m a r k e t i n g
is your website speaking out loud?
chunks that are easily digestible for readers who are glancing through your page. Divide these chunks up with clear subheads that tell the reader what the next paragraph is about. Readers can then quickly decide whether your site is right for them without even having to read any of the‘ fine print’.
Stephanie Dale
Managing Partner DMC Advertising Group
When preparing the copy for your website you need to be aware of what you want your site to achieve, the audience you are communicating with, the type of information they require and the limitations of web platforms.
When writing for the web, writers should always keep one analogy in mind; the internet is a jungle and web users are information foragers within it. Usability expert, Jakob Nielsen, championed this comparison based on his studies that found that the majority of internet users only scan websites in their quest to find useful information as quick as possible.
According to Nielsen, the success of website writing depends primarily on conciseness, scan-ability and objectivity. But these aren’ t the only guidelines to follow to make your writing successful on the web.
Clear and Concise
Because the majority of internet users scan websites for the information they are looking for, good website writing must be clear and concise. A general rule of thumb is that the word count for websites should be half that of traditional writing. You want visitors to be able to locate the gist of each paragraph as quickly as possible. Flowery language and complex sentences have no place on the web.
Divide into Chunks
Good web copywriting isn’ t only about the number of words on a site. Organisation is just as important. Break your text into
Bulleted lists are a great way to provide the most important information in a quick and easily understandable format.
It is also important to understand how your website looks in different browsers and with different screen sizes so that you know what visitors see when they come to your site. Know how much of your homepage is seen before having to scroll down, and make sure that the most important and eye-catching information is placed at the top of the page before the scroll.
How to Draw Readers In
Often, website homepages are organised so that users can click on several options that will take them to another page of the site. Whether or not users click on a particular item usually depends on the attentiongetting ability of three things; headlines, quality text and accompanying photos or multimedia.
Magazines and newspapers rely on their headlines to attract newsstand buyers, and website copywriters should think of their headlines in a similar way. Headlines and quality text on the homepage are the only chance a writer has to‘ sell’ that story to a visitor, so they should be simple, clear and attractive to readers. Headlines should emphasise verbs that connote action, something that will inform or entertain readers. But they also must reflect what the article is about.
Who, What, Where, When, Why
Once users have clicked on an article, website writers should follow the inverted pyramid style of newspaper writing. This style means that the most important information in the article is presented first, then expanded upon throughout the rest of the article. In other words, the‘ who’,
‘ what’,‘ when’,‘ where’, and‘ why’ need to be answered first. The‘ how’ will make up the rest of the article. Another reason to use the inverted pyramid style is because the majority of readers will not click to the second page of an article. Place the most important information to readers before the page break.
Style
Style will make your website stand out while drawing readers in. For most websites, an informal yet lively voice is the best, helping you achieve simplicity and easy readability. Internet readers prefer sites that are written in a conversational and informal style.
Make sure you write in an active rather than passive voice. Active voice will also force you to be concise.
Make content easy to read
In the online world, less is nearly always more. Write your copy for the impatient, online reader. Here are some guidelines for the length of your content:
14 Australian Window Association