7 Steps to Creating Content the Right Way: How You Can Use Copywriting Methods to Build Killer Web Copy for Your Business [Part I]
It’s hard to write about your own business.
You want to be humble, but you also want potential customers to know how great you are.
You want to be concise, but you have so many great things to say about your products or services.
You want to be chosen over your competition, but you don’t want to mention them or put them down to do so.
A good website has clear, concise, and intriguing content. Since most business owners aren’t writers by trade, hiring a good copywriter is the right choice for many businesses. Then, it’s a copywriter’s job to understand your business inside and out, and describe it in a way that will help a potential visitor choose your company over the competition’s.
When we interview a client about their business and “get in their heads,” we use a specific series of questions to get at the heart of what they do and what differentiates them.
Here are the 7 steps to create content the right way – and how you can use copywriting methods to create killer content for your business.
1. Define what you offer.
You’d be amazed how few business owners can effectively describe the product or service they offer in a short and simple phrase.
It sounds pretty simple, right? Sadly, it isn’t always.
If you can’t define what you offer in a short phrase or even a sentence, that’s where you need to start. After all, if you can’t describe what you do efficiently, how do you expect a potential customer to understand what you do?
Once you’ve decided on a succinct business description, align the keywords you use with those that your potential (and actual) customers use. This is another mistake business owners often make: using technical lingo in their web copy that they use or think is right, but their target market doesn’t.
2. Who is your target customer?
This is another area business owners miss the mark. You may very well have an idea of who you are talking to, but what are you basing that on?
If you’re basing it on your company’s history and current (profitable) customers, then you get a gold star!
If you’re just guessing, then you may need to re-evaluate your target market.
Every piece of content you write should have your target audience in mind. Understanding who this person is (or these people are) will go far in creating content that will entice them to want to do business with you.
3. What problem(s) are you solving?
After identifying the right description, keywords, and target market for your company, it’s critical that you identify the problem(s) you solve for your audience.
Often, your potential customers will search online for their problem, so you want to make sure your site is the one they find first. Blogposts are a great way to supplement your content in this way, by offering opportunities where your product or service solves a potential problem.
And that’s it for Part 1! Stay tuned for Part 2, where we’ll finish up on the final four steps of creating great content for your business website.