In all the image obsessed pixel wrangling that can happen in your average design agency, it’s easy to forget about the power of the written word. Written content is essential to maintain traffic to most web destinations. And, I’m sure it’s no surprise to you, there is a near-infinite supply of lame writing populating websites around the internet universe.
It’s a shame. While writing isn’t the end-all be-all, it’s a factor that lots of website barons forget about. If you want to have a website that gets a lot of traffic, it is very important to have a site that has all the earmarks of industry standard. But a gorgeous streamlined modern website with elegant responsive integration and design to beat the band won’t do its job if there’s no good content to greet people once they get there.
This is something we start to forget with all of our discussion about things like SEO, marketing, and design. All of these design techniques are essential, and they should be used in tandem with great, meaningful copy. It’s something that a company like WSI has not forgotten. And it’s a lesson the rest of us would do well to remember, or learn for the very first time. So why does good content make websites work?
1. Bad Written Content is a Turnoff
Nobody likes to feel like their time has been wasted. To show up on a new website, whatever the reason or the product/service/concept being offered there, the site has to deliver on its promise of value. If the copy is inscrutable or vapid, chances are your reader/customer is going to notice. This will result in a higher incidence of non-returners and will contribute to bad notions being conceived about your site.
2. Bad Written Content is Noise
The web’s general standard of writing is very poor. You don’t have to look far to find it. And most places where it is found aren’t exactly paragons of success. Sure, plenty of sites of all sorts have mediocre content, and they’re still operational. But it’s hard to find a singular success that’s built on a foundation of faulty written content. Most places like this cut corners in other ways and end up living this half life on the web, kept alive by a loyal bunch of users, without the critical mass to take the effort in a significant destination.
3. Bad Content is Free Advertising for the Good Stuff
Today, everybody’s an expert and nobody has any time to waste on crap. Our definitions of those qualities will differ, but all of us can agree that we know what we want and we know it when we see it. If your customers find your site with half baked copy, they are going to be driven to your competition who provides them a valuable written experience.
There are a lot more reasons to invest in quality written content. In general, it’s the human thing to do. The word is important. If you’re not using yours to deliver something of value to the reader, what the heck are you doing? Great writing can build businesses, but it’s also something we need more of in the world.
