How To Get More Leads With Your Copy

copywriting-typewriterI’m pretty close to being at the top of Google for keywords related to web design in Atlanta. It’s been a fun ride going from being non-existent in Atlanta to being considered as one of the top web designers in the city. My amount of web design inquiries has skyrocketed.

My SEO skills have allowed me to be found on the 1st page of Google, and my web design skills make me look like a professional, but what really convinces my website visitors to inquire about my services is my website copy.

I’d like to use a common real life situation as an analogy. Let’s say you’re a good looking single man, and you go to the hippest single’s bar. You’re seen by hundreds of women (SEO). Beautiful women are checking you out left and right because you’re good looking (Web Design), and you find one that you really want to talk to. You approach her and start a conversation. Whether she sticks around to take things further depends on what she sees and hears in your body language in addition to what comes out of your mouth (Website Copy).

What I’m saying is that although SEO and Web Design are important for your online presence, your website copy is extremely important for converting visitors into leads. Your website copy is your online personality. Most of my website visitors tell me that they contacted me because:

  • They had a feel for what my personality is like and they liked it.
  • They felt that I was an honest guy.
  • They liked the fact that I give valuable SEO tips away for free on my website.

Your website should be an extension of your company, and if you’re the sole owner, then it should be an extension of you. In the past, I’ve always been told that when you’re selling a product or service, you’re actually selling yourself. I never understood that until recently.

People don’t buy products or services, they buy the feeling that is attached to the product or service. Here is what I’ve done to my website to allow my visitors to get a feel for who I am.

Write a Detailed About Page

People want to know who they are doing business with, so I talked about my history on my About Me page. Making a long story short, I talked about when I got started and how I got to where I am at today. I even give them a little bit of personal information (i.e. hobbies and favorite restaurants).

My About Me page is my 3rd most viewed page on my website. After reading my About Me page and my Mission Statement page, my website visitors get a good feel for what I am like as a person. I connect with them on an emotional level. Some people will like what they read and some people will not. That’s ok. You can’t catch all of the fish in the sea. If you’re everything to everybody, then you’re nothing to yourself.

If you don’t write very much in your About page, it will seem like you are hiding something from your website visitors which brings me to my next point.

Be Honest In What You Have To Say

As mentioned before, one of the reasons that I attract leads from my website is because they feel that I am honest. It all starts with trust, and if you don’t have it from your website visitor, then you can forget getting the business.

So what do I do to establish trust with my website visitors?

  • I talk in 1st person to my website visitors
  • I don’t glorify myself by putting my own quotes in large print
  • I don’t claim to be able to do everything regarding web development

When I’m talking in 1st person, I’m talking to my website visitors and not at them.

If I don’t glorify myself by putting my own quotes in large print, I’m not putting myself on a pedestal. I’m no better (or worse) than my website visitors.

If I’m honest about what I can and can’t do as a web designer, I let my visitors know that I am not saying yes to any service just to get a paycheck.

Give Away Free Advice

You know the golden rule. Give and you shall receive. I write my blog posts like my newsletters. I really just provide advice. I hate being sold to constantly, and I take that into consideration when I write my blog posts.

When I give away free SEO advice, I’m also establishing myself as an expert in my field. I search Google quite a bit to find out more about things that I don’t know. I look at the people who provide this advice as experts, and I’m sure I’m looked at as an expert when someone finds one of my blog articles on Google.

New blog posts also add more content to a website, and Google likes seeing websites that are updated regularly.

Conclusion

Because I’ve used the techniques above, I’ve had many of my website visitors choose me over other web designers in Atlanta who appear higher on Google than I do. They all told me that they liked what I had to say more than the other web designers.

Writing original copy takes time, but it is equally as important as your website’s design and placement on search engines.

2 Comments

  1. Jenny on July 7, 2014 at 7:10 pm

    Great post, Tom! I agree wholeheartedly about the “About” page – so important and always one of the top pages on most of my clients’ sites in Google Analytics. I’m sure all of the copywriters are rejoicing to read this! All the SEO traffic is for nothing if your readers won’t convert.



  2. Tom Nguyen on July 18, 2014 at 7:03 am

    Thanks for reading my post, Jenny! As you know, copywriting is just as important as the web design. My “About” page has jumped into the #2 spot since this post.

    People definitely want to know who they are doing business with.



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