The importance of web content

Web content may well be the most underestimated factor in most websites.Why do I say that? Because I've been a freelance copywriter since 2004. Knowing what I know, I get frustrated when I look at most websites.

They usually start with a headline that says something like "Welcome to Acme Dynamite Company".

Oh, what a waste of words!

When you write your web content, remember, you can use that space to say something that tells people why they should hire you or buy your product!

Or if you're writing an information site, like this one, it can tell them why they should take the time to read your site rather than others on the same subject.

This message will not be appropriate for just anyone who happens across your site. You'll be thinking about who your ideal customer, client, or website visitor is, and you'll be writing to that group of people. They are your "target audience."

What you write depends on what kind of site are you creating

Knowing your target audience is always important. When you do your niche research, that will help you figure that out.

From there, you should think about what kind of site you're creating. This is a bit of a generalization, but there are four kinds of sites you might be creating:

Information Site
You're offering information to people, and your primary source of profits is not selling your own products or services. Instead you might place ads on your site or sell products as an affiliate. The website you're reading now is an information site.

Learn more about information website copy.


Multi-Page Sales Site
You're selling a product or service with a multi-page website.

Learn more about multi-page sales site copy.


Direct Response
While many kinds of copy could be considered direct response (that is, aiming for an immediate response from the visitor), direct response copy is the name for those long, one-page sites consisting of a sales letter. It usually starts with a salutation (e.g., Dear Friend,) and ends with a signature, followed by a p.s.

These sites mimic the sales letters you get in your mailbox, commonly called "junk mail" (to the chagrin of serious copywriters).

This style is often used to sell e-books, audios, and e-courses.

Learn more about direct response copy.


Catalog Website
You're selling a variety of products through an online catalog.

Learn more about catalog copy.

Never underestimate the power of web content!

For most businesses, hiring someone to write the copy is well worth the investment. Beware, though, because anyone can call himself or herself a copywriter.

If you're writing an information site, you may not need to hire a copywriter, although in some cases, it could be helpful to hire one for just the home page. That's because you're not selling anything, so you don't need to learn sales techniques. Instead, you need to offer well-written, well-organized pages containing high-quality information.

Now that's not easy either, so you may want to hire a web content writer for your information site. Just be aware that a copywriter writes a persuasive sales message, while a web content writer writes articles with information in them. Web content writers are less expensive than copywriters.

If you do write your own copy, make the time and effort to learn to do it well. It isn't easy to create an honest, hype-free, persuasive sales message. (Note: It's easy to create a dishonest, hype-filled sales message, but it probably won't be persuasive and it will NOT result in happy, loyal customers.)

In any case, be sure to read the sub-page for the kind of site you're creating. That will give you more specific advice on writing your own copy or hiring someone to write your copy.

No matter what kind of site you're creating, and no matter whether you hire a copywriter or write the copy yourself, be sure to check out these tips on the basics of writing copy:

Scribe for Hire

These cover the basics of copy for sales sites and direct response sites. Some of the guidelines can be applied to any site (for instance, it's almost always best to use a relaxed, conversational tone, unless your target audience responds better to a more formal tone). If you hire a copywriter, check out his or her samples and be sure they follow these guidelines.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.