How to Write Engaging Web Copy - Keep it Simple
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If you're trying to appeal to your visitors' emotions, you probably shouldn't break out your biggest polysyllabic words. Talk to your readers as if they were sitting on the next bar stool. Some direct marketers claim that you should write your copy as if you expect it to be read by an eight- to fourteen-year-old.
It sounds ironic, but thanks to the stilted tone many of us sometimes use with business correspondence (for example, cover letters for job applications), it can be difficult to make our copy sound conversational. Don't give up hope. There are a number of ways you can make your writing sound more relaxed if it doesn't come naturally to you. Try reading it out loud. If you find yourself stumbling over some of the words, you aren't there yet. Better yet, try reading it out loud to someone else. If they look bored or their eyes start glazing over, it needs more work.
Another way to keep it simple is to imagine having a conversation with your best friend about your product or service. Explain to them what makes it special. You'd use plain language, right? Now go ahead and write down that conversation.
Eugene Schwartz would tell his seminar attendees to "write to the chimpanzee brain - simply and directly." Your prospects aren't chimpanzees, of course, but in their busy lives, they engage their brains for many tasks, whether they're homemakers or CEOs. If they don't have to think too hard, and you can get them to relax, you're more likely to get the conversion. Answer their questions before they need to think of them - and remember, their biggest question will be "what's in it for me?"
Next: Keep it Honest >>
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