Writing content for your website is one of the most important aspects to creating a successful website. Why? Because most visitors will base their decision whether or not they are going to stay on your particular website within a few minutes, or less!, based on reading your website content. The trick is to thus give the reader enough information to keep them interested, without giving them too much so that they will come back for more. The power that good content can give to your website should never be underestimated.
What is Content?
Content can be written in many forms, including but not limited to blog posts, website content, reports, articles, marketing material, and press releases.
What Do People Want?
What is it that people expect to see when they visit a website? Great content! Not only should the content be great, it should also be written in a way so as to appease the typical website user. This means that website content should be written in short and concise sentences that relay the information in the most effective manner possible
Creating Content
You need to decide who will be writing your content. Do you have the skills, as well as the time!, to takes to write all of your content? Or do you need to hire an expert to write for you? Either way is fine, just be sure that your content is written in a casual manner with relevant keywords. As a general rule, keywords should be in your title as well as inserted into the first paragraph and the last, showing they are indeed important. Keyword density should be between 2% & 4%.
What is Considered to be Good Content?
Good content doesn’t cut any corners and takes time to create. Since writing website content is different from writing for print, there are a few specific things you should know about how to write good content for the web.
- Tone. Your tone should be relaxed and informal, yet still held to the standard of what your website represents.
- Text. It can be easy to get carried away sometimes when writing as we want to include as much information as possible . This is fine if you can keep it to between 300 & 500 words, which is considered to be the average text amount for good website content. Additionally, break up the text into small paragraphs for easier reading.
- Everyday Language. Keep your words simple so that the average person is able to understand what you are saying. Too technical and you lose people who don’t understand your fancy jargon, too simplistic and you might lose people who expect more. It’s a fine line.
- Your Audience. Know who your audience is and speak to them! Alter your text to fit…
- The Point! What exactly are you trying to say? If your words seem to beat around the bush, readers may become disinterested and stop reading. Don’t ramble on about a topic and instead provide great information while getting to the point.
- Consistency. Be consistent in both your style and formatting, which allow for a smoother flow.
- Proofread! Always re-check your article before posting! Sometimes you may not feel like reading it one more time, so a great suggestion is to simply set it aside until the next day, when you have a fresh outlook and are thus able to use your best proofreading skills!
Content Strategy
Ask yourself the following questions to help you formulate your content strategy.
- What Are Your Goals? You need to know what your ultimate goals are so you can create an appropriate strategy. Selling a product? Informing the public? Try to be as specific as possible in order to help you identify and keep within your particular niche.
- Choosing the Right Keywords. Find out what some of the most searched terms are regarding a product and/or service that your website addresses. Target these keywords/keyword phrases out by choosing the top 10-20 keywords that relate to your particular website.
- Start Writing! Now that you have goals and keywords, you are ready to start writing!
Content Creation Tips
- Look closely at competing sites in order to figure out the best way you can make your website stand out and be different.
- Be sure to check analytics to see who is visiting your site and what pages are most viewed.
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