Holiday Writing: Best Practices for Writing on the Web

The Holiday Marketing Season is Upon Us. Does Your Written Content Work for You?

The holiday shopping season is a critical time for small businesses, as marketing strategies developed throughout the year are truly put to the test during the end-of-year rush. It’s essential that your business makes every effort in this busy season to leverage its web presence into stronger customer engagement and increased sales.

One way to gain a competitive advantage is by making sure that high-quality written content is featured throughout your website. It’s sometimes overlooked, but polished copy can be a true marketing asset, allowing your brand to distinguish itself in a crowded marketplace by projecting an image of steady competence and professionalism. With that in mind, let’s take a minute to familiarize ourselves with some best practices for writing on the Web.

The Web has unique characteristics that separate it from other media, and it’s important to acknowledge these characteristics if your writing is to be most effective. The main point to keep in mind is that people don’t read webpages in the same way that they’d read a book or a magazine. Savvy web designers and copywriters have long understood that users don’t read webpages word by word, but quickly scan for pertinent information before moving on.

Web usability experts suggest that when writing for the Web, it’s best to employ strategies that make text “scannable,” such as…

• Using the “inverted pyramid” style of writing, putting the conclusion first
• Sticking with one major idea per paragraph, and keeping paragraphs short
• Using highlighted keywords (like so)
• Writing helpful and informative headlines and sub-heads, not clever or humorous ones
• Summarizing key points with bullet lists (like this one!)

While these observations are based in part on studies conducted years ago, while the Web was in its relative infancy, they have only gained relevance with the passage of time. With more users accessing the Web through mobile devices instead of desktop computers, purposeful brevity and the ability to prioritize information and identify takeaway concepts for the reader have become even more important.

So, as you put the finishing touches on your holiday marketing plan, keep in mind these best practices for effective writing on the Web. And if you feel that you need some extra help getting your website’s written content into shape, go ahead and contact us here at Rosie’s Creative. We’ll work with you to developed succinct, web-optimized copy that will help set your brand up for success this holiday season, and beyond.

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