How to write the content on your website

The importance of the text on your website should never be underestimated, as it is the online equivalent of a shop window to your store. It speaks volumes about your approach to business, so just as you would ensure your shop window is presentable and showcases your business professionally, your website should too.

The copy must get across your message fast. This has to be the number one consideration when doing web design.

Let's look at this in more detail. If you are selling clothing in a store on the high street, you would make sure that your mannequins are dressed neatly and co-ordinated, that the display area is free of bugs and dust and other clutter and the pricing is visible. You would have a store name above the window and the exterior walls and doors would be clean and well maintained.

Let's apply this to your website. Is your name, brand and/or logo clearly identifiable and consistent throughout? If a visitor to your site navigates to another page, will they still know this is your company? Are the images of any products you may sell of high quality and not blurry or off centre? Is the text surrounding your products relevant, or is it clutter best placed elsewhere e.g. a blog post from a launch 12 months ago? Are your contact details clear? Are your product descriptions concise, yet detailed and free of spelling errors?

Ensuring that you take the time at the start to check these standards is as vital to your online success as choosing the right products or services to sell. If a visitor to your website is greeted with a mix of text fonts and sizes, bad grammar and spelling and amateur looking images, they will make the same assumptions about you and will simply take their interest elsewhere.

So, always take the time to ensure your website is current, engaging and clear, and let it take care of your business.