So You Wanna Learn How to Write Web Copy?

Writing good web copy often seems like a daunting task. After all, there are so many things to think about. Who am I writing for? What am I writing about? What does my audience want? Are they really going to get anything out of this?

Knowing Your Audience

While it does seem as if there are lots of different puzzle pieces that need to fit together to create the perfect piece of web copy, there's really just one question that needs to be answered to begin: Who is my target audience?

To write the best web copy, you're going to have to start by figuring out who your target audience is. Pretend that these readers are sitting right in front of you; what would you say to persuade them to use your product or service? What problems are they facing, and how can your product or service help fix their problems?

Preparing Your Value Offer

When thinking about your ideal readers, try to put yourself in their shoes. Think about what they want, what they like about the product or service you're offering, and what keeps them coming back time and again. Then prepare a list of the features and benefits your product or service delivers.

While making this list, you're also going to want to include keywords, words that will optimize your search and direct your ideal customers to your website. Keep your keywords short and simple, and keep your overall web copy concise and conversational.

Engaging Your Readers

In learning how to write good web copy, you want to talk to your ideal customers in their words, using their language—not using convoluted industry jargon. Although you'll be trying to outline the features of your product or service here, simply doing so will not be enough to convince readers that they need whatever it is you're offering.

Whether or not your product or service is unique, you're going to want to show your readers how they will benefit from—and how their problem will be solved with—your product. You need to make it appeal to them in a way that makes your product or service stand out from the rest.

To write the best web copy, read your copy out loud to make sure that it sounds conversational. When writing a headline, instead of using your own language, you might want to use a simile, an analogy, or an idiom to make a big impact on your audience while still being concise. Although you'll be using colloquial language, consider your audience's background and whether they’ll be able to understand your idiomatic expressions.

Ensuring Clarity and Accuracy

As with any other piece of writing, don't skimp on editing your work. Even small errors can have a big impact on how well your web copy is received, so take a few extra minutes to double-check your work, or better yet, have it edited and checked for optimization by a professional editing service.

Conclusion

When it comes down to it, writing good web copy is easy. You just have to keep the focus on your ideal customers and give them content they will actually want to read. To write the best web copy, you must show your customers how your product or service will help solve their problem.

Your web copy will have the greatest impact if you write in plain English using the language they use—this will make your web copy both interesting and relatable. You don't just want to write good web copy, you want to write the best web copy. So keep these points at the forefront of your mind the next time you're writing web copy—you'll be amazed at how far it gets you!

Image source: everything possible/Shutterstock.com