My copywriter blog

So what is it exactly that stops most small businesses from achieving their marketing goals? It could be you’ve neglected your website copy

So you want to put your newly written marketing plan and New Year business resolutions in place.

You have a campaign plan, you have a website, you’re ready to go right?

Before you take a single step, I urge you to double check that your website is aligned with your marketing goals.

You see once website copy is written and a website is up and running, often it is left and forgot. It is treated as a job ticked off a to-do list.

But here’s the thing. As your business grows, and products and services expand, you need to keep your website copy up to date.

The reason: Your website should sit at the heart of your marketing strategy. It communicates your value proposition.

By this I mean it outlines your promise. What problem you can solve for your customers. And how you differ from your competition.

Beyond that, it answers questions and guides decision making.

If that’s not enough, it’s also available 24 hours a day. So if you’re not around, it does the talking for you.

Therefore, if you give your website care and attention, and align it with your marketing and business goals, you’ll turn it into a tool that converts enquiries into paying customers.

Here’s a simple checklist to get you started:

1. Update your copyright date

First off, know that your copyright date protects your rights as the owner of your logos, content, and images on your site.

After that, it builds trust as it gives a signal that your online presence and business is active.

2. Check your analytics

Find out what worked last year. And what did not. Use a tool such as Google Analytics (it’s free) to determine:

• How many people visited your site
• How many times they returned
• What source of traffic brought visitors to your site
• What key phrases did your audience use to find you?
• Once a visitor arrived at your site, did it stay or did it go?
• What were your top performing web pages?

Then use the results of your findings to see if you can improve your visitors’ experience. Also, to transform underperforming pages.

3. Freshen up your existing web copy

Purge out of date content. In particular:

• Outdated product/service information
• Events/offers
• Team members
• Contact information

Then look for opportunities to refresh web page copy. Ask yourself:

• Do your headlines grab attention?
• Is there a way to make your web copy easier to read? For example, can you break it down using sub-headlines or bullets?
• Are your calls to action enticing?

4. Align the structure of relevant pages to 2019 goals

If for example:

You want to grow your email list: Include email opt-ins on every page of your website and your blog. Create a piece of gated content. By this I mean give visitors the opportunity to download valuable information (such as an eBook) in exchange for an email address.

You want to generate leads: Map your customer’s buying journey. Make sure relevant pages include web copy that answers questions at each stage of a visitor’s decision making. Include information such as testimonials and case studies that build trust. Finally, make sure your pages lead to a relevant call to action.

5. Create new content

Fresh and regular content helps you to:

• Drive traffic to your website
• Answer your audience’s questions
• Build trust and credibility
• Provide better customer service

Go back to your marketing goals. Think about what you want to achieve and what information would motivate your audience to click through to your website.

• Be clear about who your audience is
• What problems can you help them with?
• What questions do they need answering

After that, schedule timely and relevant blog posts.

To sum up

It’s the new year. You’re committed to achieving your business resolutions.

To give you the best chance of success put in a little groundwork first.

• Check the copyright date in your website footer reads 2019
• Check your analytics.
• Freshen up your existing web copy. At the same time purge outdated content.
• Restructure relevant pages, so they align with your 2019 goals.
• Create fresh content

Finally, as it’s January, resolve to be consistent in your website copy maintenance.

Because it’s consistency that builds your reputation, following and most importantly, enquiries and sales.

Good luck and let me know how you get on.

And finally

If you struggle to write persuasive websites copy, you can always outsource it. Not only will you get it done, but also you’ll benefit from copy that’s found in the search engines and therefore more traffic to your site. So drop me a line to get information about pricing.

About Claire Hawes

Claire Hawes is a marketing communications copywriter. She enjoys writing engaging copy that helps businesses to get noticed and attract enquiries. Claire’s experience mainly lies in the business to business sector. Her clients include both businesses and digital marketing agencies.