Creating website content is one of the essential steps in attracting potential clients and customers. Today’s content has to be engaging and compelling to draw in and connect new readers to your blog. Similarly, it must be industry-specific, relevant, and reflective of your brand’s products or services.
Successful website content has to be appealing and search-engine friendly with on-page SEO and strategic keywords. If you are unsure about what you should and should not be writing, we have compiled 20 do’s and don’ts that will make your content easy to scan and digest.
1. Avoid plagiarizing content from other sites
Plagiarism can lead to penalties and possible removal from Google and other leading search engines. No matter how tempting it may be, never copy content from other sites to increase your brand visibility or Google page rankings.
Always create original, fresh, organic content that speaks volumes about your company and its services. Your text must be streamlined, centralized, and answer questions or promote products to mass or targeted audiences. Make sure you run copy checks to ensure your content is not conflicting with existing content on the web. Also, use grammatical checkers to correct mistakes and present your writing in its best light to viewers.
2. Do not use run-on sentences
Keep your sentences short and direct. This is visually appealing to readers and search engines alike. Break up your content using smaller paragraphs, bullet/number lists, social/page links (inbound and outbound), keywords, and other scannable portions.
3. Keep your content simple
Simplicity is the key to success for quality content writing. When your new site goes live, your text has to be easy to understand and process. Avoid highly complex words and write with the average person in mind.
4. Stay away from lengthy paragraphs
Long gone are the days of lengthy website articles and long walls of text. Try to keep your paragraphs to 4-5 lines or 80 words at the most, if possible. This will keep readers on your pages longer while reducing bounce rates. As mentioned above, lists and visuals will break up your content and make it easy to skim.
5. Get to the point of your content
Repetition is a sure-fire way to turn off potential clients and customers. Remember, visitors are coming to your website and blog to learn something new. It is essential to design your website content with precision while making it a valuable resource for readers. Stay away from bombarding them with repeat concepts, keyword stuffing, or marketing your point over and over.
This will get your message across to readers – one time – and enable them to perform desired actions on your pages.
6. Do not oversell your products or services
Crafting high-quality content must have the right balance of promotional and non-promotional text. Unless product or service-specific, your blog posts should also be informative and educational. Keep the following in mind:
- Promote your brands and services without blanketing readers with constant reminders to buy or sign up for something.
- Give your readers valuable content and leave a call to action (CTA) for them to contact you with product or service related questions or concerns.
7. Keep your target audiences in mind
While it’s great to attract new visitors to your website, keep your target audiences in mind. Make sure to post content that your visitors will find useful and informative.
8. Use your own images for products
Do not use photos that are copyrighted or do not belong to you. This might result in infringement lawsuits and bring you unnecessary problems. Instead, take pictures of your products and post them as needed. If you must use existing imagery, make sure they are royalty-free and from certified stock photo collections.
9. Be creative with anchor text
“Click here” has been overused as CTAs for decades. While once a mainstay in getting visitors to perform actions on your website, this term is as saturated as ever. Be creative with your anchor text and make it descriptive and invitational. This will entice potential customers to click on links, increasing conversion rates and possible revenue.
10. Understand the goals for each page
Make sure the content for each page is reflective of that page’s goals. For example, your products page should feature detailed text and information about each product on sale. This might differ slightly from your about us or contact us pages. Keeping the goals of your pages in mind makes it easier to write relevant content.
11. Outline your website content
Structure your website content, so it’s easy to manage and put ideas into fruition. Create outlines for pages you’re writing about and see which trends might enhance their look and aesthetic appeal.
12. Humanize your website content
Most website visitors do not like content that appears to be copied or robotic. Add a human element to your writing by being down-to-earth and friendly. Let your creative juices flow and build personal connections with your readers and potential customers. This will more likely get your readers to perform calls-to-action organically.
13. Convert visitors to consumers
The ultimate goal of any company’s website is to convert visitors to consumers. Always have a call-to-action (button, link, images, graphic, etc.) for each page but do not force visitors to buy products or sign up for services. Give them the information they seek and let them make their own informed decisions.
14. Use headers and sub-headers
These are effective in breaking up your content (like lists) for better readability. Headers and sub-headers make your content more attractive as well as properly structured.
15. Give your readers the answers they want
Your website content should be much more than just promoting products and services. It should serve as a valuable resource for your existing and new customers. Therefore, answer the questions your readers ask with relevant information and links. These inquiries may come from e-mails, social media posts, or even within CTAs and contact page forms.
16. Organize your website’s paragraphs
Use only one idea per paragraph and stick to it. Make sure each section has a subject and avoid writing irrelevant, unnecessary information. Organizing your ideas is as important as organizing the visual presentation of your content.
17. Capture your visitors’ attention right away
You only get one chance to make a lasting impression on clients or customers. Therefore, use catchy slogans or messages that get your points across expeditiously. Display your most important information first and build content around that. Remember, most website visitors only take a few seconds to scan content before leaving a page. Give them what you feel they might want to see and read prominently.
18. Consider a writing service or local SEO agency
If you are pressed for time or simply lack the skills to put pen to paper, consider hiring a professional SEO agency with copywriting services. A local writing service can create the content you need while ensuring it is organized for SEO optimization and mobile readiness.
19. Review your content before going live
Check your content for any missing information you want to add. Read all your pages out loud and see if they make sense to you. This allows you to assess the text and enhance any sections before going live. Whether hiring a local writing team or going the DIY route, this is a vital step in the website content process.
20. Keep your website content fresh and current
Once your website content goes live, keep it fresh and current by periodically checking links and making necessary adjustments. You can rewrite any sections if needed or add evergreen text to keep your content relevant year-round.
