The article below originally appeared at http://www.psloveblog.com/writing-services/writing-website-content on 3/13/2015 and is not the property of 5NorthMarketing.com. We believe, however, that it contains wonderfully written and insightful information worth sharing.
Writing for web sites is a little different than it is for a book, letter or even a company brochure. It needs to get to the point very quickly. That is why there are so many headings and bullet points. Your potential customer has just landed on your page from a search engine and is in full search mode, not relaxed reading mode.
It would appear that Johnnie can't read and Johnnie is on your website. It isn't that Johnnie can't read, it is Johnnie doesn't want to read when he's on the web searching for something. Most people suddenly turn very ADD on the Internet. He isn't interested in much of anything that isn't very much to the point. He is in a very big hurry to get to the next place if this place isn't it. So, the content writing needs to capture Johnnie's attention and capture it in about ten seconds.
When writing content for your website, be aware that Johnnie isn't going to stick around more than 10 seconds or so if Johnnie doesn't find what he's looking for immediately. So, write headings that describe the content and use bullet point layouts whenever it is feasible to do so. In this way, Johnnie can see he's in the right place as soon as he spends about five seconds looking at the page. After that, Johnnie will relax and start to browse.
Once Johnnie's attention is captured, he needs the quality content he has come to expect in all of those seconds he's spent browsing. It is important that when writing the website content to use information that is valuable to the customer, laid out in an attractive way and very easy to navigate. There needs to be an easy path to follow so that Johnnie can find your products and read about them. If he likes that product, the buy button needs to be right there so he can click and buy it then get on with his life.
Every business website should have their products right up front, not buried in a small section. Leave the bragging about your company to the "About Us" page and the company blog. There is no need to say "Welcome to Our Website." Have your products or your service sales pitch right on the front page. It should be obvious in one glance what your website is about and where the products are. If you are selling retail, then your most popular products should be right on the landing page. If you are a massage therapist, then a big, beautiful photo of someone receiving a massage should be front and center with a list of your services beside it.