If you want to stand out from the competition and truly engage your customers, it takes killer web content. These tips can help.

1. 46 Tips for Creating Killer Web
Content
matt@matthewlbrennan.com

2. A Little About Me…
Matt Brennan is a Chicago area marketing
writer and the author of Write Right – Sell
Now: How to Create Content that Grows Your
Business. He regularly writes about blogging
and content marketing at
matthewlbrennan.com.
Published on:
matt@matthewlbrennan.com

3. Killer Web Content Means…
Providing value and building trust, instead of
aiming for the hard sell…

4. 1. Understand Your Audience – The more you
know about the people you write for, the
easier it is to market to them.

5. 2. Make a Promise –
• Promise something great in your headline and
lead.
• Deliver.

6. 3. Showcase Your Benefits – Features are
nothing more than product specs. Benefits are
all the ways your product improves your
customer’s life.

7. 4. Answer Customer Questions – Your reader
has a short attention span. Give them the
information they came looking for, and they
are more likely to stay.

8. 5. Focus on Headlines – Headlines are the single
most important factor in determining whether
someone will click on your content or not.

9. 6. Tell Readers What You Want Them to Do –
Learn how to write clear calls to action that
will help you sell.

10. 7. Provide Value – Your readers need to know,
like and trust you. The easiest way to get there
is to give them lots of great information.

11. 8. Consider Your Navigation – Make sure your
menu caters to ALL types of readers, and
information is available in an intuitive manner.

12. 9. Write for Short Attention Spans – Your
readers may only give you a few seconds of
their time. Get to your point.

13. 10. Consider Taking Dates off Posts – If you
write infrequently it might be worth taking
dates off posts. Inactivity is grounds for
readers to question your business.

14. 11. Update your content – Your company
information, sales inventory, and any other
basic information should be current.

15. 12. Experiment with Different Mediums –
Experiment with video, infographics, audio,
and blogging. People like information in
various ways.

16. 13. At Least One Compelling Image Per Post –
Make sure your images are compelling, and
add to the story.

17. 14. Shorter Paragraphs – Huge blocks of text are
a pain to work through. Break up your
thoughts accordingly.

18. 15. Bullet Points, Lists and Subheads – These
are more great ways to break up your writing
into manageable chunks.

19. 16. Develop Your Writing Voice – Write with a
little personality. It will help set your web
content apart.

20. 17. Avoid Acronyms and Jargon – Your industry
geek speak causes stopping points for your
reader. It becomes hard to plod through.

21. 18. Include All Relevant Information – If
someone wants to contact you or give you
money, they shouldn’t have to work real hard
to do it. Include your contact info!

22. 19. Consider Infographics – These can help set
your website apart by telling your story in a
visual way.

23. 20. A/B Test– Consider your website and blog
content a series of experiments. Find out what
content works to draw people in. Repeat.
VS.

24. 21. Provide Social Proof – Testimonials move
readers to buy. People want to know about
your previous successes.

25. 22. Tell A Great Story – Stories make you
memorable. Stories make you likeable. Stories
are what they remember. Tell stories.

26. 23. Carry a Notebook – Inspiration strikes
outside the 9 to 5. Carry a notebook. Write
those ideas down.

27. 24. Set Goals – Make writing goals and set
deadlines. It can help you prioritize as life and
business become hectic.

28. 25. Take Breaks – Stop pounding your head
against the wall. Don’t force it. Empty the
dishwasher. Take out the garbage. Go for a
walk. It’s OK.

29. 26. Study the Greats – Who are the leaders in
your industry? Read about new innovation,
and read about the classics.

30. 27. Write and Edit Separately – If you try to edit
as you write, your best ideas may never hit
paper (or screen).

31. 28. Use an Editorial Calendar – This will help
you keep your content organized. It helps you
plan, and it can motivate you to set deadlines.

32. 29. Close out of your social media and email –
Diverting your attention elsewhere every two
minutes is impeding the quality of your work.
It just is.

33. 30. Set Aside Writing Time – It can help to
assign blocks of uninterrupted time for your
writing efforts.

34. 31. Learn Focus – It won’t kill you to let your
phone go to voicemail or tell someone you’re
busy. It’s time to relearn how to concentrate
for longer periods.

35. 32. Read and Consume Everything – Read inside
your industry and out. Connect ideas.

36. 33. Study the Competition – Know what the
competition did, so you can adopt or steer
clear. This is how you stand out.

37. 34. Write Daily – This is the only way to truly
improve at the craft. If you want to improve,
this is the best way.

38. 35. Give Your Bad Ideas a Shot – Don’t just
dismiss and move past bad ideas. Write them
down. Try to enhance them.

39. 36. Copy edit– Your marketing might be
someone’s first exposure to your business. It
better be professional. Eliminate grammar and
spelling errors.

40. 37. Omit the Unnecessary Words – Make your
writing tight. If something can be deleted
without changing the meaning, do it. Don’t
leave any slack.

41. 38. Convey Your Message Clearly – Tell your
readers what they can expect, and then
deliver. Every time. Talk to them like you’re out
for coffee.

42. 39. Read Your Work Out Loud – Your family and
coworkers may wonder about you. But you will
catch mistakes that otherwise slip through.

43. 40. Show, Don’t Tell – It’s always better to
illustrate your point than to simply state it.
Paint a picture with words.

44. 41. Improve Your Word Choice – Strong verbs
pop, and a conversational tone sings. Make
sure you’re not boring people to death one
word at a time.

45. 42. Don’t Crowd Your Layout – Too many
choices make it tempting for the reader to
simply do nothing.

46. 43. Keep Your Forms Simple – Don’t give your
reader so many choices that they do nothing.
If they got this far, they really do want to
reach out.

47. 44. Guide Your Reader to that Call to Action –
With web programs such as Canva, you can
create visual calls to action. Let your readers
know what you want them to do.

48. 45. Consider Minimalism – Making your call to
action the ONLY thing your customer can do
will increase your results.

49. 46. Make it Easy to Share – Social buttons at the
end of your web content or blogs make it easy
for them to share the content they love.

50. One Other Thing…
• Did you find these tips helpful? My book
Write Right – Sell Now can help you create
content that sells. Available on Amazon!
matt@matthewlbrennan.com