Website Content

Writing and preparing the content for the Web requires a different approach from writing and preparing content for printed documents and publications.

In addition, writing copy for the Web that grabs the attention and gets the results you want takes time, whether you're trying to sell products or services at a business or commercial site or if you just want to let people know the latest about your personal site.

Creating an Effective Home Page (Landing Page)

Here are a few questions to ask yourself when creating a landing page:

1. What are you offering?

2. Who do you wish to appeal to?

3. Why would they be interested in your offer?

4. What do they need to do to participate/purchase?

Write down all your ideas, make it as lengthy as you like. Then, bring it down to it's core elements, making it as motivating as possible without it being over-hyped.

Think of your landing page as a summary of all the usual pages connected with the product/service you are offering. The goal of the landing page is to usually convert potential clients *quickly*, or to have them take some sort of rapid action so you can follow up with them later.

Ensure you have included a call to action towards the top of the page. This will work on more impulsive people or those who are already familiar with what you are offering. There should be calls to action sprinkled throughout the remainder of the content as different people have different tipping points in their sales process.

The call to action should be linked to the order page or subscription form.

A call to action is simply telling the potential client what they need to do in order to receive whatever you are offering e.g. “purchase today!”, “buy now, limited offer!” or “subscribe now!”

There's no need to get long-winded on a focused landing page. Your sentences should be brief or bullet-points, but provide valuable bite size chunks of information. Always offer an avenue of communication for further information for the more inquiring and discerning potential clients.

Writing "About Us" Content

Think of your Website “About Us” pages as your calling card. When a prospective customer visits your site the chances are “About Us” is one of the first links they will click on.

What they read can make or break their decision to give you their business. The primary question is, “Can I trust this company?” You can answer this question on your “About Us” pages by showing visitors that you have a solid track record as a reputable, experienced and customer-focused organization.

Your “About Us” pages can include:

1. A brief overview of what you do, including the benefits you offer to customers, and how those benefits distinguish you from competitors.

2. Your company history.

3. Profiles of executives and other key managers.

4. A list of awards and other recognition you have received.

5. Press releases and other resources for the media.

6. Many websites tend to combine the landing page with the about us page.

Headlines

Headlines provide busy visitors with an immediate measure of your site's relevance, a good headline will seduce site visitors. It should grab their attention and convince them the information on the page is worth investigating.

The following is a selection of conventional techniques for writing headlines:

• Use a famous Quote - "Microsoft isn't evil, they just make really crappy operating systems."
• Reveal a facts - "The Murray River is the longest river in Australia at 2520km"
• Use “How To” phrases - "How to write the best web page!".
• Guarantee the product - "Guaranteed, results within x day or money back..."
• Ask a tantalizing question - "does it happen to you often...?".
• Make an announcement - about new product, sale or special deals.
• Make a command - "Call Us Now!!!"

Graphics

Graphics should be considered something more than just eye-candy. Each graphic you use must enhance user experience rather than being distracting and irritating.

How to Get In Touch With You?

Suppose you’re fortunate enough for a visitor to like your products or services, what next? The visitor will instantly look out for your contact information. Make this info easily accessible on your website and all the other web pages, and don’t forget to add a Contact Us page for the interested prospects.