Your website copywriter - what should you expect?
A website copywriter is a true specialist - or is he? A website copywriter must write clearly and compellingly, engaging the reader with a headline that speaks directly to his target audience. Just like print then, eh? And, just like printed long copy, a website copywriter must include subheads that signpost a route through the copy. A web copywriter should also divide his work into bite-sized chunks. A bit like print copy.
Writing for spiders
Your website will also benefit from a copywriter who knows how to persuade, how to hold attention and how to draw a response. OK, all that applies to print, too. So where’s the difference? Well, a good copywriter will be able to write for the spiders that crawl the web, because your website simply must be search-engine friendly.
So, before you set your web copywriter loose on your site, ask to see samples of their work. Look at their online portfolio; follow links to the sites they’ve written. You’re looking for good writing, yes - but you’re also looking at how seamlessly they blend keywords into the copy. A skilled website copywriter will make copy flow and yet also include specific keywords dropped effortlessly into the flow of the text.
Striking a balance
Ask your website copywriter about scrolling. Sure, a high word count is more and more important for Google - your writer should know that Google likes informative content these days - but not at the expense of your audience’s attention span. A talented web copywriter will strike the right balance.
But let’s just double-back a little and remind you why your website copywriter needs to optimise your site. How does the idea of free advertising grab you? That’s what a website written and optimised by a copywriter offers you. Better still, as well as appearing high up on Google and Yahoo, you won’t be selling - you’ll be being bought from.
This is a crucial distinction. Any web copywriter worth his salt will tell you that people don’t want to be sold to. They want to feel in control. And searching for your type of product or service online is no different - if your potential customer does the searching, they feel ‘empowered’. And, trust me, that’s the first and last time this particular website copywriter will ever use that word.
Hypnotic words
Even more unpleasant than being sold to is the hard-sell technique. Avoid any website copywriter who sprinkles their copy with so-called magic, hypnotic buying-trigger words.
This brand of web copywriter usually insists that website copywriting is no different from long-letter direct mail. Their copy is all italics, underlines, caps, 32 different fonts. It looks like a ransom note. Maybe in the US. Maybe . But not here. Not in Blighty. And not on my shift.
These copywriters will also demand a large sum of money from you, insisting that the rewards from hypnotised clients will far outstrip any outlay on your part. They won’t.
Why not contact a website copywriter who can make buying a more natural, pleasant and human experience?
t: Nigel,
+44 (0)1772 435827
m: 07745 092037
e: nigel@mightier-than.com