PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE DON’T PLAGIARIZE▪ Copying content from other sites, no matter how tempting, will result in your site

getting penalized, even removed, from search engines. Maintain your copy/pasting self-control and just spend a few extra minutes coming up with your own original content.

DON’T

USE RUN-ON SENTENCES▪ Short and sweet appeals to both humans and search engines.

DON’T

WRITE CONTENT THAT IS TOO COMPLICATED▪ It might make you feel smarter to use four syllable words 18 times in a paragraph,

but most people won’t appreciate your language prowess. Keep the text understandable to the average person.

DON’T

WRITE LONG WALLS OF TEXT▪ If possible, try to keep paragraph length to 80 words or 4-5 lines.

DON’T

REPEAT YOURSELF AD NAUSEAM▪ Your site visitors are coming to learn about the subject your website covers, and

they don’t want to have the same concepts or keywords bombarding them when they want to learn something new.

DON’T

OVERSELL YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE▪ Quality content writing involves a careful balance of promotional and non-

promotional content. Sure, the website’s purpose it to promote what you’re offering, but that doesn’t mean you should bombard readers with invitations to buy or sign up.

▪ Provide them with valuable, informative content that they can appreciate before asking them if they’re interested in becoming a consumer.

DON’T

FORGET YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE▪ You might know a lot about the topics your website content covers, but you need to

keep in mind that your customers might be far less informed.

▪ Make sure to write content that meets your site visitors at their level.

DON’T

USE IMAGES THAT YOU DON’T HAVE A LEGAL RIGHT TO USE▪ Finding random images on the Internet and sticking them up on your site without

permission or purchase can result in you getting sued.

DON’T

USE BAD ANCHOR TEXT▪ If you want your website viewers to click on a link in your content, don’t just insert a

link with the text “Click here!”. Be creative and use anchor text that is descriptive and inviting.

DON’T

PLAGIARIZE (YES, AGAIN)▪ Write your own content and avoid seeing your website tank because you couldn’t

take the time to be original.

DON’T

KNOW WHAT THE GOAL IS FOR EACH PAGE▪ Do you want a customer to purchase a product on a specific web page? Then make

the content on that page is written to helpfully point them in the right direction and convince them the product is worth buying.

DO

USE CALLS-TO-ACTION (CTA)▪ A CTA is an inviting button, link, image, or some other sort of graphic that

encourages a site visitor to become a participant or customer.

▪ If you write great content but don’t have a call-to-action, you’re content will be far less effective at converting visitors to consumers.

DO

USE AN OUTLINE▪ Have a strong, organized idea as to what you’ll be writing for each specific web

page.

DO

SOUND LIKE A HUMAN▪ No one likes content that sounds like it was copied from a dictionary or narrated by

a robot.

▪ Be down-to-earth and friendly, as much as your style allows. Your site visitors will appreciate the personal connection with you and be more likely to engage with your calls-to-action.

DO

USE BULLET POINTS & NUMBERED LISTS▪ Break up the text and make it look more interesting and readable.

DO

PROVIDE ANSWERS YOUR TARGET MARKET NEEDS▪ How can your services or products help a consumer?

▪ Why are they the best on the market?

▪ How can a visitor find exactly the item or information they’re looking for?

▪ You’re the expert so your website visitors expect to find some answers!

DO

MAKE SURE YOUR PARAGRAPHS ARE ORGANIZED▪ There should only be one idea per paragraph.

▪ Each paragraph should start off with the subject, and then stick to that subject without rambling or providing unnecessary information.

DO

ENSURE YOUR CONTENT CAN BE SCANNED QUICKLY▪ Display important information first and prominently.

▪ Most site visitors only take a few seconds before leaving a page, so you want to make sure they see what they’re looking for without feeling like they have to read everything.

DO

REVIEW YOUR CONTENT▪ Review your content for any errors or missing information you want to correct.

▪ Better still, read the page content out loud, a practice that will help you assess if the text sounds the way you wish and if there are any mistakes that your brain keeps missing.

DO

MEET YOUR CONTENT DEADLINES▪ In order for content and web design to blend cohesively, it’s always good to make

sure your web design team knows what type of content you’re providing.

▪ Providing your content punctually means your website will look better and be launched in a timely manner.

DO

Thrive Internet Marketing

301 South Center Street

Suite 400

Arlington, Texas 76010

817.642.9686

http://thrivenetmarketing.com