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How to use copywriting to sell online
Copywriting is an art AND a marketing strategy, but it's often overlooked as an opportunity to sell a story, sell a product, and sell a service. Copywriting is essential for SEO and to explain what it is you're selling and how it fits into the world. So how do you do it effectively? Let's find out!
In this post, I'll explain 2 things: why copywriting is essential for SEO, and how it can sell your products for you. After reading this post, you'll have clear steps that you can take to start writing new copy or improve your current texts.
Let's get started with why copywriting is essential for SEO and why you shouldn't take it lightly.
Copywriting is essential for SEO
Copywriting is essential for SEO, because it makes your website searchable and helps to clarify why your product or service is needed. Without supporting content, you leave your potential customers with more questions than answers. Why would your potential customers pay for what you sell if they don't understand what it is you're selling? Good copywriting explains what it is you do or sell, which gives you a boost in Google for the relevant search terms. You want to be found for search terms that are relevant for your business, otherwise you're not attracting the visitors that will become customers.
Context is key
Search engines these days are very clever in creating context for your website, figuring out how it fits into the internet. If your copywriting helps to explain your products and services, giving context to your business, you're "helping" the search engines figure you out. This gives you the opportunity to influence the search engines by providing your own context of who you are. But what does this mean? Let's figure that out in the next section about how you can use copywriting to actually sell your product or service.
How to use copywriting to sell
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In the previous section we've seen that copywriting is essential for SEO. But now you might ask yourself: how do you write copy that sells? The key is to be crystal clear and remove any nuance, regional slang, and overall vagueness from your copy.
Be crystal clear
You can improve your SEO and sales when you're crystal clear with your copywriting about what it is you do. There is no place for nuances and vague copy in SEO: Be crystal clear about what you do or sell. Example: "We'll make your car shine again" becomes "We'll clean your car for $5". This sets the expectations upfront and is also an SEO-friendly title.
Tell a story
Crystal clear copy is the first step, but it's not selling anything if you're not telling a story. Telling a story with your straightforward copy might sound like a waste of time at first, but it's the missing ingredient that will sell your product or service. Storytelling takes your potential customer on a journey along 4 steps:
- Discovery: What are you selling?
- Problem: What is holding me back to achieving greatness?
- Value proposition: Why do I need what you're selling?
- Acquisition: How can I get your product or service?
If you skip from step 1 to 4, it feels like a cold call: "Hey we have product X, buy it now for $99". You're most likely going to say: "No thanks, I'm not interested". Even if product X could've solved all of your problems, the seller never told you exactly which problems it solves and why it will be a great fit for your situation. There is no relationship between the seller and the buyer. The seller doesn't know the buyer's situation and is guessing you'll want it. The buyer doesn't trust the seller's recommendation, because this entire situation is based on a huge gamble.
A website is one-way traffic: The buyer interacts with your website, but you (usually) can't directly interact with the buyer. This looks a little like the cold call from above, but you can use copywriting to create trust between you and your potential customer in this one-way interaction. How do you build trust in a one-way relationship? Let's find out!
Build trust with your potential customer
In a one-way relationship with your customer on your website, you can still build trust between you and your visitors. You should put all of your cards on the table, by answering all of these questions in your copywriting:
- Whom is your product or service for?
- Which exact problems do your potential customers deal with?
- What are you selling?
- How does your product or service solve these exact problems?
- How much will it cost?
- How can your potential customers buy your product or make an appointment?
A great rule of thumb for answering these questions is this: The more specific the better. The order of questions is deliberate: You want the potential customers to feel seen before you ask them to buy from you. But remember: You HAVE to ask them to buy from you! You have to give them the option to buy or reject your offer.
Conclusion
In this post, we've seen why copywriting is essential for SEO and selling your product or service. Copywriting helps you sell your product when it's crystal clear, tells a story, and builds trust with your potential customers. I've outlined how you can improve your copywriting by providing you with specific questions you'll need to answer. Good copywriting can take your website from struggling to bringing you sales, but you have to prioritize it.
Posted on: February 18th, 2022I help you achieve great SEO, higher conversions, and help you grow your business
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