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Writing Marketing Text - Advice for Veteran Webmasters |
Every webmaster faces the
daunting task of writing marketing text. An Internet web page has all
the graphics necessary for visual stimulation; but, to complete the
site, you have to talk to the surfer. Webmasters who have been in the
industry for longer than a minute know how important text is. Words give
a web page added dimension and its own distinctive flavour. Text
completes the site and is essential for any chance of earning revenue.
Search engines cannot help but spider text. No matter what the dance is
for the day, no matter how often the algorithms change, words get
spidered. The utilization of keyword rich, emotion evoking sentences, or
phrases can mean the difference between selling and not selling.
Each and every niche demands usage of certain words and a style of
language, which, if successfully executed, will attract and entice the
surfer. The ultimate goal of every web site, whether it be free or
member based, is to lure the surfer in, manipulate their senses, and get
them to spend money.
Link lists and TGPs are now determining which words they don't want,
such as 'young' and 'teen'. It's only a matter of time before VISA
begins its witch hunt for terms they deem inappropriate. There are
influences present in today's society, making it a higher risk when
describing that succulent young teen model, while, at the same time,
making sure the world knows she's over the age of consent for US
audiences.
It sounds pretty easy. It's not. The ability to talk blindly to a target
audience, whose age is only surmised, but necessarily known, is
difficult on the best of days. When you're in a bar, you've got body
language and facial expressions to convey what you mean. When you're
cranking out hundreds of sites a day, creativity with words becomes
tedious. Marketing text has to 'speak' to the specific surfer, which
means you, the webmaster, must learn the vernacular of that particular
group. If the niche is for those in the forty and up crowd, gangsta
Ebonics is going to be a turn off. Smack talk doesn't always work,
either. There is a growing group of people who are tired of cunt talk,
that harsh 'fuck' language, which is designed to shock.
It's imperative to research your niche. Use the phrases which trigger a
buying response from your surfer, which means calling a BBW a humongous
whale will not get your audience in the mood.
Believe it or not, I read personal ads. It's amazing what you'll find
written by surfers for surfers. I also surf the message boards. Just
type in a keyword and add the word 'forum' and you can find all kinds of
message boards where ordinary people hang out. As you sift through their
messages, you can get a feel for what turns them on, what makes them
horny.
When writing a bio for a chick, don't try to sound like the girl, if
you're a guy. You're a guy. You can't be a girl. It takes a special kind
of talent to be multi-gendered when writing advertising copy. It's
difficult to write; it's impossible to be someone you're not. Just talk.
Tell the surfer what you want him to know. Pretend you're standing in
front of a group, describing this really cool site you found. Talk out
loud, as you're typing. You'll be able to hear the inflection in your
own voice, which will give you the areas necessary for punctuation, such
as commas and periods.
Shouting tends to turn off surfers, so be careful with capitalisations
and exclamation points. Font size does not have to be huge; it takes up
too much space and even new surfers will find where you want them to
click. Conversely, small fonts may just lose an important segment of the
population. Those who are far sighted need glasses to read. Font size
one is too tiny for anyone. Remember. We want to give the surfer a hard
on, not a headache.
Visit chat rooms to see how people talk to each other. I've gotten many
great text ideas from AOL chat rooms.
Playboy and Penthouse and Hustler used to be great sources for text. I
don't use them much anymore, because they are all beginning to sound the
same.
I think the most important factor in writing marketable text is the
relationship your words form with the surfer. Appeal to his desires and
you've increased your chances of selling. Make sure you're using the
language which will provoke or evoke the response. Otherwise, you're
just publishing another web site, indistinguishable from all the others. |
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