I love excellent web design as much as you do. Throughout my career, I’ve worked with countless designers and I made a point of keeping in touch with the best ones – you always need a good designer to spruce things up.
But here’s the thing: as much as a great design catches the eye, it takes something else to catch your visitors’ money, too — great copy.
Copy is, in fact, the hero of your website’s conversion rates. A great design may lure visitors in, but it takes sharp and on-point messages to convince them to take out their wallets and buy what you’re selling.
Why?
First of all, because it’s copywriting that shows you understand what your customers need. It’s words that convey powerful messages and turn CTAs into well-oiled cash machines.
How long has it been since you changed the copy on your website? Or had a copywriting professional assess it?
Can’t remember? Ouch!
One of our clients got 50% more leads and 25% more conversions thanks to the copy and the content we created for them. You can check out the full case study here.
Copywriting can be such a powerful tool that the mere change of a single word can increase conversions by almost 15%.
Want similar results for your website?
Take a look at this quick check list that will tell you if you need a copywriting upgrade:
1. You Get Visits but Not Conversions
Your SEO may be working…to a certain extent. It attracts organic visitors but it doesn’t convert them into paying customers. That’s useless traffic if you ask me.
Conversions should lead your copywriting and content marketing KPIs list. Are you converting at the very least 2% of your visitors?
If not, it’s definitely time for some copy upgrades.
Important note: conversions aren’t equal to sales. They are a broad term for any action a visitor may take on your website. Newsletter subscription, heading to your social channels to follow your brand, downloading a whitepaper – all these count as conversions. Through each of these actions, you gain a new lead – a potential customer, someone who has expressed interest in your business.
2. Your Copy Speaks about You, not Your Customers
Does your headline or your hero banner contain a statement that’s only about you? You need to change that quickly. Make the most visible CTAs or headlines about the customer, not yourself.
Still want to brag?
Do it wisely. Instead of:
We’re a multi-award winning security company.
Say:
You’ll sleep better when your security is in the hands of multi-award winning experts.
See the difference? In the first sentence, you’re just bragging. Yes, winning awards is a great selling point. But only if you clearly explain why it matters for the buyer, not just for your ego.
3. Your Customers’ Needs Have Evolved
You may be able to rock the same copy you created five years ago, but chances are your customers’ needs have changed and your copy needs to reflect that. Otherwise, it’s not just your website but also your products and solutions that look obsolete.
How can you tell if it’s time to polish old copy?
Think about this: do you often have to explain to your customers what certain products or services are all about? How they can help them? What new add-ons have you launched? All this after they have browsed your website?
If so, start re-working your copy immediately.
Another way to tell your copy is obsolete is take a look at your competitors. How often are they updating theirs? Once a year? Twice? Are they major updates or just tweaking headlines here and there?
A bit of online research will tell you what the standard is for your industry and what you should do if you don’t want to be left behind.
4. Your Copy Was Created on a Shoestring Budget
My agency works with a lot of startups and this is the request we get most often: to completely redo copy that was written in the very early days of the company.
And I completely get it. I know that done is better than perfect and that most startups don’t have the money to hire rockstar copywriters in their early days. They just need to get something out there. Fast.
While that’s perfectly understandable, it’s not a reason to postpone re-doing your copy. People (investors included!) understand that bootstrapping is difficult. But they do expect your online presence to look and feel professional after a few months to a year in the business.
If you invest in PPC ads or SEO that lead customers to websites with bad, second-rate copy, you’re just throwing money out the window. So make copy upgrades your priority!
Ready to Boost Your Conversion Rates through Better Copywriting?
Think about your website’s design as a car’s paintjob: everyone likes pretty colors and shiny cars. But what happens if the car won’t start? Would you still buy it just because it looks great?
Probably not.
The engine of a website, the thing that makes it move aka sell your products and services, is copywriting. If that’s faulty, don’t expect to get too far in your shiny car.
Need help with professional copywriting that converts and ranks in search engines? My team of copywriting experts is just a click away! Let’s talk about that much needed copywriting upgrade for your website!
