June 27, 2008       (Updated from our April 2nd, 2003 article)

If you need to write for the search engines and your site visitors too, the following nine tips can be of good help. Always remember that all search engines are like humans: they want good relevant content that will help everybody in the end.

Step No. 1:
First, start by writing attention-grabbing tag lines, written using H1 or H2 tags. This will help you a lot with the search engines. Google gives additional importance to title tags in bold H1 or H2 tags. Additionally, most people are overwhelmed with information from just about everywhere they look, so they "scan read", particularly on the Web.

Always remember that if your headline doesn't get their focus and attention, everything else you write may go unread. Your title and headline must highlight the features and benefits of whatever product or service you are trying to sell on that particular page.

Step No. 2:
Choose just one and unique benefit of your product or service that you wish to underscore above everything else. This is your basic selling mission. In order to help you make the best choice of what that unique benefit should be, you should ask yourself what particular benefit makes your product or service different from your competition.

What truly makes it better or unique? Is it of better quality? Is it easier to purchase? Is it less expensive than competing products? Does it have a longer warranty? What value-added features or benefits does it incorporate?

Step No. 3:
Always remember that testimonials sell. People want to hear from other users our customers that are already using your product or service. Honest, serious testimonials from real humans will help increase your sales, particularly on the Internet where building good credibility is a daunting task.

If you would like additional credibility, ask permission to your testimonial clients if you could include their contact information along with their experience in using your product or service. That last step should really convince your visitors to buy.

Step No. 4:
On your first paragraph, start with your strongest selling features and benefits. The first few paragraphs are particularly important, not just for your users but also for the search engines. When Google spiders a web page, it tends to read the first two paragraphs more and will usually give them increased importance than the rest of the page. Write these paragraphs to initiate a strong desire for your product or service by briefly describing the major features and benefits it will deliver to your client. Don't make the mistake of going into too much detail up front.

You will have plenty of time for explaining these benefits in more detail later. Get your "main artillery" out early if you truly want to succeed.

Step No. 5:
You should write a complete list of all the features and benefits of your product or service, then you should translate each one of them into a direct benefit for the customer, one that he or she will really be able to relate to. One way to effectively accomplish this is to look at each feature, one by one, and then ask yourself: "So what?" Put yourself in your customer's shoes: Why should you care about this feature or benefit? You should ask yourself: "What's in it for me?"

For example, just saying that your product is fast, an underlying feature in itself, you should tell your customer that it will provide them with more free time, hence, a real benefit they can all relate to. You could effectively empower that mental image by putting a picture on that page of people enjoying themselves, reading a book, going to the movies, relaxing or whatever.

Step No. 6:
Always write marketing text and copy that truly underlines the real benefits in a way that makes a strong emotional connection. For example, if your company is trying to sell auto insurance, instead of using sentences such as: "Our company is one of the oldest in the industry", try using: "Avoid the financial risk and uncertainty of insufficient collision coverage, insure your car with us".

Step No. 7:
Try to carefully detect and identify who it is you're writing for and why... What would be the best "tone" to convey, ie: serious or light hearted? Will there be any level of technical terms discussed or more detailed technical topics that will be written? If so, will your audience be able to understand it? What if their level of knowledge is only basic? You should always adapt the language used to your intended audience.

If there are technical terms or topics on your website, it might be a good idea to create a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) or a Glossary of Technical Terms Used.

Step No. 8:
You should always write with as much a natural style as you possibly can. However, never try to be over friendly or pretentious! Simply just write your text the way you would say it if you would be in front of your client or prospect.

Step No. 9:
Lastly but not least, always end your page or section with a clear call to action, one that will also give them perhaps a sense of urgency, such as: "Click here to order now" or "Call us toll free to reserve now". Some site owners and webmasters even include calls to action earlier in the page and get some very good conversion results too. Do whatever you think is appropriate. Your ultimate goal here is to have your prospect order or buy your product or service.

Conclusion
In retrospect, and by reading these nine tips, it would appear to some people that good and efficient website marketing techniques involve "manipulating" in a certain way the emotions of your visitors. Well, to a certain degree, we think it does too, but always remember that selling is a basic form of emotional control that implicates convincing your prospect that they really have to buy your product or service, as it will truly make their life better and that they want to do it now!

Could this be looked at as unethical? Well, it could be, depending on where exactly you draw the line. If you look at step nine, we said that your sales message could perhaps include a sense of urgency. Some would tell you that an often-used practice on the Internet is to include a statement such as: "This offer closes today".

However, most people will also tell you that if you go back to the site the following day, week or month though, that same offer will usually still be available! For most people, being tricked by such a statement does not give much confidence, now does it?

Article written by Serge Thibodeau,
President & CEO,
Rank for $ales
Copyright (c) Serge Thibodeau 2003

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