In this post I am going to look at the topic of copywriting and how to write website content that people will want to read and that ultimately converts into sales for you.
Copywriting is a skill that will serve you well for your entire life, and as with anything, practice makes perfect. The more you write, the better you will get at it and you will be able to see your progress by going back and looking at some of your old posts and comparing them to the ones you have written more recently.
Let me let you in on a secret – people who are good at copy writing will always be able to generate an income for themselves, as words sell.
If you have been writing consistently, you will see a definite improvement, just as I have done with my own writing.
Here are some things to think about while you are writing website content and some tips that I would like to share that I have learned over the years. A lot of my success is due to the amazing training that I have taken away from Wealthy Affiliate.
How To Write Website Content That Sells!
Write With The Purpose Of Helping Others
If you selflessly give of yourself and help others, the majority of people will reciprocate and help you back in some way. You need to aim to help people to the point where they feel like they owe you something, so don’t hold back and give all the help that you can on the topic that you are writing about. Get into the meat of your topic.
If you are working on helping others, your likability rating goes up. If people like you they will, in turn, follow you.
Emulate Someone
This is the idea of emulating somebody you admire to create likability.
The entire idea of emulation comes from a famous study back in 1999 on the “chameleon effect”.
Here is a synopsis of this very study:
In 1999, New York university researchers documented the “chameleon effect,” which occurs when people unconsciously mimic each other’s behavior. That mimicry facilitates liking.
Researchers had 72 men and women work on a task with a partner. The partners (who worked for the researchers) either mimicked the other participant’s behavior or didn’t, while researchers videotaped the interactions. At the end of the interaction, the researchers had participants indicate how much they liked their partners.
Sure enough, participants were more likely to say that they liked their partner when their partner had been mimicking their behavior.
So how to write website content does translate into “mimicking” your online audience.
This can be done through their conversations with you. People have the tendency to share stories and insights into their life (you have likely seen this if you have gotten to know your referrals). For example if somebody tells you about something that they enjoyed doing and you have done the same thing, you can share your story with them.
So read your referrals descriptions and send them answers relating to their story and comparing it to what you are doing. This can lead to likability and in the end higher conversions for whatever you are promoting.
You can also propose within your website that you have been in the same situation as people by relating to them. There likely isn’t a person that finds your website doing a search online that you won’t be able to relate to, as they obviously have an interest in common with you for them to have landed on your page.
Compliment People
Everybody loves a compliment. Doesn’t it feel good when somebody tells you you are looking good or that you are clever? Well it works both ways.
Subtle compliments lead you to naturally liking a person more, so it’s always a good idea to deliver some compliments to your audience. Within your content, you can compliment people by making them feel capable and deserving of success because we know that they are.
On the other side of dealing with how to write website content, do not criticize people too much. To question somebody else’s intelligence, will power, or even their looks is never a good idea on any level.
Be Positive
If you are around somebody that is always happy and upbeat, pretty soon you will find yourself feeling the same way. This is because being positive is contagious and you need to come through positively in your writing as well.
So even if you are delivering a negative review, you can still have a positive way of delivering it.
Remember that a negative attitude never converts. So always come across as happy and friendly when writing your website content.
Competency
Make sure that you actually know what you are writing about, which is why you should always choose a niche that you do know a lot about.
Avoid trying to pretend that you know all about a topic that you don’t. If you don’t make sure you invest some time and energy into researching your topic before you start to write about it.
As you gain more experience you will be able to showcase your knowledge through your content and this will add more trust and credibility to your site, which in the end leads to better conversions.
Tell Your Readers A Secret
Everybody loves a secret. This makes people feel like they are an insider and you can build yourself a lot of trust in this way.
Here is an example:
Without a secret – the best way to succeed online is to have your own website, or you will be doomed to failure.
With a secret – I know a secret that very few people know about, and the experts in the industry know it too. The most effective way to build a sustainable online business is not by having a big list, or paying for lots of advertising, but by building out a website as a foundation for yourself. Let me show you how you can do this.
By saying the word ‘secret’ you will captivate and demand somebody’s attention and if you follow through and tell them another secret, you will be instantly appreciated by your readers.
This tip on how to write website content is another subtle way of getting conversions and likability.
See People The Way They Want To Be Seen
People like to be seen in a particular way and you can make them feel good when you approach them in a certain way. If you can learn how to tap into this within your content, you will move instantly from the ‘just met stage’ to the ‘relationship stage’ very quickly.
So you need to put some thought into how a particular person wants to be seen if you can pull off the layers of self-doubt. Is the person that you are writing to someone that:
- would like to change the world?
- can accomplish wonderful things through the use of the internet?
- wants to create a meaningful legacy?
- is a provider for their family?
The above are just some examples but it is looking at the end result of what people can achieve if they put forth the effort and you can see what they will become rather than create doubt by comparing them to others.
Build Trust With Your Readers
Trust is one of the most powerful things that you can build in business, and trust is something that you need to earn, just like respect. The interesting thing is that trust can be established through your content without ever having to meet someone face to face.
There are a few ways you can do this. Focus on giving, not taking, helping, and not asking and respect without asking for respect.
It’s not rocket science, but marketers have the tendency to lose sight of the fact that they are dealing with real people on the other end of every word that they write. Never dehumanize your business, or it is going to suffer as a result.
Give Don’t Take
Giving without the expectation of something in return is the best approach, both in real life and in the online world. If you give something expecting something in return, then that is not truly giving, and people will see right through you.
Some of the most successful companies in the world give before they even think of taking.
Take Wealthy Affiliate for example. They offer free services and support to their starter members without asking for anything in return. Some free members upgrade, others don’t, but the ones that don’t still have free use of certain services, which is one of the reasons that this company is such a successful online platform and has stood the test of time.
So treat people who are reading your content in the same way. Give and give some more without saying that they need to buy something in return. Make recommendations, tell them what you use, but make your focus giving. You will improve your relationship with your audience tenfold.
Help, Don’t Ask For Help
This is along the same lines as giving, but most people will land on your website because they need help with something or a solution to a problem that they may be facing.
So your focus when delivering your content is to fill that void and make recommendations to help them, and remember they can also be totally free recommendations.
Making helpful recommendations on your end is going to build up a huge amount of trust with your readers.
Respect, Don’t Ask For Respect
Respect is something that is built and not something that people are automatically going to have for you. Remember to respect each visitor to your website, even if they don’t necessarily agree with you.
Show respect for your audience even if they don’t show any for you as yet, as they could have had bad experiences with someone else.
Establishing respect in your industry is hard work and it comes with a selfless, helpful, authentic, and giving approach. It is easy to lose respect too, so don’t take your bad day out on your readers in your writing.
Respecting others before they even get to know you is the recipe for trust and success.
People Need To See Why They Should Follow Your Suggestions
It is human nature to be a copy cat and copy what others are doing. For instance how many times do you see people standing in a line for something? If there are a lot of people there, it attracts more people to stand in the line to get in on whatever good offer is being dealt out.
Why?
There is the assumption of popularity so if many people use a service, then it must be good.
So if you are promoting something that is highly popular, let people know just why everyone is doing it!
Show Proof
Having proof that something actually works will go a long way in helping you to sell. People wanting to buy something are naturally interested in results and if they see proof that what you are recommending actually works.
If people see others succeeding around them, they will have a natural sense of urgency to join in.
Decide For Your Readers
If you let people decide or you don’t tell them to decide, they are less likely to do so.
After telling people in a friendly way about your recommendations, remember that you have to actually tell them what to do, as you cannot assume that they know. Most people are very driven to act when they are told that they need to act.
Many marketers make this mistake as they presume people know what to do, instead of telling them what to do.
Every page or post on your website should have an actionable task integrated into the content. Your helpful content needs to end by telling people what they need to do in order to get the help that they need with the problem they have.
So the rule of thumb on how to write website content is to focus on helping people solve their problems and then tell them where to go to solve their problem.
Using Scarcity And Time Limits In Your Writing
I don’t use this tactic unless something really is scarce or there is a time limit involved. In a lot of cases, marketers use this tactic when it isn’t true, and this can lose you credibility with your audience, so make sure that if you are promoting something time-sensitive that it really is.
If something is limited or in short supply, or has a time limit it does naturally create a great deal of demand. You see great examples of this every Black Friday or a sale. If you place limits or scarcity on anything it is naturally going to create more demand, provided you have the right audience.
In the same way, creating a time limit to perform an action works like a charm.
Guarantees And Free Versions
People will be much more likely to take you up on your offer if you take the risk out of purchasing something, or offer a free trial.
Agreed there are many unscrupulous companies who offer guarantees but never live up to their claims but in general most will. So if you are promoting something for your readers, remember to make sure the products in question have money-back guarantees, and even better a free trial.
Bonuses
Everyone loves bones and gifts. It is like buying cereal. If it has a toy inside, your child is likely to choose that box. Even as adults, we normally choose a product we like less simply because there is a bonus included.
Offering a bonus can definitely have a big impact on whether or not your customers purchase an item from you. So if you are trying to sell something, it never hurts to add in a bonus to make the deal all that much sweeter.
How to write website content that sells is a skill that anybody can learn with time and practice, but keep the above tips in mind when you are next wondering to yourself how to write your website content so that your visitors will stay longer on your website and enjoy reading the fruits of your efforts.
