Writing your Website – The Complete Guide – Part 2

THE BODY COPY

Okay, every element we described in part 1 of our guide to writing your website was the precursor to the main event, the prawn cocktail if you will. However, it has all been essential as your website can now be found online and has keyword-rich, click-enticing title tags, meta descriptions and H1s.

Now comes the real money maker. The job of the body copy is to make you sound credible, trustworthy and like the sort of organisation customers want to do business with. Your copy must persuade customers to part with their hard-earned cash, and that, dear readers, is easier said than done.

To write good body copy, you need to know:

• Who you’re communicating with
• How that person thinks
• What that person needs

When writing your website, don’t patronise your customers or make false claims. Visitors can differentiate hyperbole from fact at a thousand yards, so don’t claim to be the UK’s leading anything unless you really are. And even then, define ‘leading’ – are you the largest, sell the most or have the best-kept customer toilets?

BODY COPY SHOULD BE BENEFIT LED

Even if you are the UK’s leading company in every single way, what does that actually mean for the customer? The customer wants the best value for their money, so your copy should focus on the benefits for them, and not how fantastic you are.

• Are there unique elements associated with your products or services that cannot be found elsewhere?
• Are you cheaper than everyone else?
• Is your quality provably better than the competition?
• Do you provide a guarantee or warranty?

Anything that benefits your customer should be included in your body copy.

TOP LOAD IMPORTANT INFORMATION

We’re a lazy bunch when it comes to browsing online, so include the most important information at the top of your page to get the customer’s attention. If you put valuable content at the bottom of the page, it’s unlikely to be read. Heat maps can show you how browsers look at a web page, and this is something you should consider when writing your website.

SUBHEADINGS MAKE YOUR WITTERING MORE READABLE

Most people don’t read a web page word for word. They scan it, looking for the information they came for. Well-written subheadings act as signposts, breaking up the page and helping visitors quickly find the sections that are relevant to them.

Subheadings should be short, to the point and accurately summarise the information contained within the chunk of text to follow.

When writing subheadings, you should:

• Use them as signposts to help readers navigate the content and find the information they’re looking for.
• Create a clear visual hierarchy so readers can distinguish subheadings from the main H1 and body copy at a glance.
• Make them descriptive so readers can understand what each section covers at a glance

USE BULLET POINTS AND TABLES WHERE POSSIBLE

When writing your website, take as many opportunities as you can to use bullet points or tables. It’s not about keeping your copy short, although concision should always be a consideration; it’s more about imparting information in the simplest possible way.

If a visitor is looking for product specifications, key features or the USPs that set your service apart, they don’t want to wade through paragraphs of prose to find them. They want the information quickly and clearly. Bullet points make key facts easy to scan, while tables are ideal for presenting multiple pieces of information side by side and making comparisons straightforward.

In short, don’t make your readers work harder than they need to. If information can be communicated more clearly in a bullet point or table, use one.

Here are a few pointers:

Bullet points

• Write them clearly and concisely
• Keep the structure consistent across each point
• Aim for a single line of text where possible
• They don’t need to be complete sentences
• Put the most important information first
• Don’t turn a paragraph into a bullet list simply for the sake of formatting – each point should stand alone

Tables

• Use tables when you need to present multiple pieces of information side by side
• Keep headings short and descriptive so readers can quickly understand what each column contains
• Keep each cell concise and avoid filling tables with lengthy paragraphs
• Use tables to make comparisons easier, such as comparing products, services, features or pricing
• Make sure the table is easy to read on mobile devices, where large tables can become difficult to navigate

MAKE IT EASY ON THE EYE

There’s a lot more to writing your website than just the words you choose to use. In many cases, the presentation of your content is just as important as the messages it contains.

Online visitors are put off by large chunks of text, and who can blame them? They want fast access to information without trawling through a thesis. To make your content reader-friendly, scannable and attractive to online readers, try to:

• Keep your sentences short
• Keep paragraphs to a maximum of three or four lines
• Format the content consistently – that means using the same font, spacing it evenly and keeping capital letters consistent

THE POWER OF PICTURES

Research on the use of images on web pages has revealed a phenomenon known as the picture superiority effect. The theory goes that while written information enters our memories as abstract concepts, we encode images in a more solid way, which gives them a more lasting effect.

Leave that lab coat on for just one second. Research by Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab into the power of visual communication found that the overall design of a piece of information, including images, ‘is the number one criterion for discerning the credibility of the presented material’.

What does that actually mean? Well, if you want prospective customers to take you seriously, you must select high-quality images that enhance your written information. You should also present those images in a consistent, eye-catching way.

BREVITY AND CONCISENESS

When writing your website copy, try to keep it clean, crisp and concise. There should be no wasted words, overly long sentences or paragraphs that don’t add to your offering. When completed, the copy should take the visitor on a journey. By the end of that journey, they should know everything they need to convert.

The key to effective copywriting is simplicity. The reader doesn’t care how many big words you know. They just want to buy a pair of shoes, or find out how to fix their lawnmower. Planning the page structure and key messages will help you maintain this clarity from the start.

IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU

You have every reason to be proud of your business, but as the advertising tycoon David Ogilvy once said: “If you can’t turn yourself into a consumer, you probably shouldn’t be in business at all.”

From the second you start writing your website copy, you should be thinking like a consumer. Many businesses break this rule and write copy that tells customers how fantastic their business is, or how great their products and services are. The best way to spot this business-centric writing style is the recurring use of ‘we’ rather than ‘you’.

The sad truth is that customers don’t care about you or what you do. They care about themselves. They only care about you in the context of how you can help them.

So, everything you write should focus on the customer. The copy should be easy to read, not too dry and full of details about how your products or services can make their lives better.

AL COPY MUST BE ERRORR FREE

Never underestimate the impact a simple spelling or grammatical mistake will have on your website’s ability to convert. When you’ve gone to the effort of writing your website, the last thing you want is for one simple error to undermine your credibility. Just think about how you react when you spot an error on a web page.

SOME ADVANCED TIPS

If you’ve got this far, then hopefully you’re nearing the end of your website copy and never want to see another keyboard again. But before you go, here are a couple of advanced tips to give your website copy a little extra flourish.

TIME FOR SOME RHYME

Excuse the subhead, but I’m trying to emphasise the point that a little bit of rhyme can work wonders on crusty corporate copy. I’m not talking about limericks here, but the melody of rhyme can aid memory and help your copy stick in the mind. Don’t overdo it though, a simple line will do.

This example from Innocent, the UK-based smoothie maker, illustrates the point:

‘THIS KIDS’ SMOOTHIE HAS ZING, PING AND PROBABLY SOME KER-DIN.’

Yes, it’s daft and simplistic, but that’s precisely why it works. The playful language softens the tone, gives the brand some personality and makes the copy more memorable.

REPETITION, REPETITION, REPETITION

Deliberate repetition is an effective method of stressing important points in your copy. Again, if we pop over to Innocent, we can see an example of a copywriter earning their keep:

‘OUR 100% PURE FRUIT SMOOTHIES. NO ADDED SUGAR. NO CONCENTRATES. NO FUNNY BUSINESS.’

What does this tell us? Simply that repetition, combined with a short, snappy sentence, can give your website copy some additional shine.

CRAFTING A CLICK-ENTICING CALL-TO-ACTION

The final stage of writing your website is the metaphorical cherry on the top of your copywriting cake. Underestimate the importance of the call-to-action (CTA) at your peril, as this instructs the reader precisely what you’d like them to do next.

You might have hooked the visitor with your persuasive, enticing copy, and built a brand they’d love to buy into, but unless you tell the reader what steps to take next, they might decide to take their business elsewhere. A call-to-action is intended to turn interested browsers into conversions by prompting visitors to complete an enquiry form, request a quote or make a purchase. There’s no hocus-pocus or subliminal messaging at work; all you need is a little know-how.

BE DIRECT

It might feel a bit shameless to direct your visitors to make a purchase, but providing simple guidance to the next stage of the process is essential. In fact, you’re doing them a favour. If a visitor lands on and reads your web page, that shows intent, so give them clear directions on what to do next: ‘sign up’, ‘download now’, or ‘make a purchase’.

LINK YOUR CALL-TO-ACTION TO YOUR CONTENT

It might sound like common sense, but understanding the part your web page plays in the prospective customer’s journey is crucial to crafting a legitimate call-to-action (CTA).

For example, it’s unlikely a visitor will go straight from your homepage to make a purchase. If you think about it, they probably haven’t read your product or service pages yet, so your homepage CTA should direct the visitor to more relevant information.

On the other hand, a visitor on a product or service page possesses all the information they need to make a purchase. So, your call-to-action should direct them to the checkout or ask them to complete an enquiry form.

KEEP IT SHORT AND SWEET

You might think your best option is to cram your call-to-action full of directions to hedge your bets, but too many CTAs on a single page has been proven to lower conversion rates. The general rule when writing your website is that the less your visitors have to think, the better. Cramming multiple CTAs onto one web page is only likely to confuse them, so keep it short and sweet to make them click.

NEVER ASK FOR MORE INFORMATION THAN YOU NEED

Your copy might have transformed an idle browser into a prospective lead, but you can undo all your good work with an enquiry form which asks for more information than you need.

It’s not only a matter of wasted time; consumers are becoming increasingly cautious about giving away their personal details online and given the introduction of the recent General Data Protection Regulation, you could find yourself with a hefty fine if you do. So, don’t ask for the visitor’s telephone number or home address when their name and email address is all you need.

SOME SUCCESSFUL CTA EXAMPLES…

There’s nothing like a call-to-action done well to provide the inspiration you need. Here are 17 effective call-to-actions courtesy of HubSpot. While they may not all be to your taste, at least you can see what you’re trying to achieve.

AND THAT’S YOUR LOT!

So there you have it… writing your website – the complete guide, courtesy of To Your Heart’s Content. And if all that sounds like an awful lot of work, just drop us a line and we’ll write your website for you.