Web Copywriting
Mistakes
Studies show a full 79% of
Internet users scan
the page rather than read word
for word. That means whatever they do read
had better be very good.
Here are the current top web copy-content
mistakes to be avoided.
The Big Mistakes
Opening With Flash
Animation
Marketing people adore Flash animation; it's pretty
and screams high tech. Web surfers hate it, and most
can't wait to find the "Skip" link
- if it exists. Why? Because the pretty, but substanceless
Flash piece stands in between them and the information
they seek. Studies have shown when people are online
they need to feel "active." There
are millions upon millions of pages of information
online, Flash slows them down;
they aren't going to wait. Strong copy - not useless
animation is going to grab those people.
Opening with "Welcome
to My Home Page"
You're wasting time - both yours and
theirs. Don't forget why web users visit
you in the first place: It's all about them,
not you. Start off identifying the
benefits, or emotional triggers in your
copy that people will react to. Remember
it's not I, I, I, it's you, you, you.
No Compelling Headlines
or Subheads
 In
print our eyes see the picture first
- not online. Research shows the first
thing web users see is a headline. Your
eyes drift down the page (scanning)
looking for obvious word-terms related
to your search. That headline and those
subheads should effectively tell scanners
what's on the page without having
to dig into the real copy. Headlines
get attention. Scanners (of which I'm
one) can gloss over the bulk of the content
and get the gist of the story with only
headlines and subheads. Once they know
this is what they're looking for, they
start again, actually reading the
copy.
Underestimating
the Importance of Copy - Content
Good copy-content describes what you do and convinces
the reader to take action (click, read more, purchase
etc.). Good copy is friendly, informative, and engaging.
It invites the reader to come back
and visit again. It's the reason the visitor joins
your newsletter, tells their friends about you, and
feels ever-so-comfortable on your Web site. You might
make a sale with bad copy, but that doesn't mean the
customer will ever pass you and your business on to
others.
Not Building Copy
Around Keywords and Phrases
Search engines put sites with relevant
keywords higher on the
search list. These engines and indexes
find these relevant sites by reading
the copy on web pages. Determine what
words your target market would
type in to find you - don't be afraid
to think outside-the-box. Those are your
keyword and phrases; build them into
your copy. Repeat them as
an integral part of your
copy. And remember these words are always
changing and evolving, so you
must be able to adapt.
Boring the Reader
Away (Yawn)
People don't have to read your copy, you
have keep them involved. The purpose of good
copy is to get you to read the first sentence.
Then that sentence should get you to read the next
sentence. The domino theory lives!
Not Enough White Space
Don't clutter up your pages with too many
confusing options (think about portal sites
like Yahoo - so many links that many are
simply ignored), or the dreaded slow-loading
graphics. Use well-placed white space to pull the
reader through your copy from start to
finish. Reading on a computer screen is
very tiring on the eyes; online reading
is 25% slower than reading
print. Make it easy on your customer. Break
up your information by use short, attentive
sentences, single thought paragraphs, and
lots of bullet-point copy. Simply keep
in mind the whole concept of scan-able
copy.
What Offends Site
Visitors | Copywriting
Mistakes | Professional
Copywriting |
