People who know anything about marketing and promotions know that you need good copy to attract and hold the attention of potential customers. It is not different when it comes to the copy that you place on your web site. Without coherent and informative text, your site will soon die, no matter how good your product happens to be.
Here are some tactics you can use to make your web copy be all it can be:
1. Keep the copy on your home page simple. Write your copy as if the individual coming to your site knows absolutely nothing about the subject matter, and wants to learn.
2. Make the copy scannable. Using short paragraphs, bulleted lists, and other visual devices will make the text seem less daunting.
3. Keep it upbeat. Use your space to point out what is right with your product, not what is wrong with everybody else’s.
4. Use different fonts. Going with one font for the titles and headers, while using a different one for the text, helps to break up the monotony and keep interest levels higher.
5. Use different colors. Just remember to use a color that makes the text stand out from the background, and is perfectly legible. Yellow text on a white background doesn’t make things easy for the reader.
6. Don’t go overboard with fonts and colors. If you think there is too much of either on a given page, you’re probably right.
7. Put some thought into your headlines. Keep them short, but interesting. People are more likely to read what follows.
8. Use keywords in your headlines. This will help with the page ranking as much as the words in the body of your copy.
9. Ask a question in your headline. Questions invite people to engage with the text, rather than simply read it.
10. Stay away from all capital letters in your headline. It rarely looks good and sometimes looks contrived.
11. Forget extra characters in your headline. They add nothing to it and will likely obscure the words, something you don’t want to happen.
12. Don’t include hot links in the headlines. You’ll get more mileage if you keep the links in the body of the copy.
13. Revise the headline slightly now and then. It can help old copy attract new attention.
14. Keep the font size of the headline in proportion with the rest of the page. You lose valuable space when it is too big, and it is lost on the page when it is too small.
15. Add an image to enhance the look of your text. Just make sure it is relevant; not any pretty picture will do.
16. Start paragraphs with a verb. This implies action, which can draw people into what you are trying to convey.
17. Ask questions throughout the text. They make people think and motivate them to keep reading.
