WRITING FOR THE WEB

Writing for the Web8:30 am – 12:30 pm :: May 3, 2013

Century CollegeInstructor: Lynne Morioka

About the instructor: Lynne Morioka is a writer, content strategist and social media specialist for her company, Social Visibility Consulting (founded in 2005). She has a background in journalism and public

relations and 15 years of experience encompassing writing, editing, communications, PR and social media. She works with web designers and agencies and businesses of all sizes to help them find their voice,

effectively express who they are and inspire action across multiple platforms. Her passion is writing -- in its many forms for any medium.

Her hobby is writing and her business is writing. She is a "word nerd" of the highest order.

Part 1: Why is website content important?

Part 2: How to write for the web

Part 3: Content strategy basics

Part 4: Uncovering and making the most of content assets

Wake up ice breaker:

Introduce yourself

Why are you interested in learning about web content?

What is your current or future role in creating web content?

What would you like to learn about web content today?

Part 1: Why is website content important?

• Content defines a company/brand – website content provides a baseline “voice” for company/brand in other outlets (like blogs, emails, marketing pieces, etc.).

• Content gets you found by search engines – search engines rank fresh, relevant, innovative content higher in search results. Want your website to be found? Be smart with your content. When content is interesting, people share it and link to your website (inbound links) which also helps the website get found.

• Content gives visitors a way to take action – buy now, read more, contact us, etc.

• Content is information – Content is basic information like address and phone number, but it can also show visitors that a company is an industry leader or someone is an expert in their field.

Content can enhance design (and vice versa) – A website can’t easily convey much information without content and blocks of text do not make an

attractive or user-friendly website.

A perfect example of design and content NOT working together.

Part 2: How to write for the web

NO to jargon (industry jargon, corporate jargon, meaningless words, etc.)

Spot the meaningless jargon (bonus points for spotting the spelling and grammar errors)

• Keep it brief – don’t write six paragraphs when you need one paragraph

• Highlight important information with bullet points

• Break up long text with interesting headers

Don’t overdo it with keywords

Do not copy other content (like a Wikipedia entry) and lightly edit or blatantly rip off (scrape) content.

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• Have one consistent voice“We” do this vs. “they” do this.

• Don’t make it “me-centered,” focus on what you/the company can do for readers

Use compelling headlines

Triple check your spelling/grammar and enlist the help of an editor

• NEVER USE ALL CAPS

• No underlining unless it’s a link

• You have about 20 seconds to capture a reader’s attention and compel them to take action – make it easy!

Write it right:

You are providing copy for the website of a local electrician. Write up your best worst home page website copy incorporating as many of the “do not’s” above as you can.

You are providing copy for the website of a local plumber. Write up your home page website copy keeping in mind the best practices above.

Part 3: Content strategy basics

What is content? Words, images, videos, games – anything that conveys a point and can

be seen/read and shared with others.

What is content strategy? An individual’s or organization’s plan to create, maintain and market

unique, engaging and valuable content.

Who needs a content strategy?

Any individual or organization with a website and trying to market themselves for any purpose – job seeking, nonprofits looking to build

support, companies trying to sell products/services, etc.

Why is content strategy important?

Content marketing produces roughly three times as many leads per dollar as traditional marketing. - Kapost

Sixty percent of consumers feel more positive about a company after reading custom content on its site. - ContentPlus

Visual content drives engagement. Brands saw a 65 percent increase in engagement w/into of FB timeline for brands. – Simply Measured

Seventy percent of consumers prefer getting to know a company via articles over ads. Ninety percent of consumers find custom content useful. – ContentPlus

How to set up a content strategy?

Step One: Figure out what you’ve got. A website, articles, photos, videos, white papers, newsletters, blog posts, presentations – it’s all part of your content inventory.

Step Two: Define your audience.

Who is your target audience? What are their interests? Why should they be interested in you/your organization? What are their “pain points”? How can you make it easy for them to do business with you?

Step Three: What is the objective of your business?

Do you want to sell a product/service or increase sales? Gather data to use or share? Inform people?

Step Four: Do your research

If you want to know what your customers want or need from you? Ask! Do a survey and collect/analyze the results. Keyword research will help you incorporate SEO into future content. Order reports from reputable companies on your target audience demographics, behavior and other key metrics.

Once you know what you’ve got, know your audience, know your business objectives and have done your research, you can plot

out with better accuracy a content strategy to interest and engage your audience.

Remember, it’s not about you or what you offer, it’s about your audience and what you need to give them to get them to take

action.

Strategize: A local gift shop with several brick and mortar locations would like you to redesign their website. What do you need to know to help you design their site with a solid content strategy in mind? Work in pairs to come up with a questionnaire.

Part 4: Discovering and making the most of content assets

WebsiteYour face to the world. Use it wisely as a home for your content. Incorporate SEO.

BlogCan help you position yourself as a thought leader or an industry expert. Incorporate SEO. Original, dynamic content that keeps people coming back to the website.

Social MediaNeed a separate social media strategy, but social media can also direct people back to website, be crucial in sharing content (yours and others) and incorporate SEO.

PresentationsSlideShare is one of the world’s leading education and e-learning tools with 60 million monthly visitors.

ArticlesInterviews, unique and useful content, simple storytelling can be ready made for sharing and publication.

Videos

Photos

Events

Podcasts

Webinars

Email marketing

Print pieces

Annual reports

The match game: Group discussion on how each of these pieces can affect each other and be repurposed into other content assets.