Rick Sloboda News & Articles

Most web copywriters argue that web copy should be more direct and conversational than most print materials, but how can you adopt this tone without compromising your brand identity? You can set a tone that is appropriate for the Web while respecting your brand with these few simple rules and techniques.

Online visitors form a first impression of a website quicker than the blink of an eye -- literally. It typically takes humans 300 to 400 milliseconds to blink. Meanwhile, scientific research led by Dr. Gitte Lindgaard at Carleton University in Ontario reveals websites have as little as 50 milliseconds to establish a first impression -- a mere 1/20th of a second. That’s it!

Working with contractors or 3rd parties, like any relationship, is a two-sided affair. Here are some tips for keeping your Web projects running smoothly.

One of the most important steps to take before speaking to your customers through your web content is learning what they want, and what opinions they have about you and your competition.

But what if you don’t have the budget to pay for expensive research data or conduct focus groups? Targeted market surveys can cost up to $10,000 to reach a sample of just 1,000 people.

You want to grow your business, and raising its profile in the community seems like the perfect strategy to get more visitors to your website. But, be warned, if you launch a public relations campaign prematurely you could be doing more harm to your business than good.

Before you start pitching media outlets and bloggers, there are a few things you need to consider.

If you think your website content isn’t working for you, you’re probably right. And the realization that you ‘need something better’ is a step in the right direction. But what’s the next step? What’s ‘better’? And how do you get there?

For many businesses, the first step is--back.

Most of us are aware of the golden rule for plain writing on the Web: Keep It Short and Simple (KISS).

But there’s no getting around it--at some point you are likely to have a long piece of complex material that you have to put up on your website.

It might be a ‘terms and conditions’ page for a contractual agreement. A set of instructions for a new product. A detailed explanation of a business policy. Whatever it is, you want your customers to read it because it will improve your business.

You can’t force them to read it, but you can encourage them to read it. You can make it inviting. Enticing. Kissable. Here’s how.

The demand for good web design is increasing, revealed a recent Webcopyplus online poll. Almost 25% of web users indicated “poor visual presentation” as the number one element that drives them away from websites.

Only 6.6% of web users who participated in a similar 2007 online poll indicated ‘poor visual presentation” as the main reason to abandon a website. That equates to a 267% increase during the two-year period.

It’s the Web, right? So it’s supposed to be sticky. Fortunately, there are simple ways to ensure visitors “stick around” your website.

For more than a decade, sales strategists have been advising businesses to take their marketing online. Forward-looking companies have heeded this message.

However, many businesses still prefer traditional media such as TV, radio and newsprint. So while typical consumers might spend 25% of their media time surfing the Web, these companies might only be investing 5% or so of their marketing budgets on websites and other online promotions.

So, your shiny new website marketing copy is finally in place. Congratulations! Even better, that same marketing copy is starting to bring in business. (Must be all those precise keywords and cleverly phrased calls to action.)

Before you amortize your investment, consider how those carefully crafted words can work for your business in other places. Repurposing your website marketing copy will:

• Reinforce your brand identity
• Establish consistent messaging
• Increase customer recognition

It will also give you more than your money’s worth.

Here are 10 possible ways to repurpose your website marketing copy so it works overtime for your company, online and offline.
 

When it comes to website copywriting, design and development, simple is always better.

How do you get online visitors to take interest in your products or services? Write about things they care about.

Most would say that’s brain-dead obvious. Yet, it seems 90% of websites miss the mark completely.

The problem: self-absorbed web content. The cause: self-absorbed copywriters and business owners.

To engage prospects and turn them into customers, you need to appeal to the visitor’s self-interest -- not yours.

Headlines can be extremely effective tools to engage your online visitors and entice them to gather more information about your products, services and business.

More than 63% of Internet users indicated in a recent Webcopyplus poll the written word is their choice of communications on the Web.