Content tip: don’t say what you do, say why.

You have a beautiful website, a rock-solid logo and the right keywords neatly worked into your website copy. Great! Visitors increasingly find you through Google. But then what? Do you notice that your website is being visited, but your visitors aren’t taking action? Then it’s time to take a critical look at your content.
‘Content is king’, Bill Gates already said in 1966. The man had more than a point. In 2017, content is more important than ever. A website can’t do without it. Content is needed to be found through search engines. However, don’t lose sight of the primary goal of a website text: namely, prompting action. Making sure visitors go on to purchase, sign up for your newsletter, request a quote or get in touch. So how do you go about that cleverly?

Do you sell drills or holes?

Visit any random website. There’s a good chance there’s a short intro text on the homepage. A short piece of text meant mainly to grab attention. Many companies start this text with a list of their services. The reason is logical: this way, the visitor immediately knows what you do. But how effective is this approach?
You may have heard the expression ‘not drills, but holes’. It’s been a well-known principle in the marketing world for years. Yet many companies still don’t apply it. They feel their texts should mainly be very business-like. The result? They talk about their products or services, but not about the problems they solve. The idea behind the ‘not-drills-but-holes principle’ is that a customer isn’t actually looking for a drill at all. This customer just wants a hole. By naming the result in your communication — the hole, in other words — you respond much more to the customer’s needs. Instead of what you have to offer, you focus your content on the problems your customer experiences.

How do you write results-driven copy?

The ‘not-drills-but-holes principle’ works in almost every industry. A customer doesn’t want a mortgage, but a house. Not a hair straightener, but smooth and shiny hair. Not a website, but more customers. Not a security system, but a sense of safety. Not an all-purpose cleaner, but a clean home. And we could go on like this for a while. Turn it around. Instead of what you have to offer, focus your content on what your customer needs. What’s costing them money, time or energy? What are they worried about? What does your customer want?
Hopefully this helps you write texts that turn your website visitors into real customers. And can’t quite figure it out yourself? Then at Webba we’re happy to think it through with you. Fancy a chat about your website content sometime? Call or email us, no problem!