Let’s face it… the way you communicate is vital to your website success.
Words. Messages. Value propositions. Taglines. Storytelling. COPYWRITING.
Copy is the secret ingredient that a lot of small business owners fail to pay attention to.
Yet the copy is probably the most critical thing to website success.
I know, crazy, right?!
Give me an ugly website with great copy any day and I’d bet money it beats the pretty one with average messaging. Hands down.
So it makes sense to create a powerfully engaging copy that positions your brand well and sends all the right signals that you are the Panadol for their pain.
But stop.
Just before we go any further, can we get one thing straight please?
Your website is NOT about you.
Gasp. Shock. Awe. Horror. Disbelief.
I know, I know. A bit melodramatic but I literally well up when I see web pages that do absolutely to convey why I should do business with them.
As in, what’s in it for me?
It pays to tune into WII.FM (What’s In It For Me?)
Which is why I wanted to share with you this simple little hack I learnt over a decade ago.
It’s a cool little test you can use to reverse engineer great copy!
Here’s what you do…
- Print out your current About page (or homepage, services page, contact page. etc.).
- Grab a yellow highlighter.
- Highlight the amount of times you say “we”, “our”, “I”, “us” or “Your Business Name”.
You might be shocked to see how customer centric you’re actually NOT!
It’s like repelling your audience with heavy duty mosquito spray, not that nice one either, that sticky one that stinks to high heaven.
So if you find your pages are currently wreaking of aerogard, a great step in the right direction is to spin that around to reframe your copy so instead of saying “we, we, we etc”, start with “you” or “your”.
Here’s an example…
Before:
At Web123, we know you’ll need our help after you go live which is why we offer unlimited website support at one very affordable monthly fee. We’re there to hold your hand at every step of the way like we’ve done for thousands of other small businesses just like you. Call us today to talk about how we can help you.
(Eight uses of inwardly-focused copy.)
After:
You are going to need to call someone after your website goes live, that’s when the real work begins. Which is why, when you join Web123, you get unlimited website support for one low capped fee (less than your daily coffee actually at just $1.60 a day). You can call us 20 times a day if you need to and you’ll never get a bill! Join 2,000+ other happy clients just like you, get in touch today.
(Versus just one.)
Pretty cool hack, huh?
So put yourself in the shoes of your customer…
- What is it that keeps them up at night?
- How have they been wronged in the past?
- What issues do they face?
- What concerns do they have buying your product/service?
- What do they really, really want? Emotionally, not logically.
Start brainstorming then craft your copy to solve their pains.
And steer clear of words that talk about you.
It’s not rocket science.
It’s just basic human nature.
Your website is about THEM… not YOU.
When we’re looking to spend money, what we really want is to to solve a problem or fill an emotional need.
Be that filler. :)
Until next time, go kill it online!
