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Us or Them – Perspectives in Writing Good Content

How do you write good content for your web site? I believe that the most important thing is perspective. Who are you writing for? Your web site visitor, of course.

How do you write your content to appeal to your web site visitor? The person visiting your web site is trying to solve a problem or answer a question. When planning the content for your web site, brainstorm what kinds of questions your visitors are trying to find answers to, what kinds of problems they are trying to solve. Then, write the content to directly address those questions.

A common error made by many is giving in to the desire to write about ourselves – our company, our products. This information is important, but is best put a little behind the scenes. The about us page is appropriate, for example. When it comes to home page content and product descriptions, write it to solve the problem your visitor is there to solve first.

Want more? Check out the web site A List Apart for more articles about writing content for web sites.

Another good technique is getting your customers to tell your story. Posting testimonials and raving reviews from enthusiastic patrons is more interesting to read than what most of us write ourselves, and genuinely authentic.

In the end, our web site isn’t for us; it’s for them.