| |
| |
|
Mahavir Information |
| ||||||||
|
How to Make the Most of Your Website Copywriter
Many people feel uncertain when dealing with copywriters. Like any artform, writing is subjective; instead of black and white, most business owners and marketing managers see indistinguishable shades of grey. But copywriting possesses one key element that most other forms of art don't - a commercial imperative. Because the copywriter's audience is driven by the realities of the business market, so too is the copywriter. Although the good ones love to write, they don't necessarily love to write about toilet paper and real-estate. Copywriters - in particular website copywriters - write because it's their job. And like any job, copywriting has very defined objectives and parameters which determine how the copywriter works, and the kind of material they produce. So, if you need black and white, this is where you'll find it. There are two primary commercial realities for a website copywriter. Understand these realities, and you'll understand the writer. Ignore them, and your job will take longer, be more frustrating, be less engaging, and earn you less money. REALITY 1 - READER-FRIENDLY AND SEARCH-ENGINE-FRIENDLY A website copywriter needs to adhere to certain guidelines to ensure your website is both reader-friendly and search-engine-friendly. This is black and white. Because most websites rely on search engines for their traffic, your website copywriter has to write for two broad audiences: human and computer. This introduces a number of complexities because, quite often, these audiences want different things. For instance, with humans, less is generally more. But with computers, more is more. Humans need to understand, so the fewer words the better. Search engines, on the other hand, are programmed to think that anything important enough to be ranked highly has to have a lot of words. A website copywriter must balance these conflicting requirements. Your copywriter will work faster and more efficiently if you don't demand too few words or too many. TIP: If your site needs both humans and search engines, try not to set your heart on less than 100 words per page or more than 300 words. Generally speaking, somewhere in the middle is a nice compromise for both audiences. And it's not just the number of words used that's important. Humans tend not to like repeated words, whereas search engines do. Humans will understand from your heading what it is you do, and if it's relevant. Mention it once, and they'll generally remember. Search engines are not so smart. They need to be told again and again. This is how they figure out how relevant your site is. TIP: Don't ask your website copywriter to be a minimalist. The search engines won't like it. By the same token, don't ask them to simply jam every page full of hundreds of your primary keyword phrases, because your human readers won't like that (in fact, neither will the search engines). The trick is to expect each page to repeat one or two primary keyword phrases 5-10 times. TIP: Remember, balancing human and computer requirements is time consuming. Try to have a clear understanding of the objective of each page before your writer starts. You'll get a much better product with fewer time consuming iterations. REALITY 2 - BENEFITS, AUDIENCES, PRODUCTS, SERVICES, FEATURES A website copywriter deals in benefits, audiences, products, services, and features. This is black and white. These things may be painfully obvious to you, but they won't be to your copywriter. And although a good copywriter will be able to draw them out of you, they won't be able to accurately and comprehensively identify them alone. TIP: Before you engage a website copywriter, make a list of what you do, who you do it for, and what benefits it gives them. Your job will cost more if your brief consists of one line, "I want to increase sales!" When it comes down to it, a good website is written around benefits. Customers are only interested in how you can benefit them. This means benefits are the website copywriter's inspiration. By the end of the project, you'll be sick and tired of hearing your copywriter ask, "But what are the benefits of that to your customer?" You'll definitely thank them for asking though. TIP: Don't confuse features with benefits. A feature is what you do or how you do it. A benefit is what advantage that brings to the customer. Your list should make a clear distinction between the two. This will save your copywriter a LOT of time, and save you a lot of money. Most importantly, it will MAKE you a lot of money because your website will engage your customer. Website copywriting is an artform. But because it's an artform with a commercial foundation, it can be understood by anyone in business. And when you understand the commercial realities of the copywriter, the greys of the artform will begin to seem more like the familiar black and white of the nine-to-five. Then, and only then, will you be able to make the most of your website copywriter. About The Author * Glenn Murray is an SEO copywriter and Article Submission Specialist. He is a director of PublishHub and also of copywriting studio Divine Write. He can be contacted on Sydney +612 4334 6222 or at glenn@divinewrite.com. Visit http://www.divinewrite.com or http://www.publishhub.com for further details, more FREE articles, or to purchase his e-book, 'SEO Secrets'.
MORE RESOURCES:
Acne - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Copywriting 101: Exclamation Point, Friend or Foe? My name is Ann and I'm a grammar geek. There, it's out and I'm relieved. Calls-To-Action: Making Them Fit Makes All the Difference It was going so well, so what happened? Many copywriters get off to a wonderful start: The headline is compelling, the body copy is benefit-filled, but then comes the call-to-action and the whole thing falls apart. Why? It could be a dozen different reasons, but one of the most common I've seen is that the call-to-action doesn't fit the target audience. How to Write a Direct Mail Fundraising Letter (Four Tips for Fund Raising Success) 1. Address your reader as a friend, not as "Friend. How To Test The Body Of Your Sales Copy For Weaknesses Your sales copy is the life source of your business. If your sales copy isn't pulling in a decent conservation rate, then your business is suffering. Real Estate Professionals Need You to Write for Them! Ask yourself these questions:Are you an experienced writer?Do you want to stay at home to write?Do you want to work for yourself?Do you learn new things quickly?Are you interested in a broad number of subjects?Do you feel like you're being pigeonholed with your current writing and you want to branch out?Do you have a flair for marketing?If you answered "yes" to any of these questions - or even better - several, you may have found a new career!It's more important than ever for real estate professionals to market themselves legally considering the laws regarding email and telephone sales seem to change daily - depending on which court is hearing the case. Many experts speculate though that eventually some sort of anti-telemarketing law will be enforced and while it's much more difficult to regulate email, it's still being made more and more difficult to use this form of marketing and sales. On Copying and Stealing Designs The notion on the great artist, Pablo Picasso's quote, "Bad artists copy. Good artists steal" is lost on many. 10 Things You Should Expect From Your IT Copywriter Anyone who's ever tried marketing IT products or services knows that it's a specialist field. Your customers in the IT industry have very unique and specific requirements, and that means you do too. Accelerate Your Freelance Copywriting Master Business Plan! Ever wish for your own copywriting business?Ever wish you could become one of those internet marketing gurus and live out your dream of being who you really want to be?Well, what's stopping you? Is it time? Money? Fear of the unknown? These are the roadblocks that prevent so many of us from achieving our full potential for greatness.If you're good at something, and I'm sure that you are. 10 Keys to Copy That Sells! Whether you're selling a product or service, the 10 tips below are your keys to writing great copy that communicates and persuades .. Direct Mail Sales Letters Flow Better With Subheads A subscriber to my newsletter asks: "Got any good pointers on writing great sub-heads?" Yes, I do. Here they are. Advice for Copywriters: How to Win the Freelance Bidding War Are you a freelance copywriter working from home? If so, you've probably been on the project bidding war sites, like elance.com. Four Simple Steps to Improve Your Sales Copy You know what it's like, you're reading the sales material about a product you're considering buying, but, as you read, all these questions seem to pop into your mind, but there's no-one there to answer them, so you shelve your plans to purchase.If it happens to you, you can guarantee it also happens to your customers when they read your sales copy. What Is Persuasive Copywriting And How Can It Help Your Business? Persuasive copywriting is what draws the attention of prospective customers. They see your product and are drawn it. Engage Your Customer - Write About Benefits Think quick. In 10 seconds, can you list the 5 key benefits you offer your customers?I bet you said "Yes". Freelance Technical Writers - How Much Are You Worth? Where can you find out about freelance technical writing pay? Is there a place where you can go and find out where you stand? As with any field, pay is determined by several things, not just because you can do the work. Instead, it is about how you work, what type of work you do and how well you work with other people. Stop Chasing Away Customers! Bad Copy is Your Worst Enemy Every day, more and more of us begin new online business ventures, hoping to make a better living or just a little extra on the side. And every day, more and more of us fail. Do You Make These 5 Mistakes When Writing Sales Copy? Writing copy has sometimes been compared to an "art." While it does take creative skill to write great copy that generates results, there are some mistakes that you should avoid to make sure that your copy is read and acted upon. 3 Copywriting Tips - How To Edit For Mass Appeal! Web copy that's intended to sell or generate leads needs to quickly reach out and grab attention and build rapport with a target audience. You can connect with your audience more effectively if you understand something about how people process information, and how they think. Touching the Prospect's Emotions in Your Sales Letter Your prospect has emotions? and you MUST touch these emotions in your sales letter. Your copy has to excite. Copywriter Trick Unveiled: How to Write Better Copy Faster "Talent alone cannot make a writer. There must be a man behind the book.
|
|||||||||||||||||||
| Home | Site Map Copy Right 2006 Mahavir.com |
| NISL | Herbal Acne Solutions | Promotion Factory | Web Design | Online University Degree | College & University | GtpInfo | VPayU |
