How to Write Sales Copy Effectively for the Web

By Herman Drost

When surfing the web, you often find websites with large or flashing graphics to grab your attention. While this may "wow" you initially, it does not pull the visitor through the site to get the order and make a sale. This should be the ultimate purpose of your site if you are trying to sell something.

On the other hand, writing effective sales copy will generate a much more favorable response, whether it is long copy or short copy.

16 steps on how to effectively write sales copy:

1. Research keywords - use wordtracker to find keywords related to your product. Weave them throughout your web site sales copy, including your meta tags. Try to find alternative keywords to your main ones. I chose the keyword phrase "teeth whitening" as an example.

Here are some of the alternatives to "teeth whitening" to give you some idea:

teeth whitening
laser teeth whitening
zoom teeth whitening
los angeles teeth whitening
teeth whitening gel
whitening teeth
teeth whitening california
teeth whitening kits
new york teeth whitening
california teeth whitening
teeth whitening products

2. Create a slogan - capture your visitors' attention by creating a slogan that stresses the benefits (not the features) of your product. For example for the phrase "teeth whitening" use a slogan such as:

"Get heads to turn when you open your mouth to smile?"

3. Write a powerful headline - the headline should appeal to the benefits of the product not the features. Try to put yourself in the customers' shoes so you are seeing the product from their viewpoint view (not yours). ie

"New Teeth Whitening Gel Becomes Household Necessity for Kids"

4. Appeal to visitors' emotions - writing sales copy for the web is more difficult because you are not physically interacting with the person. Therefore you need to convey some emotion in the words that you use so they will continue reading. In the above headline example, I have emphasized that this product is a necessity for kids ... that you can't do without it. You will feel some loss if you don't buy it now.

5. Make it personal - write as if you are sitting next to the person trying to persuade him to buy the product. Use words such as "you". ( ie "people will notice you when you smile") or "your" instead of "we" or "our" which sounds very impersonal.

6. Don't use capital letters - using capital letters in your sales copy is like yelling at them to buy. Instead, use different colored text or bold text to emphasize the points you are trying to make.

7. Write an introductory paragraph - this should support your headline and outline the clear purpose of your site and include your keywords. Often a personal story helps to personalize the product.

"Bob's teeth whitening gel makes you want to smile continuously because you immediately stand out from the crowd with your fresh, clean, white smile. You can take this teeth whitening kit with you anywhere you go, whether it's to the office, beach, or restaurant..."

Here I have included the keyword phrases:

teeth whitening
teeth whitening gel
teeth whitening kit

I have also stressed the benefits of the product (what's in it for me) and given a clear purpose of what the site is all about.

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