Commissioning a new website can be a daunting process, especially when you’ve got to manage a copywriter and a web designer. This can be even harder when working with firms that don’t have their own in-house copywriter. But there are some simple and effective ways to make that process work for you.
- Think your project through long before your copywriter starts work. What are your objectives for the website? How can you best reach your target audience? What kind of tone are you aiming for? How much copy do you want on your site?
- A comprehensive brief is essential and will stop the goalposts moving partway through a project. Be prepared for a lot of questions from your copywriter. Some of the answers will seem obvious to you, but that’s what your writer is there for: to transfer your expert knowledge to your website as effectively as possible.
- Attack your project the right way around. Presenting a copywriter with a vague design concept and asking them to ‘write around it’ is a sure-fire way to sub-standard results. Delivering a clear and powerful message to your audience should begin with your copy. Get the words right and the design will follow.
- For maximum impact, the copy and design should complement each other. Make sure your copywriter and web designer are on the same page, quite literally. If it’s practical, set up a meeting between them. A good working relationship is the best way to ensure seamless consistency and quality throughout your project.
And don’t forget that writing for the web is doubly difficult, as your writing for two audiences – the human audience which will appreciate well written, if not witty, English – and the search engine audience, which generally won’t appreciate the nuances of your copy, instead, focussing on the incidence of keywords in that copy.
Hard to combine the both…
Comment by Lance — , @ 7:11 pm
You’re absolutely right, Lance – and thanks for your comment. I’ve written a bit more about that very topic here: http://www.thecopyconsultancy.co.uk/what-i-do/website-copy/ It’s something that certainly seems to provoke some pretty strong reactions…I feel a blog post coming on…
Comment by Hannah — , @ 7:17 pm