Mastering the Art of Effective Website Copywriting

How many times has a cheesy or witty notification from shopping websites or apps made you crack a smile? Are you intrigued enough to see what the product or service is about? These are the work of copywriters and when it is done in digital mediums, especially websites – it is website copywriting!

This post is structured to introduce the concept and its importance in today’s world while also providing a list of its most popular classifications and familiarizing the readers with a few key terms in the field. We might be familiar with the term copywriting – it is the art of advertising a product in textual and other appealing factors. A popular saying goes that “a copywriter is a salesperson behind a typewriter”. Morphing this definition a little brings us to the focus of this blog.

In that way, a website copywriter is a salesperson behind a screen. This process of writing for the web is similar to traditional copywriting with the difference being the demographic of the target audience and the means like social media, emails, etc used to acquire customers.

Rise of Online Content

With the rise of technological advancements, the pace of society’s development has also increased at a prominent rate. The need to buy more and spend more, the possibility that the benefits of technology and production can be enjoyed and acquired from the comfort of our homes have been increasingly noticeable in the pandemic scenario.

While the internet and the World Wide Web have been a formative part of development before, now they have become indispensable. Industries, companies, and production units have been adapting to focusing more on targeting and maintaining a stream of audience and customers through online modes of communication and marketing. And this has contributed to the rise of website copywriting!

The goal of a professional website copywriter is to sell a product or a service via the internet. It could also range from providing information and engaging the audience and potential customers with their organization’s brand or individual name.

Thus, advertising and showcasing the product in the best light is the most essential job of the website copywriter. Their work needs to stop the swiping and scrolling of their potential customer’s screens and make them notice.

This becomes especially challenging as the world wide web is an ocean of information filled with advertising and marketing in its every corner. How then do we encourage the fast-paced world that runs on the maxim “Time is money” to stop long enough to notice our work? Here are some ways.

Tips for Effective Website Copywriting

1. Be Specific:

Most research in the fields of consumer behavior suggests that most people skim – they do not read. Thus, the art of being specific and highlighting what needs to be said precisely is one of the most important aspects of this concept.

Technical jargon needs to be avoided – at least sidelined as only a few customers would dive deep into understanding the nuances of a product or service. Most would want basic and essential details to make a purchase or sign up and therefore a website copywriter must learn to discern what to include and what to sideline when it comes to writing effective web copies.

2. Research:

This is the most integral part of any area of work for that matter, as it is the direct conveyer of your integrity to your audience. The amount of time spent on research always pays off and it is mostly the only source of information that the customer is going to depend on before making a purchase, signing up, or even liking and sharing a post.

It is necessary to get into the mind of a consumer and think what they would expect in a copy. This change in perspective must be adapted while researching the competition and other factors like market value, customer preferences, and the purpose of the product or service itself.

3. Emphasis on Structure:

Follow a reliable structure that is easy to follow with many headings, following the format of listicles usage of bullet points, and a rousing conclusion with a call to action. This field more than anything else is known to require the writers to maintain a balance between exercising their skills of creativity and writing to make a sale.

Many copywriters feel that in today’s times, creativity goes against established structures to make a point of copies being extremely attention-grabbing elements filled with multimedia. However, it is important not to miss the central idea of writing to sell that is the heart of website copywriting in our need to showcase artistic talents. Then and now, good writing always makes a difference.

4. Skills of Persuasion:

The goal of copywriting is to get people to react and respond to something. A subset of research and specification, this idea is the motto behind the “Make them click” idea where a website and the information it provides must impact the consumers through calls for action.

A good copy must be clear in convincing the consumer about the effectiveness of a product or a service and the ways in which it would suit them. Expert website copywriters exude professional expertise and human connection with their audience in a balanced way that helps in maintaining a healthy and trustworthy relationship between the two parties.

Kow more about tips on writing a copywriting Ad with examples

Types of Website Copywriting

1. SEO Copywriting

As mentioned, copywriting for the web relies on the factors that define and drive the internet – especially search engines like Google. Thus, our writing would reach the consumers only when this search engine deems it worthy based on the analytics it has been fed in. But the ways in which a customer would look at our content and how Google looks at our content are polar opposites.

This age-old human vs machine perspective is brought to a compromise with SEO copywriting where the experts in this field find a middle ground in framing content to satisfy and appeal to both search engines and customers.

This unique negotiation is what makes the job of a person who deals with SEO and website copywriting increasingly important and relevant in the field. These people work on optimizing the content written for the web with “keywords”, links to high domain authority sites, and other factors that let the search engine know that the information provided is authentic and worthy of the user’s trust.

Here’s the kicker.

Search engines rank websites based on how easy something is to analyze!  This places the website in positions wherewith better visibility leads to more conversion rates where customers subscribe or consume the product or service based on their mutual trust in the content as well the search engine’s preference to highlight it first for them.

2. Social Media Copywriting

The popular catchphrase or tagline of “Like comment, and subscribe” could essentially start the definition of social media copywriting that has now become a part of a website copywriter’s job.

Social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and so on have become one of the defining factors of our age. Gone are the days people used to ask for mobile numbers or emails to approach an organization or individual.

The easiest and quickest way to check out something has now become the company’s online presence in one of these social media platforms where the boundaries between professionalism and friendly connection with consumers are shifting and transforming day by day.

Thus this work leans on the allure of these social media platforms and the potential to advertise and market products and services. Most websites that provide content and display the work and efforts of website copywriters have in them an option to engage with the organization or individual on social media and keep track of the company’s progress.

It is also an appealing and easy way for the customers to check the timeline of the company as an interactive and appealing social media post than a lengthy write-up on its history and development so far.

Social Media copywriting is an extension where social channels are used to persuade a consumer using writing methods that are aimed to attract their attention.

Along with using creative means like infographics, images, gifs, and even the currently trending, wildly popular reels can invest the consumer’s interest in the product or service and this can be capitalized upon by adding a link to our content that would drive more traffic to our online stores and websites where the commercial activity would take place.

Popularly Used Terms in Website Copywriting

1. Content Pages:

The age-old way of using the terms copy and content has been synonymous. But the major difference lies in the fact that a web copy persuades while a web content informs.  Thus these are pages of a website that aims to mix both these factors and provide information to the consumers on the selling point of a product or service.

This could either be a catalog or a list of everything that the organization does or an online equivalent of a shopping cart. Regardless, content pages of a website contain the communication that a good website copywriter establishes with the consumer. In that context, here are a few types of website copywriting that fall under the category of content pages.

• Microsite or the long-copy landing page refers to the main website that deals with introducing the customer to the organization or company. It is basically an online sales catalog or sales letter.

• A short copy landing page is a simplified extension of the Microsite or the long-copy landing page that deals with providing additional information to the customers like an offer or other inquiry or order forms. These contain short versions of product or service descriptions along with a form to gather details in case the customer is interested.

• A long copy email is a type of email marketing that focuses on driving the customers into the Microsite for further assessment or browsing.

• A teaser email is a short mail designed to pique the curiosity of its recipient and draw them to offer pages. It is a digital equivalent of flyers or short sales letters.

• An online ad or a banner ad is an HTML ad that is classified to run in a website, email, or newsletter that aims to drive the customers into landing pages and turn inquiry into sales.

• A pop-under is an advertisement that launches itself when a potential consumer is viewing a website or attempts an action. It opens in a new window to be less intrusive and provides a choice for the viewer to pursue if the idea interests them.

2. Commercial Pages:

These are pages that have less descriptive content and more on the selling part of a product or service. These kinds of pages are usually the end result that a consumer is expected to reach after going through content pages. They deal with collecting consumer information and executing an action that the consumer demands.

Therefore website copywriters need to add content that would affirm the customer’s choices and facilitate the sale, sometimes even attempting to further increase it. The “You may be interested in: “ or “ People who bought this also bought: “ lists on shopping websites after purchase are good examples of the kind of writing expected in commercial pages.

Another well-known category of the commercial page is called the Transaction page that consists of order forms for purchase, inquiry, or request for clarification or extra information. It might also have an option to request a callback.

These pages are to record the customer’s side of active interaction with the organization as til then through content pages, the customer has been the recipient or passive receiver of the marketing or information that is aimed to sell them something.

Frequently Asked Questions

1.     What is website copywriting?

To put it simply, it is the creation of digital content. Like its traditional counterpart that uses text and effective writing techniques to engage with customers and contribute to sales, this is the creation and usage of technical means like websites, blogs, social media posts, product pages, landing pages, and so on to facilitate online marketing and sale. Thus, it is a medium of effective advertising and subsequent conversion of a curious onlooker to a customer.

2.     Is website copywriting a reliable career option?

It is a lucrative field that is in constant demand for anything that could grasp the audience’s attention and engage it. With the internet and smartphones almost becoming essential items for people, the rise in online marketing and services is rapidly increasing and this means the industry is going to be in constant need of people who could learn and be persistent as website copywriters.

3.     What is the salary of a website copywriter?

The pay in this field depends on many factors like experience, the skill set of the individual, and their ability to be persistent and rise in the field that demands change every day. In India, the pay ranges from a base of 192K to a level up to 666K as per popular reports by payscale.

4.     Where can I learn website copywriting?

Like any other field of knowledge, this could be learned by individual practice too, but it is extremely effective to learn the art of being a proper website copywriter and copywriting in general from institutions that are popular in the field. In this way, the learners could know every aspect of the field from industry experts who have experience in it and guide learners towards a fulfilling experience.

IIM Skills offers a course on content writing that has an important focus on the generation of content for websites and other factors that come under the classification of copywriting for the web. Being one of the most reputed institutions offering a comprehensive course, students and professionals alike could benefit from this.

Conclusion

Thus, website copywriting has now become one of the most engaging factors that make or break brands. With growing awareness about ideas like SEO and digital marketing, this field is focussing more on the importance of website traffic and what it could mean to online businesses and ventures.

Even when you are not a writer, this is a field that can give you success by factors like consistency and sticking to drafts and formats to create a brand name. The recognition by search engines like Google plays a major role in establishing a venture and bringing it to more customers and this is the way to do that.

The world of the internet has opened up this vast avenue for aspiring writers and interested people. I hope aspiring website copywriters found the blog useful in their introduction to this vast concept and wish them luck if they decide to pursue it to the end!