A recipe for web writing

Those of us who work at an integrated marketing services firm like Bader Rutter are probably used to writing for a variety of mediums, including web. As a blogger, PR professional and content creator, I’ve put together a little recipe for creating delicious web copy — there are just a few but high-quality ingredients, and it might take a pinch of this or a dash of that to make your copy truly great.

Two years ago, I started a food blog and over time, I’ve learned what doesn’t work and what keeps people coming back.

Here are some ingredients — er, guidelines — for excellent web copy:

Start with a base
First and foremost, it needs to be short, attention-grabbing and to the point. One resource describes that online readers don’t read copy on the screen word for word; instead, they scan. If your copy isn’t immediately interesting, you’re going to lose your reader — and he or she probably won’t be back.

Additionally, no one wants to read long-winded online articles with copy-heavy paragraphs. It looks overwhelming and unwelcoming. Try to keep articles less than 600 to 700 words. If your paragraphs are getting long, consider using numbered or bulleted lists, which jump out at readers. Lucky for me, there are lots of bulleting opportunities in food writing!

Add a dash of spice – but not too much
Clever headlines and subheads also grab readers’ attention. If they immediately like what they see in a headline, chances are they’ll stick around until dessert. Short, direct and interesting subheads are an important tool to keep readers moving through the text.

Keep in mind, though, that not all attention-grabbers are good. Different fonts, multiple colors and lots of bold, underlined and italic words are jarring when they’re not needed. Only italicize words that require it (such as publication names) and bold only a few words for emphasis, if absolutely necessary. Too much formatting like this will cause readers to lose their appetites.

Serve it on a silver platter
When it’s all said and done, be sure to edit yourself. Review the grammar and look for areas where you can tighten the language, make a long paragraph into a bulleted list or cut a couple words.
 
If you followed this recipe, you should have a good article for readers to feast their eyes on. Bon appétit!

Comments

[clone wordpress]

Thanks for the great info.