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Writing Web Copy To Satisfy Visitors (and Search Engines)

Writing copy for the web is not rocket science. Some SEOs would want you to think that it is...but it’s not. Plain and simple.

Actually, plain and simple is the name of the game when writing ideal content for the web. It’s all about talking to your visitors—in other words, writing in a straightforward, conversational way. And of course, by doing this, and providing plenty of information that they’re seeking, you’ll also be creating the kind of content that works really great for SEO. And yes, even in the brand new world of Google Instant Search.

There are a few tips & guidelines you might keep in mind when setting out to write great web copy that works:

Create Easy-Reading Content.

Short sentences, short paragraphs, plenty of headlines, and lots of whitespace are all well-respected ways to keep visitors reading your website’s content. Reading from a computer screen is stressful to the eyes—do everything you can to make it easy for your visitors to read—including writing content that they’ll actually want to browse & pay attention to (no academic papers or anything like that, unless this is what your website is actually all about).

Keep It Personal & Direct.

Again, this is where the conversational aspect of good web writing comes into play. Talk to your reader—using plenty of direct terms like “you” and “your.” Write actively. Don’t be passive or use a third person narrative. No essays here—just easy flowing conversational copy.

Use Your Keywords.

Writing for the web is unique in the fact that almost all copy published online will eventually be scanned, indexed, and archived by search engines. Every article or piece of copy online becomes part of a living record—unlike traditional print media where it just ends up in the recycle bin after a few days. Use great keywords that relate to your niche; they’ll keep working well into the future in attracting search engines and visitors to your highly relevant niche content.

The way the web works—including the latest improvements like Google Instant Search—definitely will continue to evolve. That’s simply a fact. For web owners, the way to keep active in the game is to continue to produce great content that readers want to read. By doing this, the search engines will maintain interest as well.

Bottom Line

Even with the evolution of search, one thing remains completely stable. Great content is what people are searching for. It will never go out of style.

Simplicity Is The Answer For Better Mobile Sites

We’ve sure talked a lot about simplicity in web design here on the WSpider blog in the past—and without a big surprise, we’ll talk about it again (probably won’t be the last time, either). Why?

Well the bottom line is this: Simplicity has such an essential place in good design, whether it’s product design or website design. It’s all about taking the required functionality, boiling it down to the most essential components necessary to achieve this, and finally polishing it up into a smooth and appealing finished product.

Simple just works:

· One – It’s organized.

· Two – It’s de-cluttered.

· Three – It gets right to the point.

This is exactly what people want. What they don’t want is to have to wade through the muck or get past oodles of annoying “bells and whistles” before they can get to what it is they’re looking for.

And here’s the point of all of this, really—simplicity is the answer for better mobile sites.

Mobile web browsers face significant limits:

· Screen space is limited.

· Bandwidth is also limited.

· Processing power limited.

Full-scale, fully-featured website designs just don’t carry over to mobile use in a seamless, friendly way. They might work, but this doesn’t mean that they work well, are appealing, or actually serve their purpose of interacting with visitors. After all, mobile visitors are on the go and busy enough already—they’re not going to stick around on a site if it is a hassle for them to use with their mobile devices.

Again, the key here is keeping it simple.

Simple designs work effortlessly for the web without much extra attention necessary to carry them over to mobile use as well. Think about it…without all of the clutter in the way, visitors can see the content clearly. Isn’t this what also works best for mobile use? The answer is definitely yes.

Simple designs that are mobile friendly will often be based on a few solid “simplicity” principles, including basic, easy to use navigation, a lack of high-bandwidth features, no pop-ups or difficult to use forms, no Flash (it doesn’t work with iPhones or iPads), and most importantly, by following all of the rules of a good text based content platform.

Text works wonderfully with mobile devices. And the best part about a text heavy design is that good writing for the web already takes into account its very own unique form of design and formatting. This works just as well on your office PC as it does your mobile device. Plus, it looks great in the process.

It’s really simple…simplicity just works for mobile-friendly design.

How Will Google Instant Search Affect Your Website?

Well, the news is out and it’s big this week—Google Instant Search is here and it’s now live. It’s a major change in the way Google presents search results to their visitors, and promises to cause at least some degree of change to how searchers actually search.

What is it, exactly? Basically, as a searcher types in their search phrase, Google instantly starts displaying search results based on what’s typed so far. The results continue to change as the user types in the full search query. The concept is definitely wise, in the fact that the search giant’s performance capabilities are much faster than users have experienced in the past. In fact, the bottleneck is really caused by how fast a searcher can type their search query. With this in mind, Google decided to change the way search works to speed things up and save time.

Like any change in the way Google does things, there’s always a lot of hub-bub and hoopla in the world of search engine optimization. Rightly so, I suppose—as even small changes in how a search leader like Google does search can have almost a butterfly effect across the web. But here’s the other truth of the matter…so often SEOs and webmasters panic with each new evolution.

But in the end, really not much happens other than visitors getting a better search experience overall. Widespread panic disappears just a fast as it takes place and the web world is back to normal in no time at all. At least, that’s how it usually works.

So, What’s Everybody Worried About?

Well, the doom and gloom crowd that is up in arms about this new search evolution says that SEO is practically dead because people will no longer search for long-tail keyword search phrases like they used to—instead they’ll settle on the first suggested that Google starts to present them with. In other words, they’re worried that Google is now going to influence searches and lead visitors to search in a way that will only benefit a select few sites.

Okay, so sure, that’s possible. But is the notion that SEO is dead really realistic? The answer is no.

Here’s The Flip Side Of The Controversy.

Let’s remember what Google wants—they want to their visitors, those that use their search engine, to have remarkably positive search experiences and come back again and again as loyal users of the service (they get to sell more advertising that way). And what does it take to keep visitors coming back?

The answer is dead simple: accurate, fulfilling search results.

Google wants their visitors to find great sites that provide exactly the kind of content the visitor is searching for. With this in mind, SEO is still very alive and well—because at its core, great content is what SEO is all about. SEO just strives to take that excellent content and organize & present it in a way that’s friendly and appealing to search engines and visitors alike.

With this all in mind, Google Instant Search will surely seek to ensure users find the great niche content they ultimately seek. If anything, Instant will actually help most website owners. Here at WSpider, it’s business as usual. Search is still alive and well!

Unfortunately, There’s No Such Thing As Free Web Design

The concept of free web design is kind of intriguing. Just like there’s no such thing as a free lunch, all in all, free web design doesn’t really exist either (and we’ll cover that a little bit more comprehensively in just a second). And here’s where most of the confusion occurs:

· Is there a such thing as a free website? Yes.

· Free web design? Only if you’re lucky.

Not to dwell on a technicality, but the notion of “web design” generally means that a professional designer is doing the work. And not that the impossible doesn’t happen from time to time, but if you can find a professional web designer willing to work for free—well, let’s just say that it doesn’t happen very often.

What You Should Know About Free Websites

First and foremost, usually you pay for what you get. There are lots of places out there where you can build your own website for free. Most of them produce very unprofessional, sub-par at best results. Some are actually decent at first look, but the catches and add-ons required to make it a fully functional site in the end are actually more costly than just hiring a good designer to do the complete job right the first time.

And let’s face it, most of us out here who might be pretty good at managing our organizations or running a business—well, just because we’re great at that, doesn’t mean we have any business playing the role of designer of our own websites. Best to leave that to the pros (WSpider, of course).

And Now Back To What You Should Know About Free Web Design

Take it if you can find it (only if it’s truly pro quality, though…never take the risk of bad design for your site). Here’s the thing about free web design. Web designers are in high demand; in fact, their rates often just begin at $50 per hour. That said, many times it takes a true pro just a couple of hours to create great results on a task that might take an amateur a couple of weeks to do a bang-up job on.

What’s the incentive for a pro web design expert to work for free? That’s just it—there really isn’t one. So if you do come across such an offer that seems too good to be true, make absolutely sure that you’re looking for the catch. It’s there…you’ve just got to find it.

Unfortunately, there’s just no such thing as free web design.

Tips To Improve The Way Visitors View Your Website

We’ve discussed it recently here on the WSpider blog—earning a positive impression from your website’s visitors is not just important…it’s essential. Granted, top quality professional web design sure helps when it comes to creating stellar visitor impressions. However, for many, this isn’t always exactly in the budget right at the moment.

So today, let’s take a look at some smaller tips that will still improve the way visitors view your website—things that can be done a little bit at a time to ensure better visitor impressions.

Sharpen up your photos.

Sometimes photos and other display images that are grainy, blurry, small, or otherwise low in quality end up on our websites for one reason or another. It’s not usually the end of the world, but improving your photos does go a long way to improving your image (pun intended). Optimize photos for ideal viewing and great impressions!

Add trust-building factors.

Visitors want to know that you’re who you say you are and that you can be trusted. It definitely helps to add professional image building elements prominently into your website. First things first, ensure your phone number, business address, and other comprehensive contact information is incorporated within your site’s layout. Add proof of rewards or other recognitions you might have (links to the source or a newspaper article works well for this). Also, be sure to include any professional memberships or associations you’re part of somewhere prominently within your site.

Improve your offline brand to boost your online impressions.

Could your company or organization logo use some much needed updating? Logos are often used on a website in the most prominent position available as part of the web design—at the very top. It’s simple—your logo can make or break the entire site’s look and feel. With a simple, clean site design, your logo alone can be the one thing that shows how professional (and trustworthy) you are to visitors. Don’t skimp in this department. And the good news is that by updating a tired logo, you’ll also be improving your offline recognition too.

Do some spring site cleaning.

Yep—even though it’s not spring right now, a little spring cleaning can still definitely help to improve your visitor impressions. Think about cleaning and simplifying hand in hand together. Usually, with professional design, less is actually more. De-clutter and try to take your site to the essential basics. Chances are pretty good that it’ll look much better and make better impressions because of it.

Again, the way visitors view your website does make a real difference. Turn them away at first impression, and you’ll never get them back. Do whatever you can to make the best impressions possible!