What Is Web Copywriting?

Copywriting is the act of writing text to advertise as part of marketing. Copywriting can be done offline and online, however, there are crucial differences between both forms of copywriting. 

What is web copywriting?

Web copywriting (or “website copywriting”) is the process of writing online copy such as blog posts, landing pages, emails, video scripts, social media posts, and other types of copy, to persuade a person or group to take a specific action online, such as making a purchase or signing up for something.

Why is web copywriting important?

Web copywriting is important because it helps engage readers and persuades them to take action. If you’re selling a product or service on your website, a web copywriter will help craft together text that turns website visitors into leads and customers.

When you’re writing for the web, you must write in a way that grabs attention. It’s easy for someone to switch from your email or blog post to YouTube or Instagram, and so every word must count. Website copywriting also must consider other aspects besides the text itself, such as the layout of a website, and how it will appear on a desktop versus a mobile phone.

Good web writing will help you convert more readers into customers, which means more revenue for your business. The better the copy on your website, ads, emails, and other marketing channels, the more you’ll increase the chances that you’ll successfully engage someone and turn them into a loyal customer.

9 web copywriting tips

1. Write strong headlines

What convinces someone to click on your article or email? It’s the headline. It all starts with the headline and it’s arguably the most important part of your copy. The “best” title is going to depend on many factors, such as the type of copy you’re writing and the target audience.

Overall, a writing a strong title comes down to peaking someone’s interest, giving them a hint at what’s to come, but not entirely revealing everything so that they are compelled to click onwards.

2. Less is more

When it comes to content writing, in some cases one must be comprehensive and use many words to cover adequately cover a topic. When it comes to copywriting for the web, fewer words tend to be more persuasive. The most simple example is a sales email.

People are more likely to respond to a concise and to-the-point email as opposed to a long wall of text. Good web copywriting is about understanding exactly what the reader needs to hear, and communicating that message in the most concise way possible.

3. Use simple language

In general, using simple language is best for copywriting. Think about some of the most captivating copy in the world, like Nike’s slogan “just do it”. It doesn’t get more simple than that. Whether you’re writing a blog post or email, delete unnecessarily big words that can be replaced with simpler words.

The more simple you write your text, the easier it will be for a reader to understand. While some copy may be more technical because of a certain target audience, it’s still good practice to simplify what you can.

4. Copy the competition

Don’t copy the competition as in copy and paste their copy. Copy the success of your competitors. Too often, people spend time trying to come up with original copy that’s never been done before or cover topics that sound good, but people aren’t actively engaged with.

Have a look at your competitors and if you can see which blog posts are ranking high, which social media posts are being shared often, the type of emails they repeatedly send. Try to understand what’s working for them, and why. Then see how you can apply these winning concepts to your own web copy.

5. Focus on the reader

“Use more yous” is a frequent tip you’ll hear for beginner web copywriters. Great copywriting is focused, hence this tip. When you’re focused on the reader, speaking to their challenges, pain points, and the benefits they will experience, your content will be more engaging. This is especially true online as so many people and companies write about themselves.

To truly engage an audience and get attention, write directly to them in a personal way. The best way to do this is to first and foremost, understand exactly who it is you’re writing to and the problem(s) they want resolved.

6. Edit the copy

Editing is an important part of writing great copy. There’s nothing worse than spelling and grammatical errors. It can take your web copywriting from bold, engaging, and enticing, to being perceived as low quality in a blink of an eye. It’s worth taking the time to edit your copy and ensure it’s error-free.

Hiring a professional editor is recommended for best results as having a second pair of eyes check your work is better than trying to edit something you’ve written yourself.

7. Focus on benefits

When you buy a set of weights, you’re buying it because it will help you build muscle and lose weight. To write effective copy to sell a weight set, you’d not only write about the specifications of the weights, you’d also write about the benefits one will receive from using them. The same applies to any copy you’re writing.

Whether you’re trying to convert people into leads for SEO writing services or sell them a cleaning product, focusing your copy on the benefits will help excite your readers into wanting to buy what you’re selling.

8. Use emotive language

Using emotive language is an important part of copywriting. It has long been said that people buy based on emotions. If you can write to the challenges and struggle points of your audience using emotive language, you can imprint your copy in their hearts, not just their brains.

Using a trigger word such as “tired” when talking about how someone may feel when they can’t see to lose weight, or leveraging emotional attachments to the people and animals in your reader’s lives, are just a few examples of how you can reach your readers emotionally and not just logically.

9. Active over passive voice

Active voice means a sentence has a subject that acts upon its verb. Passive voice shows interest in a person or thing that experiences an action. The reason why active voice is generally better for web copywriting is because it helps people picture themselves taking an action, which is what good copy is about – persuading people to take action.

Passive voice isn’t always bad, and you shouldn’t force it out of a sentence it naturally fits in. There should be a natural mixture of both ‘voices’. Just try to use active voice more often where possible.

The bottom line

Website copywriting is one of the most important skills you can utilize to communicate with your target audience and grow your business online. In most cases, copywriting is best left to a web copywriter with years of experience. Anyone can write, but truly mastering copywriting takes time.

It’s worthwhile hiring an experienced copywriting professional to write copy for you. There are many great website copywriting services out there. Just be sure to do your due diligence so that you can find the best person or group for the job!