In reality, web copywriting is little different from any offline copywriting. If you want to hold the attention of the reader and engage effectively then express yourself with well-written, interesting work. There are no great secrets, no mystical mind-bending strategies to apply.

Take a step back. Ask yourself why you are going to the time, trouble and expense of creating written content in the first place. More likely than not it is because you have a proposition you wish to share, or business information or products to promote. The last thing you want is for people to switch off, to bounce from your page and go somewhere else.

Keep it real, keep it authentic and honest

Good web copywriting is a vital component of content marketing and is a long tail game – the sideways sales letter as Jeff Walker calls it.

From an SEO (search engine optimisation) perspective you can go online and find all manner of spammy keyword density advice to inform your copywriting. Pay no attention. If your content is written naturally the search engines are savvy enough these days to identify natural, appropriate, topicality and themes. You not only run the risk of being punished by the search engines if they detect keyword spamming, your work will probably also come across as clunky.

Clumsily written copy designed for web crawlers is totally avoidable. By all means make sure that your keywords are in your headings and the page title and tags, but leave it at that. Let them occur naturally within the text.

The sideways sales letter

I referred earlier to the sideways sales letter. You may come across what are referred to as ‘long form sales letters’ or long form direct marketing copy – classic and effective copywriting that translates powerfully to the internet. This type of copy is often a final destination, the point at which your prospects are converted.

Great direct copywriters are few and far between but can make all the difference when it comes to monetizing your marketing efforts. Employing a copywriter who can nurture your sales funnel AND convert your self-qualified audience through well-written copy should be a priority. Use web copywriting as your 25-carat competitive advantage.

This entry was posted on Friday, August 28th, 2009 at 5:05 pm and is filed under SEO Copywriting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.