Your website is your chance to make the best first impression.

Think about it… Today, your website or social media page is the first interaction that someone has with your business.

Usually they won’t even be looking for you specifically. They’ll simply type into Google “best [solution to their problem]” and you might be lucky enough to be on the first page of search results.

However, before someone clicks they’re going to see the words in the link. They’re going to see a short snippet of text under that link.

IF they decide to click, they’re going to land on your homepage, which is your one chance to hook them and convince them that you’re the product or service they’re searching for. Some studies reckon you’ve got about 15 seconds to do that.

This is what I mean when I say, “Your words are your frontline”.

In the battle for attention – and let’s face it, ALL businesses are in this battle whether they realise it or not – your words are your first impression.

Sure, design matters, too. But without high-quality copy, your website will flop.

Entrepreneur and author Jason Fried has this to say:

“A snappy design might catch their attention, but it’s the words that make the real connection. Your company’s story, product descriptions, history, personality — these are the things that go to battle for you every day. Your words are your frontline. Are they strong enough?”

Now when you take a look at your the copy on your website, what do you think?.. Is it strong enough?

In my opinion, there are three key things that businesses could be doing better when it comes to website copy.

They’re simple things. But they’re not easy to do.

Making these changes to your website copy will add firepower to your words, beef up your frontline, and help your business to make the best first impression online.

So what are they?..

1. Stop talking about yourself

This is a biggie. It’s so common for businesses to use their website copy to talk all about themselves. It’s only natural, I know. You think people are coming to your website to learn about you, right?

I hate to break it to you, but they’re really looking for the best solution to their problem. Therefore, it’s much more effective if you talk about them. Address their problem, their pain points. Show that you understand and then you can explain how your product or service is the right choice for them.

Another way of putting this is: Focus on benefits, not features. That means tell people how your product or service benefits their lives. If you’re selling a mattress, for instance, you don’t want to go on and on about the foam and the springs and the size. You want to tell people, Experience a deeper, longer sleep… 

A simple but effective way of talking about your audience is to ask a question. Tired of restless nights and broken sleep? 

Another way is to simply use their language. If you’re targeting teenagers, you need to understand how they speak to one another on social and emulate that tone. If you’re targeting sports fans, you need to know the lingo they use.

Of course, your website copy also has to tell people about your business. But if you want to capture your visitors’ attention, you should start by talking about them.

2. Paint a picture

We all know that old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words”. But I believe you only need a few good words in order to paint a compelling picture.

Painting a picture means using your words to create a world in which your audience wants to live, or holding up a mirror that reflects the type of person they aspire to be.

Let’s say there’s a new SaaS company that has a productivity app, designed to help you organise your life and business. Now you could use your words to say something like, Software to organise your life and business. However, if you were to use your words to paint a picture, you might say something like…

Work? Gym?
Family dinner?
Do it all.
Manage your time so you can choose how you spend it.

Now I’ve just whipped this up in a few seconds based on a hypothetical business. But do you see how those words paint a picture and also hold up a mirror at the same time?

The words paint a picture of a busy life in which someone is juggling different commitments but can’t do them all. We can all relate. But the software’s promise is that you can do it all. The mirror is reflecting back a person who is organised and can therefore live their life on their terms.

This is much more powerful than simply explaining what the software does.

3. Keep it simple

This should not come as a surprise to anyone. But I still see examples of overly complex website copy every day.

Here’s the thing. Trying to sound smart in order to impress is not smart.

The words on your website need to be simple. The sentences need to be short. You need to get rid of any industry-specific jargon and use human language.

Then when you think it’s simple enough, go through and cut it down by another 10%.

Unnecessary words are diluting your message. They’re weakening your frontline. The more you strip things back, the closer you’ll get to saying what you mean.

And we all could be better at saying what we mean.

Wrapping up

There are always exceptions to the rule and there will always be successful companies that don’t follow this advice.

But if you want to make your website copy fight for you, to stand out from your competition, and to capture people’s attention in an instant, you should consider taking this advice to heart.

If you want to refresh your website copy, we’re happy to help.