Especially since it is written by a web designer. Let me explain......

Rescue Your Web Site from Boring Words and Poor Design.

The difference between a successful website design and a site that brings in zero or very little business is not how nice graphics are, not colors you choose. It's not flashy animation, and it's not your precious company logo.

I'm not saying to remove these elements. Some of them are important. But they're mostly ego-driven. They are "me" messages, and have absolutely nothing to do with what you want your visitor to do.

And what is that you ask? The answer is of course. You want your visitors to buy something.

People who are considering doing business with you are only interested in one thing; "What's In It For Me?"

One of first steps toward a successful website is writing copy that tells reader what's in it for him, in a style that is easy to read.

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Study any website that makes money and I promise you'll see following copy elements in place:

In main body copy, text color is always black with a white background, making it easy to read. This should be obvious, but it's amazing how many websites out there do not follow this very basic guideline.

Testimonials, and other secondary elements commonly use a contrasting font such as courier, courier new. The background in light blue, beige, or yellow shade to make it stand apart from white background of main body copy.

Verdana is most widely used font for your body copy. This font was actually developed for use in web. Times New Roman, Arial, and Georgiana are also popular. Never use more than two different font faces in your sales copy.

The use of yellow highlights, italics and bold font-style for emphasis.

Headlines and Subheads are usually a contrasting color from black body text. A shade of red, dark green and dark blue are good colors. However, do not use more than three or four different colors.

Sentence and paragraph font size is commonly between 8pt. and 12pt. Never smaller than that, and never bigger.

Here are 10 tips for writing effective web copy:

1. Make sure content is easy to read

In online world, less is nearly always more. Write your copy for impatient, online reader. Here are some guidelines for length of your content:

Headings: 8 words or less Sentences: 15 – 20 words Paragraphs: 40 – 70 words

Page word count: 250+ words

Eliminate pompous words and fancy phrases. Effective online writing is not about impressing reader with your extensive vocabulary. It’s about communicating. Use short, simple words. Get to point. And then stop.

2. Write from me to you

The most powerful word in English language is “YOU”. Write for your reader, in a conversational tone, not for your ego.

Get to know your reader. Is there a common style or tone you need to use to reach her? Don't forget, she’s come to your Web site to do something—make a purchase, obtain information, sign up for a subscription. Make sure every word you write moves her toward a solution.

3. Drive Actions With Content

Content is about getting reader’s attention and keeping it. Content is about selling. Make sure your content is driving your customer’s actions. Then put that content on your home page.

4. Write for how people search

If you want your site to be found when people search web, use words your target readers use. Before you begin to write, sit down and think carefully about keywords you’re going to use. Then carefully weave those words and phrases into your copy. Here’s two Web sites that will help you find right keywords and phrases for your site.

1. Overture

2. Wordtracker

5. Create Effective Headings

The heading is most important piece of content you’ll write.

That’s because:

1. Internet users scan read and first thing they read is your heading. If it doesn’t grab their attention, they’ll leave. 2. An effective heading can used in title tags (more about this later). 3. The heading can be placed on your home page as a link to content.

When writing headings:

Keep them to eight words or less Include important keywords Avoid use of adjectives and prepositions (and, a, the, of). Be clear and concise. Avoid wordy, wishy-washy phrases.

6. Write keyword-rich title tags