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Google Adwords PPC Keyword Article
Archived Article
January 2008
Creating A
Sales Copy Writing Plan
By Paul
Goodwyn
- Copyright © 2004-2009
Website sales copy writing has become an art form and is a critically important part of the overall
website optimization process. While, at the same time website sales
copy writing has developed into a misunderstood craft. Sometimes the
purpose of sales copy has been lost completely in the attempt to have an
optimized website.
Injecting massive amounts of keywords and keyword phrases into every available
position in your text is not considered website sales copy writing. Being over
enthusiastic can completely loose the impact and even worse the meaning your
sales copy is trying to convey.
The process is more precise than that. Successful sales
copy writing takes planning. Any distorted half measure efforts at writing copy geared
strictly towards satisfying the engines will generally result in a loss of
quality and meaning in your message and a decline in your customer's
experience at your site. Which, is the opposite of what you should be trying to
achieve.
Determining the best way to write good sales copy for your website, and products
and services, is imperative. Starting with a plan is always the best way to
begin. Devise a summary plan of exactly what you want to say to your visitors.
Never start whimsically, without a clear understanding of each of the steps you
want to lead prospective customers through, from beginning to point of sale.
Keep in mind that these are guidelines of techniques that can be used and you
should only use them if
they apply to your particular website visitors. Under no circumstances should
you write solely for the
search engines. You must always write to be clear, concise and easily
understood. In the instance of writing sales copy for your website nothing else
matters except the customer, the customer is truly
#1.
Steps To Observe:
1) Use a minimum of three different keyword phrases per page - In
application this may and can vary. It is only an approximation and not a set in
concrete rule. The
guideline of three different keyword phrases per page gives good variety and helps keep the
copy from sounding repetitive. Using too many keywords can cause a loss of focus
and keyword density will be affected.
If you have established a plan before writing your copy you will already know
which keyword phrases to concentrate on. Never embark on writing copy until you
have chosen the keywords and phrases you will focus on first. Each keyword
chosen can have dramatic impact on the focus of the sales copy. Always plan
ahead.
2) Use greater than 250 words of copy - The length of your sales copy
will depends on
many aspects that you need to look for:
For example, what is your target customer's preferred communication style? Are
you writing for the scientific community, where the nomenclature requires
definitions, detailed explanations and proof of argument. Or are you writing for
the mum and dad sitting at their home business computer?
Is the product or service you are presenting to the market place new. If so,
then you will have to go into greater detail explaining every aspect of the
advantages and feature of what your product can do for visitors.
Conversely, if your product has been around for a while, and visitors would
already be expected to have some product awareness then a detailed explanation
will not need to be given. Other factors that can affect length of copy can be
the website design features and constraints and, many other factors.
The 250 word minimum is not very long but does gives
enough opportunity to get your message across and even offer an effective level of keyword
support. Keep in mind, above all else, that it's all about the customer. If your target customers
prefer longer copy then by all means give them longer copy. If they like shorter copy
then give them shorter
copy.
3) Write sales copy in natural language - The term "natural language", is a term
commonly accepted in website sales copy writing and refers to the reader not
being able to detect what keywords and keyword phrases your webpage is being
optimized for. The reader should
barely be able to detect the optimization process and only see the meaning in
your sales copy.
Your
copy should flow as if it were not written with the website and search engines in mind. You
don't want the copy to sound forced or stiff. When you generate ideas for the
page copy, keep your keywords in mind. Ask yourself whether you can use them in
the copy in such a way that they won't be obtrusive.
Don't expect to get this right first time around, it is a skill that develops
over time, so be patient and always refine your sales copy over time.
4) Always use keyword phrases in headlines and sub-headlines - As with
the other suggestion you only apply this if it is logical and self evident. Do
not do this if your sales copy becomes nonsensical it must always make sense.
Your search engine ranking will not suffer dramatically if you don't have
keywords stuffed into every heading in your sales copy. If by putting keywords into your heading the headline sounds stupid
then be sensible and don't use them.
Having your headlines stand out with dominant keywords is not the be-all
and end-all of optimizing. There are many examples of websites online that rank
highly which have no keywords in the headline. So, keep your content coherent for
your visitors, you will not blow your rankings if you have no keyword filled H1
tags in your copy.
5) Use the same keyword phrases once or twice per paragraph -
As mentioned before, we only do this if it
makes sense to. None of these guidelines are to be forced, they are not carved
in stone. Read your copy out loud more than once when relaxed and in a quite
place. If it sounds stupid or forced, take out some
keywords or find ways to re-work them so they flow more naturally.
6) Make keyword phrases stand out - There are many ways to achieve this. For
example, you can make text Bold, Italic, or use a Bulleted list. You can also
use larger fonts, or completely different fonts. Changing the color of your
keywords or key phrases can also make words prominent.
Only apply the techniques that fit in with your website style. Make sure you don't automatically bold or italicize every instance of
your keywords. It will make your page look strange and your visitors will wonder whether you really are an authority on these matters and may even
wonder what drugs you've been taking.
7) Don't substitute keyword phrases for generic terms - For example, if you
are selling a Quit Smoking e-Book do not replace every instance of the generic word "Quit
Smoking" with the key phrase "Best Quit Smoking Method". Your copy will sound ridiculous
as seen in the sample sales copy below:
"The "Best Quit Smoking Method" e-Book, reveals the secret
techniques that can only found in the "Best Quit Smoking Method"
e-Book. The
"Best Quit Smoking Method" e-Book is a detailed easy to follow e-Book on the best
quit smoking methods available."
Now seriously would you be attracted to sales copy like this? Would
you feel offended to be served up this garbage? If your sales copy has any hint
of content that makes you cringe, even slightly, then delete it and write to be
clear and concise so your visitor experience is a happy one.
8) Use keyword phrases as anchor text in links - You may not be able to
achieve this in every instant, but it is possible a lot of the time if performed
thoughtfully. If your primary key phrase is "Best Quit Smoking Method",
do not under any circumstance use that phrase in every link. It would become
boring very quickly.
However, if you
can include keywords within the anchor text in your sales copy or in text navigation
links, you might score a little extra credit from the search engines, as text
and links will appear more relevant.
9) Track and tweak - Probably the most important points to remember and
apply. Track everything you can in as many different ways you can.
Tracking will allow you to move forward in your campaigns performance. Making
regular changes that result in improvements will allow your page to convert
better.
Split testing over and over brings great improvements to sales copy and results
are achieved quickly. All that is needed is a dedication to refinement. That is,
making consistent small changes to text leads to huge returns on investment.
If your sales copy is not achieving the kind of results you want then learn how
to set up your campaigns the correct way, how to gain greater traffic, sales and
profits, while reducing your costs.
For more
information please click this link
http://www.AdwordsNavigator.com
Paul
Goodwyn is the Founder and CEO of Adwords Navigator PPC Marketing, offering
Google Adwords pay per click advertising, management, account set up,
affiliate training, professional marketing consultancy services, keyword and ad
copy research and analysis strategies.
Disclaimer: The content provided in this article is not
warranted or guaranteed by Adwords Navigator.com. It is intended
for educational purposes in order to introduce to the
reader key ideas, concepts, or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon
the reader to employ real world tactics for security and implementation of best
practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from
implementing any information covered in this articles.
Paul Goodwyn's Google Adwords Marketing System
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