Improve the selling & SEO effectiveness of your online sales copy by Mel Henson

1. FIVE EASY WAYS TO IMPROVE ONLINE COPY Presented by Mel Henson Screen Pages – 7th July 2011

2. Traditional copywriting COPY YOUR PRODUCT YOUR CUSTOMERS

3. Salesmanship in words

4. Why is online different? Decision making process Skimming v reading Space restrictions New things eg: Link copy Category overviews Search engine optimisation

5. NO 1 WRITE FOR ONE PERSON The ‘crowd’ You all... Our customers... For those of you.... The individual You Your

6. Use the word ‘You’ more than ‘Us’ (Our business)will be celebrating its 10th anniversary in September 2007. When welaunchedour business, mail order was still evolving, the internet was merely talked about, on-line shopping had hardly begun and Google had not even been thought of. 10 years ago, wesetourselvesthe objective of creating quality jewellery that was stylish and incorporated classically timeless designs. We wanted to offer products that women could afford to buy for themselves. We also set ourselves the goal of providing a level of service that went beyond ourcustomers’ expectations. I hope wehave succeeded! These are still ouraspirations today. In 1997ourcollection amounted to perhaps 30 or 40 at the most. Today we regularly have nearer 400, and weare creating new ones every week. A hugethank youto all our customers who have supported usover the last ten years. Youhave been very loyal, andweare enormously flattered by your continuing trust and support as well as by the many compliments wereceive

7. 304 words

8. No 2 WRITE ACTIVELY – NOT PASSIVELY Passive This spray cleans.... This radio is so clear This stain remover is easy to use Active End the chore of.... Discover the clarity of... Remove stains with ease

9. Assume they’re going to buy Passive... If you buy.... You could be enjoying.... Should you decide to... Active.... When you buy.... Enjoy the.... Now you can look forward to...

10. Active sentence-starters Keep your.... Organise your... Reveal your.... End that.... Prevent ... Stay ahead... Freshen up.... Restore your... Say goodbye to...

11. Demco Europe Limited – helping library and education professionals to provide the best service to their customers and students in the UK, across Europe, and internationally. By offering specialist supplies, furniture and innovative design for libraries, study spaces, and learning resource centres, the Demco Europe family of established brands aim to inspire learning within our communities. Inspire learning in your community. When you need innovative design, furniture and resources for your library, trust Demco Europe Ltd - one of the world’s leading specialist suppliers to universities, colleges, schools and learning centres.

12. Present tense is active – future is passive No will... Will.... Kids love the fruity taste.... Your hands are always warm thanks to a pure silk lining.. Kids will love the fruity taste.... These silk-lined gloves will keep your hands warm...

13. No 3 USE MAGIC WORDS

14. Use sparingly....

15. No 4 – Be creative with links Spiders give more weight to your ‘anchor text’ Click here to find your birthstone To see the rest of the Canterbury range, click here Find your birthstone Want matching bedroom furniture? The Canterbury range includes wardrobes, mirrors and a chest of drawers. Remember to keep it readable

16. No 5 WRITE FOR HUMANS (not spiders)

17. Category overviews SPIDERS Welcome to the bakeware section of our website, where there’s a fantastic selection of muffin pans, tart dishes, loaf tins, madeleine moulds and lots more for baking all kinds of cakes and pies. HUMANS Buying bakeware is a piece of cake with our great selection. From muffin pans and tart dishes to loaf tins and madeleine moulds you’ll find all you need for baking cakes, pies and more.

18. Copy is only one part of SEO URL Title Site structure 301 redirects Breadcrumbs Navigation Bullet points External links Internal links Canonicalisation

19. Isn’t he adorable? Probably a bit more loveable than his famous namesake Hampton Court Palace’s notorious resident, King Henry VIII. He comes with full royal regalia including handsome trimmed Tudor cap and cape. Suitable for little princes and princesses aged three years and above. Measures 28cm.

20. THE SECRET FORMULA

21. AIDA - Attention, Interest, Desire, Action Attention Interest Desire Action

22. AIsn’t he adorable? IProbably a bit more loveable than his famous namesake Hampton Court Palace’s notorious resident, King Henry VIII. D He comes with full royal regalia including handsome trimmed Tudor cap and cape. A Suitable for little princes and princesses aged three years and above. Measures 28cm.

23. 5 EASY WAYS TO IMPROVE ONLINE COPY Write for one person Active, not passive Use magic words – sparingly Be creative with links Write for humans, not spiders

24. www.wordsthatsell.co.uk Presented by Mel Henson author of Flicks & Clicks Follow twitter @flicksandclicks

26. 4. TALK BENEFITS NOT FEATURES Feature Biker’s glove with a sticky palm NEW STICKY PALM GLOVE GIVES BETTER GRIP Benefit Better grip, more control, win more races THE GLOVE THAT HELPS YOU WIN

27. Copy is a tiny factor in SEO

28. The old and the new Traditional (Print) Copy Ads Letters Catalogue product copy Coupons & order forms New (online) Copy URL’s Title tags Link copy Landing page Category overview Google Adwords Advice copy (eg: Buyers’ Guides) Checkout