Copy Writing for the Web

Copy Writing for the Web

There are nine key web copywriting principals:

Know web users

People don't read website's the same way they read printed material. There are three key characteristics that affect how web users react to online content (especially consumer-related content):

  • Web users are active, not passive: One click and they're gone. If they don't see a reason to stay on your site, they'll leave.
  • The longer the text, the less likely they are to read it.
  • They don't believe hype. If you want a web user to believe what you say, back it up.

Effective web copy has the following characteristics:

Anticipate questions

There are four basic questions a user has that you must answer on every page: "What am I doing here," "How do I do it," "What's in it for me," and "Where can I go next?" If your site's navigation and design don't make answers obvious to visitors, then you should use copy to explain them.

Don't count on your site's visitors to figure things out for themselves.

Keep copy short

Unless a visitor arrives at a particular page on your site expecting to find something to read, he or she probably won't read more than one or two lines of text. The longer the text, the less likely they are to read any of it. Don't add long copy to any page where your visitors aren't looking for it.

Keep short copy simple

The complexity of your copy matters as much as its length. Make sure visitors can understand short copy on its first reading, without stopping to think about it.

Typically, you can convey one key idea effectively in one or two lines. You can sometimes get two, if they're both simple. Trying to say too much ruins the chance that even the first idea will get through.

Anticipate that readers will want to learn more about something they find on a page. Add a link to another page where they can get the information they need.

Organize extensive copy effectively

Even when readers are expecting to find a text-heavy page, they won't necessarily be willing to put much effort into reading it. Make it easy for them by dividing distinct ideas into separate paragraphs, using helpful headings, sub-headings, bulleted lists, and introducing key ideas deliberately.

Don't assume readers will read longer pieces of text in their entirety — write the copy so that readers can skim it and read only the parts they're interested in.

Longer copy needn't be as direct as short copy, but it must be just as easy to read. If your visitors have to work too hard to understand what it's saying, they'll stop reading.

Make copy lively

Don't be boring. Write vividly and aim for a light, unassuming tone of voice. Boring copy will not penetrate.

Focus on your key audience

You can't reach everyone. Make sure your copy addresses your site's most important audience and lets them know what the site can do for them in particular. Don't weaken its effectiveness by adding words intended for readers you don't need.

If you are targeting more than one kind of visitor, design your site to direct the different audiences to different pages on the site. If a web user doesn't think your site has something of value to him, they'll go somewhere else. But if your message speaks directly to their needs, they'll listen.

Be Consistent

The more consistent a voice you create — and the better it speaks to your intended audience in particular — the quicker your visitors will recognize it and become familiar with it. And the more familiar, the more effective.

Facts speak louder

Don't talk down to or past your audience. Make your descriptions compelling, but not excessive. Web readers read hype as hype, and remember it that way, too. plus if they're unsure they go right back to Google.

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