fulfil a meaningful action. But in order to do this, it has to meet the requirements of your customer, Google and business. Keep reading to find out what successful copy should include.
Your customer
Is the reason why your website exists, without your customer you wouldn’t have a website. So why, do most websites talk only about the business? Think about the psychology of selling. Customers above all, care about their own needs, problems and wants, which are then solved by your product or service. So how is your website copy going to sell if it only talks about we, us, our, and [company name]? Your customer is integral to your business and marketing, so ensure your copy:
- Addresses their problems, needs and wants
- Uses language they are familiar with
- Is structured to give them important information first
- Doesn’t waste their time, only has text that helps them
- Creates an emotional response and credibility in your solution
Is a major player in your websites ability to be found. Your copy ensures the visibility and more importantly, ensures you’re targeting the right people. This is one of the basic foundations of search engine optimisation (SEO). To achieve it, Google needs two things from you:
- Readability: The Flesch reading score is a calculation of how easy a piece of text is to read. Ranging from understood by an 11-year old student to requiring a university degree. Website copy needs to be as close to the lower end of the spectrum as possible. You’re probably not selling to rocket scientists, so use language that’s easy to understand.
- Key word optimisation: A key word doesn’t mean a single word, it can be also be a phrase. But the point is, a single page should be optimised for a single key word. Use that key word throughout that page. And don’t target the same key word across more than one page (doesn’t mean you can’t use it anywhere else, just don’t overuse it)
Your business
A website needs to fulfil a business goal. Whether that’s purchases, calls, emails or downloads. Copy is integral to getting people to take the actions that matter. Help them with copy that:
- Discussing the benefits of your products/services
- Provides examples and talk about your work
- Tells people exactly what action you want them to take
- Is structured together with good website design
Take this article up to here as an example. Not once did we talk about we or us. All we’ve done is point you in the right direction for better website writing. If you do want an expert to create high-quality content for your business, don’t hesitate to contact us.
