The Web Runs on Writing and Your Marketing Should Too

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Episode 86 of Landscape Digital Show reveals how the web runs on writing and why the right words, voice, and tone will make your marketing better too 

When you consider how much effort a business invests in getting discovered on the web, it’s surprising that few dig deep enough to understand the essential components responsible for making that happen.

People use words to search the web.

They may be spoken or typed, but they are words nonetheless. If they happen to be the right words, and they probably are if your ideal buyers are using them, then you need to develop an intimate relationship with those words and discover how to use them in your writing, videos and other content.

Of course, there’s more to writing for the web than just plugging in keywords. If you want to win with Google you want to aim for the best human experience possible for your target audience.

This is why the best copywriters are handsomely compensated for their work. People can tell. They may not know why they know, they just know.

Writing copy is seldom easy, but when it works it becomes your superpower.  You can achieve that goal by respecting your brand story and finding the signature voice that best communicates it.

Hold on, there’s one more detail that trips up many marketers. Every piece of communication must have the right tone for the platform and the audience it is targeting. That awareness is key.

Words Tell a Story

The words your business uses to tell its story in many ways is the story because words reveal a great deal about who we are and our communication preferences.

For example, whether your marketing copy says landscaper or landscape company matters to your audience just as much as if it says y’all or you guys. What’s right is what connects with your audience.

The right words are like magnets that attract customers. That’s why your most valued keywords should be in the headlines of your content, as well as the subheadings and the body content. The same is true for your social media postings.

In addition to understanding how to use keywords to optimize your content, always take a step back to study the promise of your words, that is, the story they tell.

~ Does your headline make a promise that matters to your audience?

~ Does the copy that follows deliver on that promise?

~ Are there examples and anecdotes that make the story interesting?

~ Is there a call to action to bring that audience closer?

~ Does your company have people prepped and available to guide those relationships?

Once again, people can tell. They intuitively know if there is a real person behind a social media posting. And they get a sense of his or her age, background, and personality.

~ What is said when your business telephone is answered?

~ How does your company reply to emails?

~ How about angry emails from unhappy customers?

~ Or social media comments from engaged customers that are ready to do more?

The holy grail of web copywriting is to sell people before they call your office or walk into your business, but there are many other touchpoints along their journey where words can make or break the deal.

All of it tells a story, and that story should be part of a grand plan.

Words are The Voice of The Business

SEO attracts attention with words. Voice makes that communication human by describing who you are as a company, your core values and how you go about helping customers.

Think of your voice like fashion style. Does your style say you are light-hearted or all business? You certainly want to be perceived as professional, but it’s hard to deny the fact that most people want to work with companies that make the experience enjoyable.

Make a list of words that express your business culture and style. They will help you discover your writing voice. It may include words like these.

• • • Smart
    • Friendly
    • Innovative
    • Established
    • Easy
    • Certified
    • Discounted
    • Guaranteed

Words Also Set the Tone or Feeling

One of the tricky things about writing is that you can be technically correct but wrong at the same time.

The difference is the tone or feeling your words express.

There’s a big difference between the tone of these expressions.

~ Sorry about that.

~ I’m sorry.

~ I am soOOO sorry.

~ I’m sorry about this and will get to work fixing it.

Writing that is tone deaf usually is too formal. It lacks the emotion that is necessary to show customers they are in a safe relationship and that they have control too.

As you may have imagined, it’s usually best to write to show not to tell. This is one of the outcomes of a world of social media, and it means that sometimes you are writing your message first to then record that message with an engaging video.

Your tone can be brave, confident, or edgy. You have to decide what’s best for your business.

Make a list of words that capture the tone or feeling of your brand too.

When you get serious about understanding and using the right words your marketing will begin to spark — because it will be more consistent across all channels.

If you stay with it that spark will ignite customer relationships.

Imagine your sales, marketing, administration, and production staff all using essentially the same — and right – words all of the time. That will be a symphony to the ears of your customers that need the reassurance that everyone is on the same page.

Isn’t it time to build your system of words that is the backbone of your sales, marketing, and service communications?

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