Tag Archives: Professional Web Content Writers

June 21, 2021 · 11:32 am

7 Questions to Ask About Your Web Content

How effective is the written content on your website? Is your site composed to attract leads, educate potential customers, and ultimately facilitate conversions? Has it been carefully developed to emanate authority and to instill trust? Or are the words on your site simply placeholders, scaffolding for your fancy design or your multimedia content?

These are important questions to ask, whether you’re considering a website relaunch or simply taking stock of your online marketing assets. To help you assess the quality of your written Web content, here are a few self-inventory questions to ask.

Assessing Your Website Content

Is all of my website content unique? It can sometimes be tempting to plagiarize yourself, especially if your website has a lot of product or service listings. Using boilerplate language from one page to the next may be convenient, but it can also incur penalties from Google, diminishing your search engine visibility. Uniqueness is key to effective content.
Who was my content written for? There’s not necessarily one right answer to this question… but if you can’t answer it at all, then that probably means your content was designed without a buyer persona or any kind of data about your target audience. And that, in turn, means you probably haven’t honed in on user questions or pain points. Writing for a more clearly defined audience can help you achieve your sales and marketing goals.
How’s the formatting? Is it easy to read your content? Do you have spacing, bullet points, subheadings, and short sentences to facilitate skimming? And does your content look just as sharp on a mobile device as it does on a desktop computer?
Does my content have action-oriented language? We generally advise business owners to include at least one clear call to action on each page, whether that’s an invitation for the reader to call you, schedule an appointment, or shop in your online store. Make sure your content aligns with the sales funnel, and that you use strong action words to guide readers through next steps.
Does your content answer common questions? The best content usually follows the consumer’s journey. What this means is, you begin with general concepts and definitions of terms, then move through common questions, objections, or pain points. Again, your website content provides you with a great opportunity to guide potential clients through their initial product research to a point where they are ready to buy.
Does my content convey trust? The most effective content gives people a reason to trust you. This may mean listing your awards and accolades, outlining your experience, citing testimonials and reviews, or simply conveying your knowledge of the industry. In particular, bio and about us pages can be great places to highlight your expertise.
How old is my content? If your content is full of references that might have been dated during the George Bush administration, or if it doesn’t capture the ways in which your value proposition has expanded or evolved, then you should probably spend some time updating it. (One good rule of thumb: Any statistics or studies you cite should be no more than three years old.)

If your answers to any of these questions leave you feeling dissatisfied with your website content, we’d love to hear from you. Our writers have ample experience writing business Web content that generates real results. To schedule a consultation with Grammar Chic, Inc., reach out via www.grammarchic.net or 803-831-7444.

6 Signs You Need to Rewrite Your Web Content

A good website is more than the sum of its parts. Certainly, you need logical navigation, clean graphic design, strong calls to action, and a robust internal linking strategy, among other considerations. And don’t forget about your written content! The written copy on your website is crucially important for educating and persuading customers, for gaining SEO traction, and for conveying the vision and values of your company.

Web content isn’t meant to last forever. On the contrary, it’s a good idea to revise your copywriting every two or three years. This gives you a chance to offer fresh content to the Google algorithms, and also to refine or update your company’s messaging.

Beyond that, there are a few telltale signs that your Web copy could stand an update… whether you rewrite it yourself, or enlist the expertise of Grammar Chic, Inc.

Signs You Need Fresh Web Copywriting

1) Your Google traction is slipping

One of the most important aspects of copywriting is that it signals to Google what your company is all about, and how your website should be categorized. If you’re not getting the kind of Google traffic you’d like, it’s possible that bad copy is to blame… and that a content refresh could put you back on Google’s radar.

2) You’re not getting calls or inquiries.

Ideally, your website is a 24/7 sales machine, directing interested consumers to call, text, or email you about your products and services. Make sure you track where your leads come from, and if you find that it’s seldom from your website, that should be a red flag: Your Web copy isn’t doing its job.

3) Your branding has changed.

It’s natural for companies to grow and evolve… and your website should grow and evolve with it. For example, say you started your company 10 years ago, with the intention of being an all-purpose plumbing service. But in the years since, your business has shifted to focus almost entirely on drain cleaning. This is something that should be reflected in your business messaging, and that starts with your website content.

4) Your customers are uneducated.

When customers call for a consultation, come in for an appointment, or show up to browse your retail store, they should have at least some idea of what you do. If you find that your customers are often confused about your products or services, or if you find yourself getting the same questions over and over again, it means your site isn’t educating consumers the way it should. It might be time for an update!

5) You’re having your website redesigned.

If you’re giving your website a facelift (and especially if you’re changing the layout or navigation), you’ll probably need to make some adjustments to the copy. Here we’ll note that Grammar Chic’s writers are uniquely experienced in partnering with Web design companies, ensuring you get a seamless final product.

6) You have a high bounce rate.

This is something you can check in your Google Analytics dashboard. Basically, a high bounce rate means people are coming to your site, but then immediately leaving. It suggests that, for whatever reason, the content on your website isn’t meeting their expectations. This could be a matter of poor layout or confusing navigation… but it could also be that your content isn’t as relevant or as helpful as it needs to be.

No matter your reason for wanting crisp new Web content, Grammar Chic is happy to deliver it. We’d love to book you for a no-obligation Web copywriting consultation. Reach out today: 803-831-7444 or www.grammarchic.net.

3 Things to Cut from Your Company Homepage Right Now

They say that less is more—and when it comes to your company’s homepage, that can often be the case. The front page of your website establishes the first impression that most clients and potential clients will have of your brand. It ultimately determines whether your leads become sales, your visitors turn into paying customers—or whether they simply navigate off the page and forget about you altogether, unimpressed by what they saw. As such, it’s important to have content on your home page that helps your brand to shine. At the same time, it’s important to delete anything that diminishes your brand’s appeal.

The Grammar Chic team visits an awful lot of business websites, and many of them are quite good—but some have elements that are likely doing more harm than good. Three of these damaging elements are especially common—and if any of them currently mar your own business website, then we recommend you ditch them immediately.

Your life story.

We say this frequently, but it’s most assuredly pertinent here: The content on your website really isn’t about you. Not even the content on your About Us page. No, the content on your website should be all about the reader, and what benefits he or she derives from doing business with you. When John Smith visits your business website, he should come away from it with a good sense of what’s in it for him to pick up the phone and call you, or click over to your e-store to order a product. He should be able to envision himself benefitting from your company’s offerings.

Yet, far too many businesses use their home page to outline their entire history, or to provide a personal narrative from the business owner. These things can have their place on the About Us page, perhaps, but your homepage needs to be quick, to the point, and value-focused. You only have a few seconds to form that positive first impression, so focus on consumer benefits.

Buzzwords.

We’ve written about this before, as well, but meaningless marketing buzzwords can really turn off your readers. Your company website should have a voice of its own, communicating whatever it is that makes your business special. Clichés and jargon are only going to detract from that.

Prices.

There is an ongoing debate about whether it’s smart to have all your pricing online, and we’re not saying it doesn’t have its place. Many companies do benefit from having pricing online. It doesn’t always work out well to have it on your homepage, though. It can be a turnoff to some, who might otherwise have dug deeper into your site to learn more about the company. If you do choose to include pricing, put it somewhere other than the homepage.

What would you add to our list? What elements never have a place on a company homepage? Tell us in the comments section—or reach out to us directly: Call 803-831-7444, or visit http://www.grammarchic.net today.

1 Comment

Filed under Web Content

Tagged as Professional Web Content Writers, professional writing services, Things to Cut from Your Company Homepage, Web Content Writing, Web Content Writing Advice, Website Content