Words.
You use them every day.
You send emails to customers, create marketing materials, produce content for your website…the list is endless.
How much thought are you giving to the words you use?
What you write will have a significant impact on how people perceive you and your business, which is why professional writing is essential.
Getting it right: web copy
For this article, I shall concentrate on website copywriting.
After you’ve spent a small fortune on your web design, you wait eagerly for the link from your developer to see the pre-launch site in all its glory.
Tentatively, you click the link, your eyes widen with excitement, as it’s all that you hope it would be. Apart from one thing – where there should be powerful words, there is an awful lot of Lorem Ipsum.
That’s right, it’s up to you to find the right words, not your web designer.
You have two choices: attempt to write it yourself, or start looking for a professional copywriter.
Why should you opt for the second choice?
Have you ever tried to write about your business?
If you have it probably went along the lines of “We are experts in our field. Working from our state-of-the art offices in…”
Big mistake.
You’ve missed the point of effective copy completely.
If you want your website (and all your other marketing materials) to have an impact, you must write from your customers’ perspective and that’s not easy to do.
You plough on regardless and eventually produce enough text to fill your website.
The site is published and then you wait.
What happens?
Nothing. Your website doesn’t rank, it doesn’t attract visitors and it doesn’t produce any leads because the copy you’ve written concentrates on you, your business and your achievements. You’ve forgotten your customer.
It’s time for a rethink.
How a copywriter writes
Once you’ve found a writer you think you can work with it’s time to have a meeting.
You chat about your project and she asks you loads of questions about what you’re looking to achieve, who your customers are and what they need and loads of other stuff.
She goes away with a detailed brief and starts to work on the first draft. Once it comes through you can’t believe your eyes – it is pretty much spot on because it’s:
- Written from a unique perspective (i.e. they can distance themselves from your company and put themselves in your customers’ shoes to make sure it offers the information they want to know)
- Written for your customers
- Shows the benefits you offer your customer not your achievements as a company
- Visible to the search engines
- Compelling and persuades the reader to take action
- Designed to sell not inform
- Professional and reflective of your business and your brand
- Simple and unambiguous
That means it’s a customer magnet and, because it’s telling them what they want to hear, it’s converting visitors into customers.
Content that “talks” to your readers and is focused on their needs makes your company one that puts its customers first – and that’s worth its weight in gold.
Sally Ormond is an independent copywriter and owner of Briar Copywriting Ltd.