In my last post I talked about four overarching ideas to keep in mind as you write for the Web. Here and in my next 2 posts I’ll help you with some specific content guidelines.
The first four guidelines relate to:
Length
Organization
Audience
The Three Ws and one H
Length
+ Headings: 8 words or less (shoot for less!)
+ Sentences: 15-20 words
+ Paragraphs: 40-70 words
+ Page word count: 250+ words
Remember, these are guidelines. Don’t include unnecessary copy. You may even look at a page and decide it doesn’t need any body copy, just a heading and some navigation.
(It’s true that if a page is going to be catalogued by a search engine, it should have some body copy - but it’s not necessary for search engines to highly rate every page in your site.)
Organization:
+ Heading (title)
+ Subject (first sentence)
+ Support information
Start simple, then get to the details. Outline each point and then support it. This will not only help your reader to get your point, it will help you to think more clearly about what you are writing.
Write to Your Audience
+ When you write, write to your reader
+ When you edit, imagine yourself reading it for the first time
You must force your ego and/or your organization’s agenda out of your writing. What does your reader want to know/find/do? If you have it, provide it rather than talking about it.
What, Where, Why, How? (the 3 W’s & an H)
(Who is optional here.)
Web site users want to know these four things on every page:
+ What am I doing here?
+ How do I do it?
+ Why? What’s in it for me?
+ Where can I go next?
Make sure each page on your site provides these answers, implicitly or explicitly
In my next post I will give some guidelines on writing persuasive copy. You don’t need anything fancy or snappy, just clarity. You’ll find that when you make points clearly and concisely, your writing will be much more persuasive and you’ll get results.
Tags: web content, web copywriting, Web site copy, Website copy
