Are you a webmaster who is often asked to write content for the websites you manage? Maybe you're tasked to create new content for the company where you work, or for your web design clients? If so, this article will help you overcome your fear of web writing and tackle the job head on.
It will also help you increase the value you provide to clients or employers, because you'll be a "double threat" -- you'll able to create websites and write content for them as well.
1.
Put Substance Before Style Let me start by putting your mind at ease, with regard to a common fear people have about writing.
When you publish information onto a business website, the content is more important than the form.
In other words, you don't have to write like William Faulkner when you create web content.
In fact, it's best if you don't.
Sure, you have to write clearly and cleanly, without typos and major grammatical errors.
But when it comes to website writing, what you say is more important than how you say it.
The best thing you can do when publishing information is to (A) select topics your audience really wants to know about, and then (B) explain those topics in clear, straightforward language.
Be thorough and helpful with your writing, and you have won half the battle already.
2.
Outline Before You Write The more content you create for your website or blog, the more search engine traffic you'll get.
It only makes sense.
By expanding the amount of information on your site, you're also increasing your visibility for a broader range of key phrases.
Sure, many people will find you by searching a handful of the same phrases.
These are your high-traffic keywords.
But you can also get a ton of visitors through other keyword searches related to your business -- that is, if you have the kind of web content that matches their search query.
What does an outline have to do with this? Well, it makes it much easier to write web pages.
And this, of course, means you can write more of them and rank for more keywords and phrases.
I usually create an outline before I write a single sentence of a new web page, and it's a strategy used by other professional writers as well.
If you only take one lesson away from this article, make it this one -- outlines make the process of web writing much easier for you.
And they are simple to create.
All you have to do is plan how you want to begin, the key points you want to cover along the way, and how you want to conclude and summarize the piece.
The idea here is to avoid staring at a blank screen on your monitor when it comes time to produce your new web content.
If you follow my advice on this point, you won't have to stare at a blank screen (or page) waiting for the ideas to hit you.
They'll already be outlined on paper.
3.
Turn Off Your Internal Editor Here's another writer's trick that will simplify the process for you.
When creating your first draft of a new web page, don't worry about things like spelling, grammar, clarity and coherence.
The first time through, focus instead on the ideas you want to express.
Capture those in your first draft, and then you can go back through to address the other items in your second draft.
The first attempt is all about capturing those ideas before they "float" away.
So just write.
Don't edit or criticize as you go along ...
save that for the second draft.