Five tips for writing a business website
Today I’m talking all about websites. Specifically, how to write a website, and the best practices for writing website content for your business.
I’ll tackle broad tips like using your own voice and avoiding ridiculously niche jargon, as well as some of the nitty gritty details regarding CTAs, sentence structure, and more.
There’s me, by the way.
With a lovely pylon.
Let’s dive in with absolutely nobody’s favourite topic - jargon.
Avoid jargon (most of the time)
As a business, you know your industry better than anyone, even your customers.
That’s why it’s important to avoid insider jargon when writing content for your website. Generally speaking, you’ll be baffling potential customers rather than adding value to their lives, which is what you want to do with your words.
The key is to remember that just because you speak to colleagues with slang that’s specific to your industry, it doesn’t mean the outside world will understand it.
In fact, they probably won’t.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and place for jargon, and it’s all about balance, but it’s best to explain things as simply as possible when you’re trying to sell your products or services.
You want to solve a problem a reader is having, not add to it with terms they don’t understand.
And if jargon is unavoidable, make sure you explain what the terms you’re using mean. If you find yourself using jargon to explain the jargon, then you’re beyond help.
Only joking, but seriously, stop using jargon.
2. Use your own voice, kind of
Like this seagull.
Maybe not as aggressive, though.
Personality is crucial when writing website content, and you want to get across the personality of your business with your writing.
Speaking honestly and using your own personality will do wonders for how your website is perceived by potential customers. This leads to an increase in trust and the likelihood that they’ll come back, should they need your services.
But don’t take it too far! There’s a fine line between personality and cringe. You want to find that balance of professionalism and personality, rather than taking either to the extreme.
3. Don’t be shy with CTAs
What’s a CTA, you ask? See, this is a prime example of me using copywriting or marketing jargon, but explaining what it is.
A CTA is a call to action, which is basically telling your readers to do something. This generally comes in the form of a contact number, email address, or web page you want your customers to visit.
Don’t overdo CTAs, but make sure you have at least one on every page of your business website.
If your business website pages are really long, pepper CTAs throughout to break up your text to remind the reader that they can speak to you if they want to.
4. Break up your content
There’s nothing worse than a wall of text. Well, there are lots of things worse than a wall of text, but when it comes to website writing, it’s a big no-no.
Here’s a wall.
Great for building a house. Bad for website content.
You want to break up your content into easily digested chunks for your reader. This is done with short paragraphs and short sentences, and you can also use images, videos, and headings to achieve your objective.
Doing so makes skim-reading much easier for your customers, and let’s be honest, nobody visits a business website to read War and Peace. They want to find the information that’s relevant to them and get in touch. It’s that simple.
So, even though it might be tempting to go into every detail of your business, keep content light and precise, and make sure you avoid huge, insurmountable walls of text.
5. Hire a copywriter
While these tips are helpful, a copywriter is always your best bet for writing website copy for your business. Writing web pages is something most copywriters, or content writers (whatever), do every day, so we know how to do it to a high standard.
I know words are words, and you use them every day, but copywriters understand the art and science of writing a website and can help you avoid the pitfalls of doing it yourself.
To be honest, most of my clients come to me with a website they aren’t happy with because somebody from their team wrote it for them, or they took a crack at it themselves and it isn’t what they’re after.
I can help with rewriting what you have or writing something from scratch, making it as creative as you like, tailored around SEO, or whatever it is you want to achieve. I can also offer advice about what will help with your website reach more people.
Get in touch for website writing assistance
Writing website content for businesses big and small is a major part of my life, so get in touch to discuss your website copywriting project.
Whether you’re an SME or a corporation with hundreds of employees, I can help you perfect your website content or create a brand new one from nothing but a few notes and a phone call.
Drop me an email at james@writeocreative.co.uk to find out how I can help.