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If you’re like most small business owners, prospect of writing your website fills you with dread. You don’t know where to start and you’re not sure what to write. Or perhaps you already have a website and you’re wondering whether it’s really working to build your business.

Well, here’s some good news. Follow simple steps below and you’ll have laid groundwork for an effective business website that will not only turn visitors into customers but will also rank well with search engines. And you can achieve this in just 60 minutes … maybe less.

The reason for a 60-minute time limit is that it forces you to focus on key aspects of your business.

Of course, in 60 minutes you won’t be able to write everything you’ll ever want to include on your website. But you will have basic information that your customers need to do business with you. And you’ll have a website that’s already way ahead of most small business sites in terms of effectiveness.

Step 1

So let’s start. The first step – and one that most people overlook - is to think about words and phrases a potential customer would enter into a search engine to find your site. Website designers and copywriters usually call these “keywords”.

For example, if you’re a dentist in Christchurch, you might come up with “dentist, Christchurch, NZ” plus other phrases such as “dental services”, “cosmetic dentistry” and any other field of dentistry that you specialise in.

Take a few minutes to think about these key phrases, as they apply to your business. Imagine you are searching for your business in a search engine. What words would you enter? Remember, people tend to enter phrases of two or three words into search engines, rather than single words. Once you have selected three or four key phrases, these will become foundation of your website content. This should only take 5 to 10 minutes. It is a vital step that most businesses neglect when writing their websites.

You will need to keep this list of phrases in front of you as you write your pages, and make sure your keywords are on every page.

Step 2

Now it’s time to start writing your home page. The first step is headline, which must catch attention of your readers immediately, otherwise they may click away without reading further.

Your headline should contain your most important key phrase. It may be as simple as “Bill Gummer, Dentist, Christchurch, New Zealand”. But don’t just put your company name in headline. It must tell reader exactly what your business is about. Another five minutes for headline.

Step 3

The next step is to write two or three sub-headings. These must tell reader what your product or services can do for them. For example, continuing dentist theme, you might say: “Are you looking for a dentist who will ensure you feel no pain during your treatment?”. Or: “Top quality dentistry at an affordable price”. Or: “Cosmetic dentistry is our speciality”

But let's start with a perfectly simple and honest answer.

No.

No, in spite of what you might hear or read elsewhere, not everyone can succeed as a copywriter, freelance or otherwise.

If someone tells you different, they are not telling you whole truth.

If someone says, "If I did it, anyone can..." that is a tried and tested half-truth that should make you cautious.

You want truth? If you want to succeed as a freelance copywriter, you need four elements in place.

>> 1. You need some writing skills

You don't need a degree in writing. You don't even need to have done that well in writing at school. I got my lowest exam grades in English language at high school. (This probably explains my occasional grammatical howlers and frequent spelling mistakes.)

But you do need some kind of 'way with words'. You need to be able to express your thoughts and ideas. You need to be able to paint pictures with language. And you need to enjoy writing.

While you don't need any formal writing training, you do need to be able to write simply, clearly and with a little life and energy.

>> 2. You need some 'commercial empathy'

You need to like world of business. That is to say, you need to understand what makes business work. You have to understand what your clients are trying to achieve, and you must want them to succeed.

If you think business is dumb, or all business people are somehow dishonest, you'll never make it as a copywriter.

It is best if you are fascinated by business and marketing.

Myself, I am a huge fan of small business. Most of my income comes from larger companies, but I love to watch and study smaller companies. I love their inventiveness and courage of people who start them.

>> 3. You need ability to market yourself

As a freelancer you are isolated. Nobody knows who you are, where you are or what you do. One way or another, you need to get word out.

Some freelance copywriters are blessed with ability to pick up phone and cold-call for new business.