Tips for Web-Savvy Writing

Jan 23, 2003 -- They're everywhere on the Web: sites that serve as egocentric tributes to products, services and corporate histories. When the writing on a Web site stinks, splashy photographs or annoying JavaScripts that make a new window open up on your browser will not and cannot do the selling for you. The best Web sites feature writing that combines journalistic and direct marketing techniques. Here's how to write for the Web:

The Inverted Pyramid
If you study the leads (the first sentence or paragraph) of news stories, you'll notice that the majority use a technique known as the inverted pyramid. With this technique, the writer places the most important information — the who, what, why, when, where and how — in the first paragraph (the top of the inverted pyramid) and the least important information at the end of the story (the bottom of the inverted pyramid).

One of the reason journalists use this technique is because newspaper editors under deadline pressure often cut the last few paragraphs of a story when it doesn't fit the layout.

Another reason is that readers often scan the first paragraph and — if it grabs their attention — they'll read the rest of the article. If the lead fails to capture their attention, they move on quickly, and you've lost a sale or prospect.

Even though you don't have to worry about an editor running around with an X-acto knife waiting to slice and dice your Web page, keep the inverted pyramid in mind. Some of your pages may require that your visitors scroll and you could lose them at any time.

Visitors rarely read Web pages word by word. Instead, they scan the page. Your Web pages should use text with:

* Highlighted keywords
* Meaningful sub-headings (not clever ones)
* Bulleted lists
* One idea per paragraph
* The inverted pyramid style

Competition for your visitor's time and attention is keen, so the first sentence of your page is crucial. The better you are at telling your reader the who, what, why, when, where and how, the better your chances of receiving the response you're after.

Just Say It
When you can't seem to put your thoughts into words or find a good way to begin a Web page, try this: talk to one of your friends or associates and explain what you're trying to say. Words come more easily when you're not worried about proper writing style.

If that doesn't work, consider starting your Web page with a who, what, why, when, where or how question. Examples:

* Who says you...?
* What if you could...?
* When was the last time you...?
* How can you...?

Question leads work because they don't communicate phony enthusiasm or desperation. They also demand involvement from visitors. To increase the effectiveness of your question leads, make sure the answer to the question is interesting or important to the visitor or that the question arouses genuine curiosity.

If you're still stuck, skip the beginning and write the ending. Novelists often use this technique when they know where they want their story to go, but don't know how to get there.

If none of these suggestions work, beat your head against your desk, kiss your pencil, pen, typewriter or keyboard, and repeat the following three times, "Just say it!"

Catch The You Attitude
If you want persuasive writing on your Web page, remember this: visitors don't care about the advantages of your products, services, programs or policies.

What they care about is themselves.

"Tell me about me," they say when they begin reading your Web page.

"Tell me why this should be important to me. Tell me why I should want to do this for you. Tell me what results I can expect from this product, service, program or policy. Tell me how I will benefit."

To catch the you attitude:

1. Replace "We are pleased to announce..." with "You will be happy to know..." (Few visitors care about the company's emotional state.)

2. Show visitors how the service, product or policy benefits them. Do not write, "It is company policy to charge a fee for customer support after 90 days." Restate the policy in a positive light and with the you attitude: "You receive free for 90 days; after that, you can receive continued support for a small fee."

3. Don't confuse features with benefits. A feature is a descriptive fact about a product or service. A benefit is what the user of the product or service gains as a result of the feature. Features tell. Benefits sell. Describe how the product or service can be of help, solve some problem or satisfy the visitor's needs.

Steer Clear of Gobbledygook
Visitors appreciate writing that is free of gobbledygook — the verbose, heavy-handed prose dear to those who think it makes them sound important. In the end, it makes them sound like fools. Consider:

"It is felt by the management of Gadflies, Goblins & Geeks that in order to remain in a competitive posture, planning must be accomplished for the expansion of research facilities in a constricted time frame."

Translation: "We must expand our research facilities soon if we are to remain competitive."

Gobbledygook does not lend weight or significance to anyone's writing, so strive to write in a personable, direct, forthright and unpretentious manner.

As author and editor William Sloane said, "If what you're saying is trivial, no amount of rhetorical smog will make it less so."

It's the quality of your ideas, simply expressed — not the size of your vocabulary — that impresses readers.

Questions or comments? feedback@i-genuity.com

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About The Author

Mary A. Sicard is president of i-Genuity, the Click-Here Strategy and Services firm in Augusta, Georgia.

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