Believe it or not, writing content for your website isn’t the same as print material. To explain, you’re not writing a novel or newspaper article. It’s a bit different than that. Writing for the web involves technical aspects such as SEO, web structure and readability. Furthermore, learning how to write for the web could lead to more shares on social media. Most importantly, you’re creating content for everyone to read.
To start, think about what people expect to find on your website. This will make it easier to start writing about your business.
Include Keywords
Identifying keywords for your website is important for SEO. To explain, these are terms that are used to highlight what your website is about (ex. Keyword: Landscaping; Keyphrase: Landscaping for yards in Bonnyville). They are also related to the search terms people use to find your site on search engines such as Google. Therefore, including these terms will generate better SEO.
To reduce repetitiveness, use synonyms and similar phrasing of your keyphrase and keywords. Otherwise, you’ll be overusing your terms. This doesn’t look good from a search engine and visitors’ perspective.
Use Eye-Catching Graphical Elements
People will stay engaged when there are eye-catching elements to look at. Back in the day, adding images or video was a lot more difficult. Now, it’s super easy and encouraged. While writing for your website, think about what kind of images could relate to the content. Ideally, you’ll want to use original photography but there are tons of stock photography websites you can use to your advantage. Even free ones! Also, when adding graphical elements, you’re breaking up the content for better readability. This can make your web text look less intimidating to follow.
For SEO purposes, it’s important that you’re naming images relevant to the text. Instead of “IMG_8998”, you should be naming it to what the picture actually is.
Make sure your Headings are Clear and Easy to Read
Clear and simple headings make it easier for people to scan your web’s content before they start reading it. For this reason, headings are meant to be short and quick to the point. Also, putting one word isn’t enough of an explanation for what the website or article is about. When you think about it, before you invest time into reading something, you’ll quickly scan it over. Headings are the first thing people will scan to see if it’s worth reading. That’s why your headings should be clear and easy to read.
For SEO, include your keyphrase or keywords in your headings. It doesn’t have to appear in all of your headings, just enough to make sure it still relates to what the text is about.
Keep it simple – Don’t use hard to read fonts or colours
We all love playing around with font or colour choices. But keep it simple so that anyone can read your content. This doesn’t mean you’re forced to use “Times New Roman” as your body text font. Just don’t choose “Cooper Black” for example.
The best method for choosing colours is when using a light background, choose a dark colour for your text. For a dark background, use a light colour for text. The best colour choices are black and white. Remember that everyone should be able to read the text.
Mix up the length of your sentences
Mixing up the length of your sentences when writing your web content makes it more engaging. It acts as a quick break. Additionally, it creates a natural flow throughout your content. As a recommendation, your sentences shouldn’t exceed 15-20 words. Try reading your text aloud to see where you could use variation.
Use Transition Words between sentences
Use transition words so your paragraphs are less choppy. Doing so develops a natural flow between sentences.
Summary
Overall, learning how to write for web and SEO can help people become more engaged with your website. Over time you’ll find people might promote your business by sharing your website on social media.
If you need help writing content for your website, we can help! We can make sure it’s optimized for SEO and engaging to your audience.
