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10 Indispensable Reasons Why You Need Professional Web Copywriting Services

June 19, 2024August 31, 2016 by Adam Oakley

Let’s face it – some things just require skill. You wouldn’t hire a carpenter to give you a root canal, would you? Nor would you head to a sandwich shop for auto body work. Some professional skills are best left to professionals and trying to outsource them to anything less results in a poor job (at best) and a complete disaster (at worst). This is as true for web copywriting services as it is for anything else—perhaps even more so. When it comes to your online content, nothing but the best will (and should) do, and there are dozens of great reasons to hire professional web copywriting services. A lot of this has to do with Google and their current standards. Read on to learn more. [bctt tweet=”Let’s face it – some things just require skill. You wouldn’t hire a carpenter to give you a root canal. Nor would you head to a sandwich shop for auto body work. Don’t hire a non-writer to write your content. @JuliaEMcCoy” username=”ExpWriters”] The Real Reasons Businesses Need Professional Web Copywriting Services Why do you need web copywriting services? Let me count the ways… First of all, Google doesn’t exactly love hack jobs pretending to be copywriters. Last year, the search engine released a document called the “Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines.” The original document was 160 pages (it’s since been updated to 146), and it dispersed all sorts of useful information about how Google’s quality evaluators were to assign rankings to websites. One of the most important things the guidelines laid out, though, is the need for professional web copywriting services. Shocked? Stay with us. In the original version of the guidelines, Google went to great pains to define two critical acronyms: EAT and YMYL. Here’s what you need to know: EAT EAT stands for “Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.” According to Google’s guidelines, high-quality pages have high levels of EAT. Low-quality pages don’t. According to section 4.5 of the guidelines themselves, “High-quality pages and websites need enough expertise to be authoritative and trustworthy on their topic.” While Google stops here to clarify that “expert” pages can cover topics ranging from fashion and gossip to specialty pages, it’s clear that the search engine wants to see authoritative, quality content – no matter the topic. How do you get quality content? You hire expert web copywriting services. You see, great content is about more than just knowledge. It’s also about structure, formatting, SEO, and linking. By hiring web copywriting services that specialize in your given industry, you get all of the knowledge required for a high-EAT page, combined with the technical know-how that’s needed to rank well. Talk about a winning combination. YMYL YMYL stands for “Your money or your life.” This acronym is a lot like EAT in that it defines what good pages should have, but it’s also different because it talks about a particular subset of pages. You see, YMYL pages are those that, according to the guidelines, “could potentially impact the future happiness, health, or financial stability of users.” Examples of these pages include the following: Financial or shopping pages: Any website that allows customers to make purchases or pay their bills online is a YMYL page Pages that provide financial information: Any page that offers financial advice on topics ranging from investments, retirement, or taxes is a YMYL page Pages that provide medical information: Any page that provides information about drugs, diseases, mental health and well-being, or nutrition is considered by Google to be a YMYL page Pages that provide legal information: Pages that offer legal advice or information on critical things like divorce proceedings, child custody, or immigration are YMYL pages Any page that may impact the health, safety, or wellbeing of people: Other pages may be considered YMYL pages if the content within them has a significant impact on people. Consider the example of a car repair website, for instance, which tells consumers how to replace their car’s brakes. If written poorly, this page could have a negative impact on the safety of the people reading it. When it comes to YMYL pages, professional web copywriting services are especially needed. Because Google pays extra attention to these pages, it’s critical to get them right, and hiring a team of expert copywriters, editors, and SEOs is a great place to start. [bctt tweet=”According to Google, high-quality content should have EAT and YMYL. Know more about these two critical acronyms in this post on why you should hire web #copywritingservices” username=”ExpWriters”] 10 Good Reasons to Hire Professional Web Copywriting Services Still not sold on the need for professional web copywriting services? Here are ten solid reasons to jump onboard. 1. Hiring a team of professionals means you’ll save time Content marketing is a time-consuming business! When you look at social media alone, the statistics are staggering: 64% of marketers spend 6 hours each week on social media, 41% spend 11 hours or more, and 19% spend upwards of 20 hours each week on their social media accounts! With these numbers in mind, it’s not difficult to see how hiring professional web copywriting services can free up lots of time, energy, and resources. By turning content creation, distribution, and SEO over to a skilled professional, you allow yourself to reclaim critical time to focus on other things – like running your company. This, in turn, improves everything about the way your business operates and ensures that your social, blog, and on-page content isn’t suffering for lack of time. 2. Professional web copywriting services take a third-party approach As paradoxical as it may seem, many companies have a difficult time explaining their services. When you hire professional web copywriting services, though, this problem is a thing of the past. A team of skilled copywriters can evaluate your mission statement and services and craft an intelligible, comprehensive, and compelling statement about what it is that you do and why customers need it. This, in turn, creates more interesting content and prevents you from getting stuck in that odd, “I don’t want to toot my horn” place. 3. Expert … Read more

Learn the 5 Fundamentals of Online Writing for More Engaging and Impactful Content

March 23, 2022June 1, 2013 by Adam Oakley

These days, web writing is a thriving industry because we depend on the internet for everything. Somebody has to write all those web pages, all of that content, and the billions and billions of words that make up the information highway. That said, what sets your words apart from the rest? Why should people bother to read your online writing when they literally have millions of other options at their fingertips? The answer lies in the fundamentals of online writing. When you have these keys down, you will be able to create online content that stands out, gets noticed, and impacts your readers positively. It matters because online writing is a different beast from every other type of writing. You may borrow some techniques from other areas, like the fundamentals of creative writing, but, ultimately, this medium needs to speak to not just any type of consumer, but the online one. [bctt tweet=”Create online content that stands out, gets noticed, and impacts your readers positively. Learn the fundamentals of #onlinewriting” username=”ExpWriters”] Why the Online Reader Needs Tailored Writing Here’s what we know about the online reader: They’re bouncing around from webpage to webpage. According to data from Chartbeat, 55% of people spend 15 seconds or less reading a webpage. If your writing doesn’t intrigue your audience from the first few sentences, they won’t stay to read more. More often than not, they don’t read web writing closely. Research from Dejan Marketing found that only 1 in 5 people will read your content word-for-word. The rest skim and scan pages, looking for the major points. They do this for various reasons, but the top two include impatience to find the answers they need, and avoidance of text that looks too long. Online readers are often searching for answers to their questions and solutions to their problems. The research above proves this is true: 55% said the main reason they don’t read full content is they’re looking for quick answers, not a long read. These types of reading behaviors are fundamentally different from the habits of people who read physical books, for example. If your nose is in-between book pages, you don’t mind blocks of text, and you probably read every single word in front of you. Meanwhile, online readers take in content and information in a different way, so we have to tailor our online writing to make it as easy as possible for them to digest. [bctt tweet=”Online readers take in content and information in a different way. Here are the reasons why they need tailored #onlinewriting” username=”ExpWriters”] As long as you have the fundamentals down, it’s not hard to fit your words to the web. For writing in general, think of it as another tool in your toolbox – a way to grow your skillset and flex your writing muscles. Ready to learn the 5 fundamentals of online writing? Let’s go. The 5 Fundamentals of Writing Online Get to the Point (Use the Inverted Pyramid Style) A.A.F. – Always Avoid Fluff (Spell) Check Yourself Format for Scanners, Write for Readers Create Content That Matters (Map to Stages of Buyer Awareness) The Fundamentals of Writing Online: 5 Keys to Engage and Impact Online Readers 1. Get to the Point (Use the Inverted Pyramid Style) If we’ve learned anything thus far, it’s that most online readers want answers now. They want the cliff notes so they can skim or speed-read straight to the information that concerns them most. While some people DO still read content in full, they aren’t the majority. That said, we don’t want to alienate anyone from reading our online content. To appeal to the impatient skimmers, the in-depth readers, and everyone in-between, we can rely on the inverted pyramid style of writing. Amy Schade for the Nielsen Norman Group has another name for this technique: writing for comprehension. This means you begin your blog or article with the most important information right off the bat. There is no teasing, no dangling the carrot, and certainly no beating around the bush. This is a KEY fundamental of online writing. As your article continues, you order your points from “need to know” to “nice to know”. The least important information wraps up the end of the piece. Look at this example of a blog from the Nielsen Norman Group. It begins with the main points and tells you exactly what you’re in for with a mini summary. The points that immediately follow tell you important details (what a customer journey map is and why you might need one): The final points go into further detail – it’s stuff you don’t NEED to know to understand journey maps, but is NICE to know if you want more information. This writing technique originated with early journalists. The idea was to give readers the most important details of a story, first, so they could understand the main point without having to read further (unless they wanted more details). If your main point was unclear in your piece, this was called “burying the lede” – a major no-no. However, giving away the most important information at the beginning doesn’t mean you’re scot-free to do whatever you want after that. The rest of your blog or article should still contain good supporting information. That leads us to our next point. 2. A.A.F. – Always Avoid Fluff Using the inverted pyramid style of writing does NOT mean you front-load your blog or article with all the juicy bits, then slack off for the rest of the piece with filler. That’s why the second fundamental of online writing is A.A.F. (Always Avoid Fluff). What is fluff/filler? In writing, this is the use of repetitive wording, unnecessary details, meaningless phrases, or other diversions from the main topic that serve only to pad your word count. Here are a few examples of filler phrases in action: Concerning the matter of the test, she passed with flying colors. At this point in time, that’s not an option. Sally doesn’t … Read more

4 Things to Consider When Hiring Web Writers

January 1, 2021May 2, 2013 by Adam Oakley

Considering Web Writers Whether you run a professional blog, website, or ecommerce business, you will eventually need the help of qualified web writers to help you showcase your products in the best possible light. Many work on a freelance basis and most are unusually knowledgeable in regards to current practices and procedures of writing for the web. This includes thorough working knowledge of SEO practices as well as awareness of social media marketing trends, press release creation, guest blog post creation, and sales writing as well. Although finding the right writers for your team can seem daunting at first because of the sheer number of options available, it’s far from an impossible feat. Consider the following tips in order to make the process as easy on yourself and your team as possible. 1. Standout Writing Samples Before you hire your web writers, make sure you view a comprehensive selection of samples created for previous clients. Prioritize writers whose voices are compatible with the needs of your website or company and who can show you a comprehensive portfolio of relevant work. Sometimes it can help to have your writer produce a trial article or two before signing on for a long term working relationship in order to make sure the two of you are a good fit. Most professionals and writing teams will be perfectly fine with proving their skill in this way. 2. Solid Research and Web Skills The best web writers are more than simply good with words. They also understand how to mimic different voices and how to appeal to various target demographics. They comprehend the importance of key word density, original content, and other SEO practices that will bring you more traffic through search engines. They’ll be crack shots at research and fact checking to boot. Value is the key when it comes to your web content, so you’ll want to make sure all of these bases are covered. 3. Testimonials and References The best web writers aren’t just experienced and skilled when it comes to what they do. They also have excellent work ethics, are good at meeting deadlines, and have excellent customer services skills. They can show you references and client testimonials that back up their claims and abilities as well. Whether you’re enlisting the aid of an entire writing team or going with a sole freelance provider, don’t be afraid to ask for references from previous clients. Make it a point to follow up on those references as well and ask them about their experiences working with the individuals in question. 4. Consider Writing Teams Over Individual Providers Many people find they have better luck and more beneficial relationships when working with an entire team of professionals. Not only are teams of web writers going to be more varied, increasing your likelihood of finding a good professional that is really a perfect fit for your needs, but the individuals who will actually be producing your writing will probably be pre-screened by the head of the team to boot, so a lot of the hard work and weeding out will already be done for you. The same team will also probably be able to help you with SEO writing, resume creation, blogging services, or anything else you may decide you need in the future as well. Ultimately when you are hiring web writers, the key to success lies in covering all of your bases and paying attention to detail. Explore the possibilities for yourself today! We are currently accepting applications for writers. If you feel that you’ve got what it takes to be an Express Writer, please tell us a bit about you, and send us your resume. [button href=”https://staging.expresswriters.com/contact-us/” colorstart=”#72B544″ colorend=”#72B544″ colortext=”#fafafa” icon_size=”” class=”slide-button1″ target=”” color=”” align=”” width=”” icon=”” ]Hire Me Today[/button]