Why is copywriting important for a website?
Website copy is the core text that narrates visitors through your website and tells them what they need to know about a brand or the site.
Overview
According to research, web users generally prefer writing that is concise, easy to scan, and objective rather than promotional in style.
Why does it matter ?
On the web, you have less than 15 seconds to grab somebody's attention when they first arrive on your website. On the average Web page, users have time to read at most 28% of the words during an average visit.
The study found that making web pages more concise had a positive effect on users' performance, satisfaction, and overall usability. Researchers cut the text by 54%, and users still found the shorter version more complete. The study also found that task errors were reduced when users didn't have to wade through long blocks of text.
Recommendation for writing copy text outlined in this study:
Conciseness can be achieved by removing small details.
Ease of reading can be achieved by adding tables of contents and section summaries, bullets, numbered lists, bold and colored text to highlight key words, additional headings and shorter paragraphs.
- Greater objectivity is possible by removing commercialism from the text. Adjectives (e.g., "formidable" and "overwhelming"), buzzwords (e.g., "paradigm"), and unsupported claims.
Main takeaways
- Be short, and use simple language
- Write with a clear structure
- Provide relevant information
Evidence and further readings
Here you can find a list of references to dive deeper on the subject.