Every copywriter will tell you about how people read differently on the web than in print.
It’s true, but the basics are the same. It’s still about engaging readers and building relationships. The difference is in form: making a few changes to make on-screen reading easier. There are certain fundamentals we use in all our web writing:
1. Keep it short
Online means short. People are more likely to read shorter copy – which is why usability expert Steve Krug advises you to get rid of half the words on each page, then get rid of half of what’s left.
That’s not to say that long copy never works online – sites like Salon and Wired prove it can – but they’ll tend to break long pieces into shorter sections or individual pages. So keep it concise, and consider breaking long pages into a series of shorter, well-linked pages.
2. Be purposeful
Be clear about what each page is for.
For a product page, it might be getting readers to call or sign up for a 30 day trial. For a corporate home page, it might be encouraging people through to deeper pages. For an ‘about us’ page, it might be building consumer relationships and trust. Ask yourself if every sentence you’ve written helps this goal.
If a page doesn’t have a clear purpose – cut it out.
3. Non-linear reading
Bad news – no-one’s going to read your page. They’ll scan it. People’s eyeballs don’t hang on every word as they would with a novel, or even a brochure or letter. Instead, people bounce around the page, usually with a specific goal in mind. They want to know if the page is going to give them what they’re after.
So forget about drop intros and subtle lead-ins – you’re better being clear and direct from the first couple of words. And break up your copy with headlines, images, headings and lists – alternatives to straight copy that can give people a way into your writing.
4. Write to lose your readers
People won’t stay on your page forever. They’ll move on to another page, either when they’ve read it all the way through or, more likely, when they’ve got bored. So use your copy to show them where to go next – either leading them towards purchase or linking to other resources. Think about where you want them to go next, and give them the option.
5. Write for design
Let me tell you a secret. I’ve written pages before that have been beautifully crafted and meticulously edited to perfection, only to put them into design and see them fall flat on their faces. The closer’s been ‘below the fold’ – where you’ve got to scroll down to see it. Or they’ve been too long, and without any hooks to draw people in. Or it just hasn’t been obvious what they were about.
So now, I’ll always choose to put a draft into design to make sure that the page works. Being able to publish non-public pages on a site is a godsend, compared to the old-fashioned way of doing it, and writer-friendly text editors make tweaks and amends easy.
6. Watch people read
If you’re not using web stats to write, you’re missing a trick. Tracking effectiveness for direct mail’s always been expensive and awkward, but Google Analytics is free (for now), more in-depth and instant. You can get reliable feedback on what works and what doesn’t, and so up your site’s conversion rate and effectiveness. Couple it with the option for split testing, and it’s an obvious choice.
7. And SEO…
Search engine spiders like most of the things that people like: a clear purpose, an obvious structure and relevant content. So get your on-page SEO right, and great content will start building up the inbound links.
We’ll bring all these points (and a smattering more) to our web copywriting at Afia.
Tags: copywriting, SEO, tone of voice, web writing
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Good points, Ben. Writing for design always makes a huge difference to me – seeing your words in the site always forces you to edit and edit to help people read. You end up drastically slashing the wordcount.