Learning How to Write For an Online Audience
Writing your own sales copy will require some writing skills, first and foremost. If you do not know the basics of writing, you might as well surrender the thought of doing your own copy writing and consider hiring the services of a professional instead. You can study advanced cuisine techniques if you do not know how to cook. You cannot enter law school without graduating from a pre-law course. You cannot start learning soprano if you don’t know how to sing.
The same thing applies here. If you cannot write, don’t try copy writing. Copy writing is a more advanced form of writing, but writing remains a basic requirement of the same.
If you do possess some writing prowess, then read on, as what is coming may be far different from what you’re expecting.
The Basics Of Writing For Web Readers
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| Performance Marketing Agency |
You may have done some writing before, for school, for your work, or for print in a circulated publication. But writing for an online audience is very different from writing for print publications. Some of these differences are apparent, some are not.
Here are some basic, basic guidelines on how to write for web readers:
* Keep your words simple. Do not use technical jargons. The point is to make your piece as accessible to as many people as possible. You are not writing for a select audience. You are writing for everyone. And people have differing levels of reading comprehension. As such, you need to use words that will be understandable to everybody. Web copywriters use this very simple rule: write as if you are writing to a 12 year old. There’s no insult meant here. It’s just that studies show that the average reading comprehension of people all over the world is that of a pre-adolescent child.
* Keep your sentences and paragraphs short. Writers for print publications write in compact and lengthy paragraphs, cramming a lot of sentences therein with the hope of making their pieces appear meatier. You don’t have such a luxury. Web readers will read from their monitors, and this is more stressful for the eyes. By keeping your sentences and paragraphs short, you’ll be making good use of negative space – the empty space in between characters – which will allow your readers’ eyes to rest.
* The first paragraph is important. Online readers are generally impatient, what with the many distractions offered by the World Wide Web. They can move to another website ever so easily, so it is essential that you keep them interested from the very first words of your piece.
* Do not write in all caps like TYPING THIS WAY. Such is tantamount to shouting and many online readers will find it disrespectful.
* Use numbering and bullets as much as possible. They make your piece easier to scan. A lot of online readers would usually skip your words to go to the gist of your piece. Make sure that your gist will become apparent during their scans.
Adjustment Is Important
You are not expected to write a Shakespearean work. You’re expected to write a compelling and effective copy. Keep this in mind to avoid the habits you may have developed while writing for other mediums.
There is no such thing as “this isn’t for me.” You need to make the corresponding adjustments because they are what your audience need, and in effect, they are what you need.
Versatility is an important characteristic of a good copywriter, and there’s no better place to develop the same than in practicing how to write for an online audience. So, learn how to be flexible and the world will be yours to conquer.
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