Charlie Creative Blog

It’s true. Test it yourself. You give a site just under 5 seconds to stun you. And if it makes you think you’re likely to click away. So your headline matters. A lot. But what goes into a website headline? Have you got a few weeks? If so, I’d be happy to tell you all about it. But for now, here are three things that matter. You’ve got to enter the conversation your reader is already having about your product or service…

• What does she think about it?
• How does she feel about it?
• And what are her desires for it? What does she wish it would do?

To write a good headline get inside your reader’s conversation. Know what she wants and speak her language. Then, when she visits your site, she’ll give you more than a glance.

I kept bringing in precious, highly detailed pieces to my design class. The other students thought this was great. But the teacher just shook her head. One day she glanced at my latest confection and looked at me.

“Do you have a set of chopsticks at home?” she asked.

I nodded.

“And do you have paint? Not good paint… House paint. And a kitchen timer?”

Thoroughly confused I stood with my mouth open.

“I don’t want you to do this week’s assingnment,” she said. “Instead, buy a pad of newsprint with 100 sheets of paper. Set the timer for one minute and paint. Paint with the chopsticks and housepaint. When the timer chimes stop. Don’t go past a minute on any of your paintings. I want 100 paintings from you next week.”

At home in my backyard I set the timer, dipped the chopsticks in the paint bucket, and stood over the blank newsprint listening to the timer click off seconds. 43… 44… 45… And then it happened. The paint plopped a full lush blob on the center of the sheet. Without thinking, I kneeled and ran a finger through it. Wet, warm, slick. I spread five fingers out from the center of the sheet. A shape appeared. A thistle. A flower. A star burst. The bell sounded. For 100 minutes I was lost. Each painting opened out before me on the newsprint. Sometimes I used the chopsticks. Sometimes I used my fingers. Once or twice I used my feet. 100 minutes 100 paintings all spread around me on the lawn. I let them dry in the sun. When I brought them into class I didn’t care so much what others thought about the paintings. It was the process, the expression, and letting go of perfection that mattered. It was the best work I did all semester.

Your website copywriting must be long enough to make your point… and short enough for search engines to scan it efficiently. Summarize each of the following questions in a few sentences on your site. When you do, you’ll woo search engines and prospects. Use keyword phrases and make sure your website copywriting expresses your brand message.

What do you do?
Who do you do it for?
What are the benefits?
What do you do that’s different from others?
What do you want people to do on this site?

Who do you work with?
What are their problems?
What do they need to do to succeed with you?

What are your specific services?
What is each one for?
What does it do?
What’s the process?

Outside of testimonies, case studies, resources and a super easy way to contact you, that’s all the website copywriting you need. Graphic design also supports your brand message. As always, usability must be stellar… part of being friendly is being accessible.