Besides spelling verbs correctly, there are plenty more language rules to be found. Here are a few of them:
- Write actively Write in the present tense and in the active voice. That makes a sentence easier to read and shorter. So: subject, active verb, rest of the sentence. Here is an example:Passive sentence: The text is written down by me. Active sentence: I write down the text.
- Avoid auxiliary verbs Use as few auxiliary verbs as possible. Auxiliary verbs are words such as want, will and can. Not: here you can find more information. Instead: here you find more information.
- Do not write sentences that are too long Short sentences are easier to read and easier to understand. So do not be stingy with periods and cut your sentences short. Another way to shorten your sentences is to remove hedging words such as maybe, sometimes and fairly. It also makes you come across as more convincing right away.
- Use lists By putting a series of items on separate lines instead of writing them out in running text, you make things clearer.
Is your head spinning from all these rules? We are happy to take the writing off your hands.
Look at the structure: write good paragraphs and subheadings
Nobody is going to read one long wall of text from start to finish. Usually you scan a page: your eye lands on headings, images and other elements that catch your attention. So when good copy is written, thought has gone into the paragraphs and subheadings. Keep your paragraphs short and punchy and your subheadings clear (with your keyword or synonyms in them). Take a look at the example here: which text do you prefer to read?
Good copy reflects your company
Use your copy to show who your company is, which matters especially for website copy. If your business deals with staff and customers informally, but the website uses formal address everywhere, that causes confusion. So use the right tone in your copy: do you go for formal or informal address? Do you choose jargon or plain terms?
SEO is part of writing content
Great that you have written good copy, now you just have to make sure it gets found online. You do that with SEO. Do keyword research so that you know what people are searching for. Do not always go for the keyword with the highest monthly search volume. It can actually be smart to pick a word that is searched for less often, but that is very specific and that you rank higher for (so-called long tail keywords). A few things to pay close attention to for the SEO of your copy:
- Decide on your keywords and have them recur regularly in your text (but do not overdo it). Also write the word and its synonyms in your H1 and H2 headings.
- Aim for at least 300 words of text per page, but make sure the content is genuinely valuable.
- Keep paragraphs short (50 to 70 words)
- Write good meta titles and meta descriptions (put your keyword up front)
We are happy to write good copy for you.
Would you rather leave the work to a copywriter after all? No problem, we are happy to help. Get in touch and we will discuss what we can do for you: website copy (for SEO), blog posts, social media and translations.
