The Most Important Aspect of Writing Web Copy

There is an ongoing debate about web copy. Some say that it should be similar to direct mail copy. Others state that is should be written in a more editorial, news offering style. However, both styles work. Both styles generate thousands of dollars of money for the website owners. Why is this?

The reason is quite simple really.

The reason that both styles work, and work well, is because the copywriter has learned one overwhelmingly important aspect to writing web copy, and any copy for that matter. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE! This is THE most important aspect to writing effective web copy that there is. You must know your prospect or audience. And that?s the ticket to writing seriously great web copy. Web copy that effectively pulls in large amounts of cash.

This is vitally important and cannot be overlooked. You can do everything else right, but if you don?t know your audience, your copy will fail miserably. You have to take the time to get to know your audience as well as you know your best friend. You have to know what it is that makes your audience tick. You have to know what keeps them up at night.

In getting to know your audience, you must learn what some of their deepest desires are. If you don?t? You?re wasting your time and money. This holds true for direct mail copy as well as web copy. This is what makes those long, direct mail style websites sell the product or service that is being promoted. It?s also what makes those editorial, news offering websites so effective.

This is SO IMPORTANT that it cannot be overstated. It cannot be overlooked. You must know your audience. Only then can you, or the copywriter that you have hired, write effectively. Knowing your audience will also dictate which style of writing web copy will be the most effective.

So the next time you hire a copywriter to write your web copy, supply them with as much information as you can get your hands on about your audience. And if you are writing the web copy yourself, make sure that you take the necessary time to learn as much as you can about your audience. If you do this, you will be greatly rewarded by increased sales, increased leads, or increased sign ups.

Copyright 2005 Gary Glasscock

Gary Glasscock is a freelance copywriter specializing in writing effective web copy and direct mail copy. He has studied under many of the current "great" copywriters as well as studying many of the all-time great copywriters. As a result, he has developed a style that is cumulative of all these influences. Gary's website is located at http://www.gc-copywriting.com

More Web Development Articles

You Don?t Have to be Amazon.com to Achieve 12% Conversion Rates!
That?s right. According to a recent study by Nielsen/NetRatings, Amazon.

You Need a Website!
No matter the size of your business, having a web site is a low cost way to market your services and products twenty-four hours a day. Web sites are a constant advertisement for your business and will help you reach your targeted customers effectively.

HTML Editors 101 - Smaller Is Better
SiteSpinnerSiteSpinner is a user-friendly web site development tool that includes many advanced features such as drag-and-drop positioning, built in FTP to publish directly to your web site, an image editor and graphics creation all in one. With SiteSpinner, objects can be placed wherever you want them with your mouse.

Frequent Business Question: How Do You Start a Web Business?
Today it seems everyone is jumping on the entrepreneur bandwagon, and who could blame them? Setting your own schedule, working from the comfort of your own home, and never having to deal with a horrible commute or office politics again, this option is quite popular among all ages. With the advent of the technology age, it seems more individuals are looking to the internet to provide them with goods or services.

Credibility - 10 Ways to Build it on Your Website
If you have your own business website and you are trying to sell something, then it is imperative that you are able to establish and maintain credibility. Why is this important? If you are going to ask someone to make a purchase from you, then you need to show them why they should purchase from you rather then your competitor on another site.

Your Website Reflects Your Business
Some left shoes are in isle 5, while the right shoes are in isle 3. Shoe hills are in random places.

Allocating Your Web Site?s Budget Properly
I had a client say something to me the other day that I thought was rather interesting. He mentioned that he almost considers SEO as a marketing expense even though its really a web expense.

Ever Wondered What Challenges Other People With Their Web Site?
Have you ever wondered what challenges are faced by other webmasters and owners in the design and promotion of their websites, well I certainly have and so I decided to try and find out.I created a short survey which asked the following questions:1.

Website Conversion Rate: More Keywords Equals More Sales
Your website conversion rate should concern you. This simply refers to how many visitors to your website it takes before you make a sale.

Freelance Programming is Easy to Manage
There are several reverse bid freelance sites out there. Beyond the big ones, smaller ones are popping up each day.