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Posts Tagged ‘web content’
Thursday, October 7th, 2010
Yesterday I was cruising the technical forums, trying to diagnose a problem with my new phone. Inevitably I ran into an exchange between two posters that got a little heated. So, here it is 24 hours later, and I’m still thinking about that exchange and how between-the-lines snarky it was. Since “0 of 11 people found this post helpful,” it obviously had a similar effect on others. Negative writing can bring you down. I am sure when they were focused on each other, those writers had no idea the effect their writing would have on others.
Buddhists believe that our actions, and even our thoughts, have effects that spread far outward, like ripples in a pond. Certainly this much is true of writing, and not just of your written comments on forums and articles on the Internet. (I have no idea how many people may read this post, but Google Analytics suggests it’s a lot more than I want to contemplate.) (more…)
Tags: audience, blogging, communication, copywriting, motivation, posting, user generated content, web content, web copywriting, Website copy, writing
Posted in Marketing | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 11th, 2010
Quote of the Day (from Seth Godin, that eminently quotable guy…)
“Sorry that this e-booklet is so short. Actually, if I hadn’t spent so much time on it, it would be longer.”
How many times do you edit your written communication [not just proposals, print, web copy, but even brief e-mails] before it is ready for release? What “rules of thumb” do you use when you edit? Do you try to make sentences shorter, ideas clearer, remove unnecessary words? Do you remove entire sentences or subjects if they are about you instead of about your audience?
Here’s how to tell if you’re using a good method to edit: in most cases, the finished product should get shorter…and shorter… and shorter, until it’s as short as it can be and still express the essential ideas you need to get across.
An Extreme Example?
Tags: communication, web content, web copy, web copywriting, Web site copy, website design
Posted in Creative, Marketing | No Comments »
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010
After reading a sentence in yesterday’s New York Times, I realized that the venerable news organization might provide a fertile ground for examples of unintelligible writing.
So, for the next few weeks I will take examples from some of my favorite “heady,” “intellectual” information sources and show you how you could rewrite them so someone might actually understand them, and might even be persuaded by them. And, in marketing, isn’t it all about persuasion?
The sentence came from an article entitled: U.S. Saw a Path to Qaeda Chiefs Before Bombing, by Mark Mazzetti, in January 5’s New York Times. The opening of the article basically said that last week’s suicide bomber had been thought to be a promising informant for our government. So here it is:
“American intelligence officials said Tuesday they had been so hopeful about what the Jordanian might deliver during a meeting with C.I.A. officials last Wednesday at a remote base in Khost that top officials at the agency and the White House had been informed that the gathering would take place.” (more…)
Tags: concise writing, copy editors, good writing, journalism, New York Times, web content, web copywriting, Web site copy, Website copy, writing, writing clearly, writing well
Posted in Marketing | 1 Comment »
Thursday, September 10th, 2009
This is the third in a series of postings about writing copy for Web sites. I promised to provide guidelines for writing tight and concise copy. Here they are:
Define your Goals before you write. Every site, or every area of a site, should have one of the following goals:
Generate responses:
- sales
- leads
- contacts
- subscribers/repeat visitors
Provide information:
- technical/other support
- industry expertise
(more…)
Tags: Add new tag, concise copy, web content, web copywriting, Web site copy, Website copy, which hunt
Posted in Creative | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009
I was on the phone with a prospective client the other day and a familiar question came up, “How do I create search engine-friendly content?” It’s a good question, and if you have a Web site, you should be asking it. My answer starts with this simple, two-step search engine optimization (SEO) content strategy approach.
- Think about how your content can help visitors move through your site
- Make your site structure mirror that approach
Work from GENERAL to SPECIFIC; BIG to SMALL. Search engine friendly content leads the visitor (whether it’s a reader or search engine spider) along. It both educates and directs. (more…)
Tags: content strategy, content structure, search engine optimization, search engine spider, SEO, web content, Web site copy, Website copy
Posted in Creative | 1 Comment »
Thursday, August 13th, 2009
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. (more…)
Tags: web content, web copywriting, Web site copy, Website copy
Posted in Creative | No Comments »
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009
A lot has been written about writing copy the Web. Copywriting for Web sites doesn’t need to be intimidating. In fact, you can follow many of the same guidelines as for print copy. However there are a few key ways in which Web readers are different than print readers and this will affect your copywriting. In this series of postings I will explain (and, I hope, exemplify) how to write Web site copy.
Clear, Concise, Organized, Directed
Keep these four ideas in mind as you write. (more…)
Tags: web content, Web site copy, Website copy, writing
Posted in Creative | No Comments »
Friday, July 24th, 2009
Content may be king for successful SEO but he’s nothing without his queen, and she is accessibility. Think of it this way: you may be the greatest artist the world has even seen but if your work is hidden in a basement, how will we ever know?
Search engines don’t sleep. They never stop working. They send programs called “robots” to gather (i.e. index) content across the Web 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Please note, when I say “content” I’m referring to the copy, or words and other text, on your pages. Without it you will not rank well in search results. Here’s where the queen, accessibility, enters the picture. (more…)
Tags: accessibility, html page, search engine optimization, search engine robots, search engines, search marketing, SEO, web content
Posted in Marketing, Technology | No Comments »
