A great design for a website, along with great copy – writing which is attention grabbing, says what it means, and in as few words as possible – it’s the stuff of masterpieces

In the interests of internet art, we are continuing our series on how to create great copy for your website. Now that you have found one of the web’s best site designers, Zee Studios, the copy is the only thing missing for you!

Freebie, Freebie, Read All About It

Lots of you clever, clever people will have free things to give away, to help get people looking at your site and generally get your name out there. So whereabouts in your website do you want to let people know about that? Right at the ‘front’, right? If they don’t see it straightaway, they’ll go elsewhere? Actually you are doing yourself a disservice by doing this. Sure, you’ll get a click through on the offer – but people won’t know anything else about your product or service range.

There is a quick and very simple fix – tell your visitors to check the bottom of the page for an exciting free offer. If you feel game, you can say nothing, and let them figure out the whole scroll thing by themselves

Either way, just a little work for something free never hurt anybody!

This post is about the most handsome copywriter in AMERICA … read carefully!!!

We suck at lunch. We don’t play golf. We have no Yankees tickets to offer. And if you believe bigger is better, we’re the worst agency you may ever consider. Still reading?” - this is how Mark Silber welcomes visitors to his website. I just LOVE it. I researched many copywriters before deciding on choosing Mark - what hit me was how fake most of them where. Using fluffy marketing speech that is way to sweet to be realistic. What I really like about the copies in his portfolio is his sense of humor. “It’s basically just one guy plus a chimp who takes dictation” - and in my opinion this one guy does superb job. So if you want : more brilliance, less bureaucracy, and fewer mix-ups in your marketing mix visit Mark’s Silber’s website: http://www.silberware.com/

If our website designs were songs, then the copy that you, the clients, provide us with would be the lyrics. Words and music … aaahhhh!

Here is another installment in our series on how to make beautiful music together

Now, now, now!!!!

You may think that if you are going to buy a product, it doesn’t really matter if it is today or tomorrow. If someone likes your toothbrushes, what does it matter if they get one today or next Wednesday?

Well, if you let them go, they may not come back next Wednesday! They may decide that their old toothbrush isn’t so bad after all, they kinda like it’s friendly shagginess!

It’s part of the job of your website copy to put a bit of urgency into their feelings about this product. Don’t just say “Hurry, buy today!”, without a reason. People are a lot less dumb than they look!

If you are selling awesome toothbrushes, tell people that they need not go to bed another night with half-cleaned teeth. Tell them not to let their gums decay that tiny bit more … get the new, improved, Miracle Brush today.

Focus on what they will miss out on if they leave it too long before buying – and the good word about your product will spread that much sooner.

Another installment in our series on making your website copy just as great as the professional, creative and eye-catching design that Zee makes for you! These tips are all simple, easy to manage and implement. We don’t like life to be hard for you!

About Us Pages

People will trust you more if they know a little bit about you. It can sometimes seem that companies don’t physically exist other than as writing on a screen … which can be deleted, along with your customer’s money or time investment, on the whim of an unscrupulous site owner.

If people can see that you exist in the real world – you’ve been in business for so many years, this is what the employees look like, this is your physical address and your phone number – then they are much more likely to buy something from your site.

These are actually quite easy pages to write, most of our clients find. Think about it – there is no easier subject to write about than yourself! No research required, just some rose colored glasses to turn inw

Headlines

Rule of Thumb: 80% of your eventual sales will come as an indirect result of your headline.

Why?

80% of your viewers will decide to read further or click off on the strength of your headline.

Poor Headline = Poor Results. No Headline = Very Poor Results.

Scan (Skim) Reading

When a person reads a website – they scan (skim read) it first for tidbits of information. Based upon what they can glean from a quick overview – they’ll decide whether or not it’s worth their time and trouble to read further.

If they can’t easily skim your copy – they won’t. Which means…. CLICK! The sound of their mouse offering their condolences at leaving the party early.

It takes 25% more time and energy to read off a computer monitor than off a piece of paper. Why make that even more difficult by using a construction & typeface only someone with 20/10 vision could easily read

Call To Action

Here is where a lot of websites fall down on the job. They fail to make it crystal clear what the next step for their prospect to take should be. If you leave it up for your web visitor to figure out, they’ll more than likely do what you asked: Nothing.

The design of a website is the first thing that people notice – it’s the first impression of your company, and it’ll either reel people in, or jab them with a fish hook and make them run away! Our websites come with very sticky hooks, by the way

But after the design, it is the copy that can make all the difference – and over the next couple of weeks we have a series of tips for creating great copy for your website.

Keeping it Personal

Most of you out there will be selling products or services. Actually, I can’t think what else you would be selling! When you are talking about your product or service in the copy, think about what it actually does for the customer. Don’t think about what it is … think about what your customer will have at the end, when they have engaged your services or bought your product.

So, if a customer is buying a lawnmower from you, they won’t just be getting something that has a 40hp engine (!), blades of razor sharp steel and an unblockable trimmings chute. They’re getting a lawn that is beautifully manicured and flat, and a perfect surface for lazing on in a deckchair or playing with the kids. They are also buying time from you in a way – less time spent unblocking trimmings chutes means more for relaxing.

If you think about the benefits of the product, not just what it is, your copy will work seamlessly with our striking designs to create a millionaire machine.

Design is such a subjective area – what one person thinks is the bee’s knees, another person thinks is a much less appealing part of a bee’s anatomy!!

That’s part of what makes web design such a challenging, but rewarding career for me. The creativity I get to use is awesome and so stimulating … and we want the experience to be just as good for you as it was for us !!! That’s why we’ve posted the five best questions you can ask when looking to have a website designed – so you get a site that does everything you want, even better than you expected!

1.What sort of sites have you done on a similar budget and scope to mine?

Just give us a yell on the contact page or through email, instead of just looking through the portfolio on your own. This way you don’t end up getting thinking that our lower budget projects are top of the range, or vice versa! What, when and how much?

2. It’s good to get these sorts of things set down before we begin. Everyone ends up much happier!

3. How will the site be managed? We are always happy to help with ongoing maintenance, updating and management issues, as well as the initial design. All partof the service!

4. What will you do with the site, technology-wise? We are constantly looking for new ways to get your message across – the best possible mix of the traditional and the cutting-edge. Ask us about all of the tricky things we can do for your company!

5. Do you have any questions for me? Doesn’t hurt to remind us that you are a wealth of information also! Tell us about your company, your approach to business, and your expectations and hopes for this website. It all helps build a picture so that we can get a design that you absolutely love!