10 COPYWRITING TIPS FOR YOUR WEBSITE
Over the years I’ve worked with several people and businesses on their website. One thing I’ve found to be a constant struggle is, copywriting. I myself even struggled with it. I recently listened to a webinar hosted by the incredible team at Go Live HQ and their points were so simple, easy to follow and implement that I had to share! I’ve included some of their tips and a few of mine if you’re not ready to hire a copywriter just yet!
10 tips to get you started on your website copywriting
1. Have a clear goal in mind and do everything you can to simplify your business
Do you claim to do everything? You shouldn’t. The best thing you can do is simplify your ideal client, your niche, your products and services. Are you mixing businesses and confusing the hell out of your clients? Again, you shouldn’t. I myself was guilty of this before I rebranded but I knew I was speaking to two seperate audiences so I split my business. Sometimes this isn’t possible and you either need to let go of the service/product that isn’t serving you or your clients while other times you need to create a new business that will help distinguish between your two (or more) offerings.
2. Write down the pages you’ll need in your navigation menu
A common place to start is home, about, services, portfolio/gallery and contact. That is the basic setup for most websites but you need to personalise it specifically for your business. Think about what you offer, are you a service based business, a blogger, a shop etc. For shops and bloggers you can use your categories as your main navigation instead. Try to keep the options as specific and as few as possible, skip fancy words that potential clients may not understand and try to think about what the average person would google instead. Remember, keep it simple.
3. Less is more
People don’t read anymore, they skim over pages. The less information you have, the better but it needs to be clear, concise and partnered with beautiful imagery or graphics. While you’re planning your copy, use your template as a frame of reference and plan your text out with a google doc for each page. This helps to visualise how it will all look on the page and you can avoid clutter or too much text!
4. Clearly state what you do
Can you sum up who you are and what you do in one sentence? If not, you need a brand summary or a brand bio. When potential clients come to your website, do they know what you do, what you offer, the services you provide? You are intimately intwined with your business and a common mistake I see is not explaining who you are and what you do! To do this, you need to know who your client is, what products or services you offer and what actions you want your potential clients to be taking. Try having someone else look at your website and ask them to tell you what it is you do, you might be surprised at the result!
5. Focus on your ideal client
When you’re writing your text you want to be speaking directly to your ideal client. Think about the language, tone and words you’re using and if they relate to them. You’ll ned to consider your region, demographic and customer base. If you don’t already have a client persona, this is the perfect time to create one!
6. How do your clients benefit
Most people make their website all about them instead of how their clients benefit from their service or product. You need to highlight how your clients benefit from your service or products. What problem are you solving for you clients, it can be as simple as providing a gorgeous hair cut or colour, you don’t need to be saving the world. Ask yourself why would someone buy your product or service, how do you help your clients achieve their goals or dreams? Most importantly, how do you want your client to feel after using your product or service!
7. Clarity beats creativity
I’m all about keeping it simple. I love beautiful things but they are pointless if there is no clarity. Try to release yourself from the pressure to be wildly creative with copywriting. Keep it simple and clear, remember people are scanning.
8. Highlight important items
Use your headings to highlight the most important items. Again, people are scanning you want them to be able to get a good idea of who you are and what you do in the quickest and easiest way so highlight them.
9. Keep it short, simple and scannable
You need a lot less text than you think. Try writing all your text out and then cut it in half. Once you’ve done that, cut it in half again. You can also break up bigger sections of text with graphics, images or numbers.
10. Just start
Allocate yourself a day to sit down and get as much done as possible. Try setting a timer for 20 mins per page and see how much you get done. You will surprise yourself, trust me.
Bonus tip
If this all sounds too daunting still and you have no idea what copy you need, try going back to basics. Think about your ‘why’. Why did you start this business, what are you looking to achieve, who do you want to work with and what does success look like to you.
