Professional Guide to Writing Persuasive Web Content

By Jay Neaves

Creating effective persuasive content for your website or blog is about striking the right balance. Web content needs to serve a variety of purposes and not all content is created equal. Professional writers are finding that the leading reason successful website owners outsource their web content to professional writing services, is that a highly skilled professional writers can create web content that is effective in terms of authority, search engine optimization (SEO) and most importantly persuasion.

Mastering the art of persuasive writing can take a long time even for professional writers. Contrary to popular belief, it is not hugely difficult to write effective persuasive content, however, it is by far, the easiest form of web content to get terribly wrong. Common reasons why so many website owners get persuasive writing wrong are a lack of structure to their content and a failure to understand the basic principles of persuasive writing

Poorly structured content has two negative effects. Firstly, it leaves the reader struggling to find the key information that affects them. You may be trying very hard to present your argument convincingly but the reader is looking for how it relates to their needs wants or problems. Secondly, it hinders the readers ability to view you as an authority in your field. In order for your web content to be effective and persuasive, the reader has to feel they are reading the work of an expert who can clearly and coherently present the relevant information and provide a solution to their problem.

Clear structure is achieved in two ways, the knowledge of key writing principles and applying that knowledge to devise a detailed plan for your content. While planning in this way may seem like a time consuming exercise, it prevents you from losing focus or deviating from what you need to say and ensures your web content accomplishes your goal. So what are the key principles to writing effective persuasive web content?

The first principle of any writing task is to have a "purpose". Without considering what the purpose of your web content is, there is little chance you will achieve the desired outcome. Like all persuasive text, persuasive web content or sales copy has a very distinct purpose. That purpose is to convince the reader to think, or behave in the way you want them to.

Step one in your plan is to establish and write a clear statement on exactly what you want your reader to think, believe, agree with or do. Be as specific as you can and try to avoid any general statements, such as, "buy my product".

The second principle that must be considered is the "key point" you are trying to make. To write effective, persuasive content, you need to know exactly what your point is because if you don't know, your reader certainly won't! Essentially, your key point will need to be abundantly clear throughout your web content, so be absolutely sure you know what it is. Any deviation or digression from that point will just confuse the reader.

Step two in your plan is to write a clear statement on what your key point(s) are. This could be the unique selling points (USP) of your product or how your product can solve the readers wants, needs or problems.

The third principle is "audience". It is vitally important that you know who your audience are and what their wants and needs are. Effective, persuasive web content relies on the ability of the writer to connect with the reader through mutual understanding. If you understand your target audience, you can write web content that appeals directly to that audience. This is arguably the single most important factor in terms of converting your reader to your way of thinking.

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