~~~Writing for the Search Engines~~~
From: Metaphorica
I'm a copywriter. Read any book on writing for the web, and the rules
are the shorter the better. I also see a trend toward extremely
minimalist copy (whether this is due to fashion or usability awareness
is yet to be discovered). Yet since discovering SEO, it seems most of
my web writing rules are about to be thrown out the window (a good
thing, actually, I like to write :); I think longer, well-thought out
copy gives a better chance to 'entice' the user. Anyway, do you think
then, there is a trade off, brevity in copy versus SEO rich text?
In other words, are some of the existing writing guidelines too
extreme, i.e. good for readability, perhaps, but crippling for SEO?
Thanks so much for your thoughts and help
Metaphorica
~~~Heather's Response~~~
Welcome to the online writing, "How long should my copy be?" debate.
One of the greatest proponents of short copy is Jakob Nielsen, the
usability guru (and I've faithfully followed him for years). His
1997 Alertbox article states that text should be easy to scan, short, and to the point. Get in, get out. Make your pitch, give it your best shot and leave 'em happy.
But here's my problem with his study. Nielsen also mentions that text
must be "objective" (rather than "promotional"). If that's true, then
the entire profession of online copywriting should pack up and go
home. Sure, you don't want your copy packed with unsubstantiated
claims like, "we have the best widget store on the Internet," but you
need to create persuasive, results-oriented text.
And sometimes, the only way to accomplish this is through longer copy.
Let's bring it back to search engine optimization. For maximum
effectiveness, we've found that the ideal copy length is around 250
words. Do clients freak heavily when we tell them this? You betcha.
The "short copy is always better" mantra has been burned into many a
brain. But there is a strong reason that longer copy works better
for prospects and search engines.
The reason is simple. If you are choosing say, three keyphrases to
target, and you include those keyphrases in your copy four to five
times each, you're taking up a lot of real estate with just the
keyphrases. Think about it: imagine having 75 words in which to
write your pitch and make it shine. When 15 of these words MUST be
keyphrases, you're sucking up quite a lot of your word count. Even if
you do get the rankings you want, your pitch won't be worth a darn.
You'll have what looks like "too many" keyphrases and no strong
persuasive text.
"But are people really reading that copy," you ask? You bet! I've
heard the arguments that scream, "graphics tell it better than words,"
but I simply don't believe it. In fact, if you create copy that
transforms your prospect's experience, you'll be creating an indelible
mental image that stays with your prospect. Prospects won't care if
your copy is ten words or 400, as long as your writing sings and you
keep their attention. For more information on how this works, check
out Nick Usborne's article in ClickZ, "How to Handle Longer Copy".
HOWEVER, this doesn't mean that you don't have to strategize for long
copy - either optimized for the search engines or "straight"
copywriting. You do. The worst thing you can do is write an
endlessly scrolling paragraph that painfully finishes after the tenth
page. However, if you use certain "tricks" to break up your copy
(like short paragraphs, bullet points, sub headlines and experimenting
with certain layouts), you can still benefit from longer copy without
sacrificing usability.
Thanks for your post! Keep those online writing questions coming!
Heather
~~~Jill's unsolicited 2 cents~~~
Right on, Heather! It's interesting that Heather said, "as long as
your writing sings." I've often felt that the difference between good
copy and bad copy is that good copy is like beautiful music!
Unfortunately, there are very few online copywriters who consistently
make beautiful music. Can you guess why I stuck with Heather all
these years? Anyone who can make "stomach stapling" sing, is truly a
copywriting Goddess in my book! (See the main page at
www.georgetownsurgical.com to see what I mean. Absolute, beautiful
music.)
Jill
~~~Send Us Your Questions~~~
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was "too basic" to be printed - and you don't have to worry about
that! There are no "stupid" search engine optimization or copywriting
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