Business Web Copy

There are so many people operating businesses via the internet these days, hence the need to establish a website. Aside from the technological aspects of this process, web copy needs to be a reflection of the business itself.

As a business owner, you want potential customers to be impressed by the quality of your website and what it says about the service or goods you offer. This was the key thought in my mind when I wrote copy for my website last year. If there are errors in the written communication in your website, potential customers may assume, rightly or wrongly, that the service or goods you are offering are less than wonderful. Careful proofreading is essential.

Irrespective of your business type, your website must make a positive impact. The fact that your website is being viewed at all is exciting, given the incredible numbers of websites which exist these days. So, once you've been fortunate enough to have a potential customer (or even an accidental web crawler) looking at your site, you want to hook them properly with your web copy. If you can't do this, you have little chance of maintaining interest. Your web designer has a large part to play here to ensure there is visual impact and that the website is easily navigable, but errors in spelling, punctuation and grammar, as well as basic typographical mistakes, need to be identified by a different kind of expert - the proofreader and editor.

One of my customers has an accountancy business, primarily targetting Japanese business people who have business interests in Australia. For this reason, the bulk of her website is written in Japanese, however, she also required web copy written in English. This is where she sought my proofreading and editing advice. Check out her website to see what I mean - www.nakano-acc.com.au

Remember how easily a web crawler can click away from your site. It takes a split second. Give them a reason to stay there and take that crucial next step - the contact page. Excellent web copy delivers excellent results.

http://www.wordwriteforsuccess.com.au/

Font Matters

Often, when I am proofreading a document, especially web copy, I find myself distracted by the font choices the writer has made.

Common font foul-ups:

* wrong font choice for document type - the bottom line is that some fonts were never meant to be used for writing more than a heading and a large heading at that. Try writing a paragraph using Chiller in font size 10 and then reading it back - unless you enlarge it by 200%, you will have a LOT of trouble! I find Times New Roman, Arial, Bookman Old Style, or Georgia (what you are reading now) the best fonts for standard documents. Have fun with the fancy fonts if you are needing to do a one or two word heading, but make sure you adjust the size accordingly.

* too many different fonts used within one document - even if it's a website, consistency is key to your reader absorbing what you have written, rather than the being distracted by the look of it. If it is well-presented, font-wise, the reader won't even notice the font itself. However, the reverse is also true. A document with poorly planned font use is glaringly problematic. A website should use the same font type in every page of the website.

* bold/italic/underline feature overuse - don't overuse features. Just because they are available doesn't mean you need to use them constantly. The reader becomes confused and your message is not effectively communicated. By being selective in the use of these features, you are able to draw the reader's attention to particular points of interest.

* font size variability - using a larger sized font is fine, for example, for a heading, as long as it is distinctly larger. Writing a heading in size 14 font, then writing the following paragraph in size 12 may be too similar. It would be better to use a 16/12 contrast, or, alternatively, maintain font size for the heading and paragraph, but bold or underline the heading.

* CAPITALISING everything - once again, capitalising everything in your document reduces the impact of the message you are conveying. Instead, capitalise KEY words for effect. Some writers entirely avoid capitalisation of whole words, as the reader may perceive unintended aggression in the message.

Next time you are creating a document, keep these simple tips in mind. You'll be happy with the results.

http://www.wordwriteforsuccess.com.au/