Your website is your first chance to make a great impression. How does yours measure up?
I’ve been looking at a lot of websites recently in the course of my work, and my overall response is surprise and disbelief! Yes, I’m a writer, and I happen to think English is a wonderful language, but it’s not about that. It’s a question of how effectively you are communicating your message, your values and your personality through your website.
Most people outsource their web design to professionals. Then they either write the copy themselves, or ask the website designer to find something. You are still responsible for the end result. It’s the face you present to the world, and others take away an impression from it, that will make or break their willingness to work with you. You can probably tell that I designed my website myself – well, that tells you something about me, and you’re not going to hire me as your web designer. If you only value great web design, you might not even read far enough to discover that I’m a good communicator.
But what if someone’s website looks great – but the text is barely English? I’ve come across a lot of those recently. They’ve got stunning graphics, a decent interface – and sloppy writing. Some are so poorly written that you can’t tell what they are actually saying. Some are stilted beyond belief – as though they have been lifted verbatim from a government report … and you don’t want me to get started on the spelling errors and lack of tense agreement!
What does this say about the company or individual behind them?
AI hasn’t helped much here. I believe that AI is a useful tool, but you need to double (and triple-) check it’s output for clarity and accuracy. A lot of people assume that if AI wrote it, it must be true and grammatical. If you read something that is obviously the product of AI, then you’ve learned even more about the website owner.
Poorly-Written Copy Communicates Too!
Look, if you’re spending a substantial amount on a great designer, get your copy right as well! Nothing screams, “Unprofessional” as loudly as phrases like:
- “[The opportunity to] used only confine for the elite …” – From a paid service promoting student visa & exchange opportunities
- “we are focus solely on perfecting the process of leasing and managing … properties.” – From a boutique Real Estate Specialist
- “the two have widely acquainted themselves to different fashion orientations” – from an International Fashion Designer Website
- “You leave all liason (sic) at us and no worry about reports, we do all for you …” – Australian Project Management Services Website
These are not the worst examples I’ve come across, they just happen to have been ones I’ve seen recently, and they’re not casual blog posts or comments – this is static website text. Maybe you can’t see a problem with these examples – and if that’s the case, I recommend you get someone to read over your website text for you to point out any discrepancies, but they bother me intensely – and they bother a lot of visitors who might otherwise hire you.
The problem is not just that the copy on these sites is below average – in most cases I can guess the idea they’re communicating (although the idea I got from the last example was never to use them to manage my projects) – but that it is full of basic grammatical errors and was probably written by a non-native English speaker. Is that OK? Yes. Does it communicate attention to detail and professionalism? No. Does that affect my interest in their services? Definitely!
I start to question their professionalism and their quality control. If they don’t care enough about their online presentation to the world to get someone competent to read and edit their Home Page text carefully, then how carefully will they present my visa application? how quickly will they notice problems with my property? how well made will their garments be? How much attention will they expend on my project – and how are they ever going to write a report that I would want to put my name to?
Your Business Growth Depends on Communicating Your Message
When your ideal client lands on your website, you want them to know that you really are the right company for them to work with. Perhaps they’ve never heard of you until you showed up in a search engine, or perhaps someone told them about you – either way, you have a single chance to convince them of your quality. Make sure your text is not just thrown up amongst the graphics and design highlights – let it speak of your quality and professionalism
Yes, I’m a copywriter, and I believe you can do much more with your website copy than simply state facts and communicate the outline of an idea, but at a bare minimum make sure that the idea which you communicate is the one you want to convey – and make an effort to use standard English.
