Whether you’re rebuilding, tweaking or starting from scratch, you may be wondering how to work out what to write about on your website?
In theory, it’s easy. You tell people what you sell right? Well, yes and no.
When you think about what to write about on your website, there a few other things you need to consider. In this article, I’m going to try and help you work that out, so your website can be more than just an online brochure.
Just before we dive in, here’s what this article isn’t about:
- Which pages you need on your website >
- How to write a blog post >
- Writing website content – where do I start? >
If you’re concerned about what to write about, then read on.
There’s a number of ways to approach the creation of content for your website:
- Do it yourself
- Get someone else to do it (preferably a professional)
- A little bit of both.
In most cases, I’m a fan of the latter approach and here’s why. No one will know more about your business than you. Your personality and your corporate culture should come through in your website copy. In order to do this well, great website copy is an iterative process between someone on the inside and someone on the outside. With that in mind, here’s what you need to think about before you start wondering what to write about on your website.
1. If I land on your website home page, can I work out you do/sell in less than 5 seconds?
Getting people on your website is hard work. If you run paid ads to get traffic to your site, it can be hard work and expensive to boot. Time and time again I see people throwing their marketing spend down the proverbial toilet, by overcomplicating their message. I get it, it’s fun to be cryptic and clever. But cryptic and clever have no place in a busy digital world where literally everything else is competing for the attention of your potential customers. Attention spans are getting shorter too, so there’s no time to waste. Get to the point. Tell people what you do succinctly and simply. Stop making them dig around just to get basic information. Hand it over.
2. Is it easy for me to buy your product or service?
How does it work? What do I have to do next in order to do business with you? It’s insane that we work so hard to get people to our website, then leave them hanging like an awkward high-five moment. Or worse still, send them round in circles clicking on buttons that eventually bring them back to where they started with no progress whatsoever. Don’t be that guy. If your buying process is short, explain it. If it’s a little more complicated, break it down into smaller actionable steps that are easy to read and easy to understand. Keep the language jargon-free. Keep it simple. Make it insanely easy for people to do business with you.
If you’re not a rocket scientist, don’t make it rocket science..
3. Do you know your customers? Do you understand their problem?
If you don’t know who you’re trying to sell to, writing good website copy for them is going to be tricky. Work out who your perfect customer is, find out what their problems are and think about how your product or service helps to solve those problems. Once you know this, writing about it will come naturally – all you have to do is articulate their problem, then explain how you can help!
4. How can you best help your site visitors?
If I’m looking to buy a new battery for my car, I’ll likely do a search online. Being a conscious consumer, I’ll probably be looking to buy one locally. Being curious and not a mechanic, I’ll probably want help to fit it. That help might come in the form of an easy online booking system, where I can buy the battery and book in to get it fitted at the same time. It might be an article or a video, with step-by-step instructions showing me how to change the battery myself. Now, it’s worth noting that at the end of the article or video, I may well decide to have a go myself, but I may also think, these guys know about this stuff, I’ll just get them to do it (so there’s more time for me to do the stuff I’m good at). Be helpful. It will always be good for business. Write about things that will help your prefect customer. Give good value. Always.
5. What are your customers afraid of?
Unless a visitor ends up on your site via a trusted referral, the default state of mind is pretty much always going to be suspect. What would make your customers feel better about their buying decision? You need to gain their trust. There’s a few ways to do this via your website:
Company Reviews
The most obvious way to gain trust is to add reviews/testimonials to your website (find out how to get a Google Review here >). Social proof is essential. People want to know what other people thought of your product of service. It’s a natural part in the research phase that most people go though before committing.
Show Empathy
Being empathetic to your customers concerns will get you everywhere. Once you know what your potential customers are afraid of (Can I afford it? Will it work for me? What if they can’t do what they say they can?), you can address these fears and help them to understand how you can help them. Again, this is where it really pays to know who you’re targeting.
Reduce Risk
An option to ‘Try Before You Buy’ or ‘Free Returns’ etc, will help your customers over the line. By reducing their risk, you also reduce their fear.
Conclusion
So there you have it! Hope you found these tips on website content useful. The bottom line starts and ends with your customer. If you remember that and consider the needs of your ideal customer, you’ll be writing great website content in no time! Good luck!