How to Write Great Marketing Copy for Your Website
Writing the copy for your website requires a slightly different approach than writing an essay or an article or a blog post or a text message or a staff handbook. As long as you understand the process, you can definitely write your own website copy!
Here’s the main thing: website copy is marketing content. The words on your website should tell your brand story, showcase your tone and voice, invite your community into your world and show them all the great changes you can make together.
Most importantly, website copy should be action-oriented, inspiring, and concise.
Think of it like an outline for a paper, except that you want catchy headlines, descriptive sub headers, and details in the paragraphs.
When it comes time for the copywriting phase of a web design project, here’s some stuff I like to keep in mind:
1. Start with an outline AKA a Site Map
It’s really easy to get tripped up by your website copy once you get into the thick of building and designing your site. You’re going to be tempted to do all of these steps at the same time… I have been there! It’s really hard to do this work in this way. All the overachievers out there might want to start with a User Chart Exercise to figure out what pages actually need to be included on your site. At the very least, I recommend starting with an outline (Site Map) of what pages you’ll need on your site.
2. Drafting website copy is a separate, preliminary step before building your site.
Set yourself up with a Google Doc or Word Doc for each page of your site so you can make sure you’re doing the messy writing work (ideating, drafting, iterating, editing, reviewing, polishing) in a tool that was made for that work… as opposed to trying to do all that inside of your website builder. If it’s hard for you to separate the text from the visuals, try using brackets [ like this ] to separate out notes for yourself about corresponding visuals you’d like to build.
For example, on the Contact page I might write [embed Contact form with the following fields…] if I am clear on what I want during the copywriting phase.
3. Once you’ve got a Site Map, create outlines for each page’s content.
For example, I might want to be specific about what exactly needs to go on my About page. For some clients it’s a mission, vision, team section. For others, it’s an origin story for the company and a bio on the founder. Keep your audience’s needs front and center as you start figuring out what copy you need to write for your site.
4. Each section of the site serves only one purpose at a time.
It’s rare that your website will need lots of lengthy paragraph copy. Instead, think about each section of each page serving a specific purpose for the overall site. I find it helpful to use horizontal lines in Google Docs (click Insert, then Horizontal Line) to denote separate sections I plan in Squarespace.
Here’s what I mean by “sections” in Squarespace.
5. Include headings (and often subheadings) in every section.
Most web readers are skimming your site for the specific information they’re looking for, so these headings and subheadings help point your users in the right direction! Plus, the exercise of breaking down large paragraphs with headings and subheadings will help you hone in on the purpose of each section.
6. Use the appropriate heading text for each section of your site.
Heading 1 (or H1) is the most important text on the page, and all other sections below should use Heading 2 (H2) or Heading 3 (H3). Squarespace offers 3 levels of heading text styles – H1, H2, and H3 – which creates a hierarchy of information built right into your site’s design. When I’m drafting website copy, I use these same Heading features in Google Docs so I can be sure I’m mapping content logically.
7. Use the appropriate paragraph text size for each section of your site.
In addition to H1, H2, and H3, Squarespace also utilizes Paragraph 1, Paragraph 2, and Paragraph 3. Again, P1 is most important and P3 is least important. By default, Squarespace uses Paragraph 2 (P2) for the body copy on your site. I’d recommend trying Paragraph 1 (P1) for subheadings in the deeper sections of your site and Paragraph 3 (P3) for information that is important to include, but you don’t necessarily want it to be the main thing attracting attention on your webpage. Usually, that’s text like photo credits or sliding scale payment details on a product page. I tend to designate P1 headings by using the H4 setting in Google Docs.
8. Remember to include what your audience is looking for.
Good web copy speaks to what your audience needs to hear, not just what you want to say. For example, consider your bio on the site. What information about your life and career is most important to your audience? You should tailor the information in your bio to meet the specific needs of your audience instead of just pasting a generic 5-paragraph bio onto your page.
Get clear on who you’re writing for, and what they need to hear.
Sign up with your email and I’ll send over my User Chart Worksheet to guide your website copywriting - before you start writing.
