With 2009 drawing to a close, I thought I’d take a light-hearted look at some of the problems with business websites.

Have you ever looked at a business website and had “What were they thinking?” run through your mind? I look at a lot of websites. Thanks to my informal partnership with Ryan Briggs, I’ve also been writing a lot of web copy. The more I learn about website development, the more I’m surprised at some of the commercial websites out there.

Read Sarah Mitchell’s full post, 8 Website Compliments You’d Rather Not Hear

Follow Sarah on Twitter: @globalcopywriting

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The real value of a FAQ page is often overlooked. Read this post to find out why I think every website should have 10-12 good FAQs.

My friend and fellow copywriter, Michele Linn, wrote an excellent article for the Savvy B2B Marketing blog called 5 Reasons to Include FAQs in Your Content Marketing Strategy. I wish I’d written it myself.

Throw Away Page?
The FAQ is one of the most powerful pages you can have on your website. Many people overlook it or feel like it’s wasted information. One client told me FAQs were the same for every website so there was no point including them. I suppose that’s true if your content really contains FAQs. Why not make the page do some heavy lifting for you?

Competitive Advantage
A well-written list of FAQs can knock your competition on the head. Imagine you’re educating your prospective customers. Aaron Sice from Blue Card! Industries embraced this idea and positioned his drafting services on his FAQ page. Not only did he differentiate his company from other drafting services, he also established a valid reason to hire a draftsman independent of builders and developers.

The Take-Away
Craft a list of 10-12 questions showing the strengths of your company and include it on your website. The FAQ page is a terrific place to address competitive advantage. No website should be without one.

You can find more from Sarah Mitchell at:

Website: www.globalcopywriting.com

Twitter: twitter.com/globalcopywrite

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sarahcmitchell

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Getting a website developed can be fraught with unrealistic expectations from the client. When it comes to the Home Page copy, what the client wants is often very different from what the web designer expects. This post discusses the work of the Home Page and why client requests are often turned down.

I’ve been writing a lot of website copy lately. I’m consistently caught between the web designer’s instructions and the desire of the client. The client, invariably, wants more content on the front page of the website. If they can’t get more text, they will usually ask for different wording. While client satisfaction is a driving factor in my business, when it comes to the Home Page, my answer is always the same. “Your Home Page has a job to do.”

Read Sarah’s full blog post: 3 Things Your Home Page Must Do.

Follow Sarah Mitchell on Twitter: @globalcopywrite

Attend my FREE seminar on Content Marketing at The Small Business Expo Perth on 5 November at Challenge Stadium, Perth. 

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