Becoming a successful online copywriter takes more than just a strong grasp of language and the ability to communicate well. Writing for the web presents a whole different ballgame from writing for the printed page, and an experienced online copywriter will understand how to capitalize on the unique aspects of web writing in order to solicit the desired response from your readers.
- Stay on topic. People go online to find information quickly. They don’t want to read your nostalgic childhood memories when they’re looking for a recipe for red velvet cake.
- Put the most important ideas first. Most people read the first few sentences of a web page to decide whether it offers the information they’re looking for. If it takes you five paragraphs to get to the point, you’ll lose them long before you can demonstrate your in-depth knowledge of the topic.
- Make content scannable. Paragraphs should be short and concise, with relatively simple sentence structure. That doesn’t mean you should sound choppy, but at the same time, people shouldn’t have to read every word in order to get the gist of what you’re saying. Bolding important concepts or items in a list can make content more scannable as well.
- Include bullet points and subheadings whenever possible. Bullet points and subheadings serve the purpose of breaking information up into digestible chunks. This simple formatting structure goes hand in hand with making content scannable in order to communicate your ideas effectively to a distracted audience.
- Write for the search engine too. Perhaps the trickiest aspect of web writing for an online copywriter is appealing both to the search engine and to a human audience. The search engine looks for relevant keywords that adequately address a user’s search query. Learn what keywords to use and where to put them in order to make your copy more SEO friendly.
- Use flawless grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Nothing casts doubts on your professionalism quicker than proofreading errors. It’s hard to take any website seriously if they don’t care enough about their audience to communicate correctly. Use spell check, hire an editor, sign up for an English class, and do whatever else it takes to make sure your writing is flawless.
An effective online copywriter must learn to be creative while at the same time communicating his message in a web-friendly style and format. If you don’t have the experience or time to produce effective copy yourself, a copywriting service can partner with you to create written copy that keeps your audience engaged.