- Get into the head of your audience. I give this advice for all aspects of marketing, and I know you’ve heard it before. I repeat it so often because it’s the single most important thing you can do. Look at everything you write for your site from the user’s perspective. What have they come looking for? Write to your audience’s needs. Use the language they use and the tone they expect. Keep in mind their skill levels and attention spans.
- Make your content true and useful. Don’t waste anyone’s time and don’t write things just to read your own words. You should know the problems your customers, clients, or audience have. Write what will solve those problems.
- Make it easy for search engines to serve your content to the people who need to find it. Incorporate relevant keywords and keep your navigation intuitive. Always make it easy for people to find the information they’re looking for. Think about how your own experiences when you visit a site and how quickly you leave it if you can’t find what you need.
- Start with the most important information. It’s a good bet that everyone isn’t going to read the entirety of your page or post, so lead with what can help them the most or what you care the most about telling them.
- Format for skimming. Break things up into small chunks. Put important points and headlines in bold. Make it easy for people to get the main points of your text without close reading.
Substance and Style 