In Today's Issue
Guest Article
---> Writing TO Your Customers—Not AT Them
High Rankings Happenings
---> SEO Consulting Prices Slashed!
---> High Rankings SEO Site Review
Twitter Question of the Week
---> Will you care if Google turns off toolbar PR?
Stuff You Might Like
---> 20% Discount on Karon's Books!
Advanced SEO Forum Thread of the Week
---> SEO Best Principles for Local Service
Advisor Wrap-up
---> Look for 2010 SEO Classes Soon Introduction
Hey everyone!
While analyzing a client's website recently, I noticed that most of their content was very company focused, rather than customer focused — that is, they were mostly talking about their company rather than what was in it for their customers. So I asked our copywriting guru, Karon Thackston, if she had any articles that addressed how to make changes accordingly, since she talks about this all the time in her in-person training sessions. To my surprise, she didn't already have an article on this topic.
Well...now she does! See today's guest article for more.
Enjoy! – Jill
Guest Article
++Writing TO Your Customers—Not AT Them++
By Karon Thackston © 2009, All Rights Reserved
Sometimes choosing which company to buy from is about like deciding which brand of canned peas is the best. To make matters worse, the copy on most websites doesn't offer any help.
There are three major offenders in copywriting that I see constantly on the Internet. The first is generic copy that offers no specific differentiation points — in other words, reasons why the visitor should choose you instead of the thousands of other sites that are just a click away. The second is overused fluff copy that has no substance. And the third? Using company-focused copy ("we" and "us") instead of customer-focused ("you" and "your"). It's the third offender I want to address in this article.
I am literally shocked that — after decades of marketing evangelists preaching "It's not about you!" — website owners still don't get it. What's not to understand? Copy that focuses strictly on your company and practically or completely ignores your prospects doesn't work nearly as well as copy that speaks to your target customers in their language and about the benefits they will receive.
I discussed this very topic with SEO friend Jill Whalen recently, and she commented, "I think people don't understand how to write to the customer instead of about their company." Perhaps my cohort is right. So, in an effort to educate, let's look at several before and after scenarios.
Company-Focused Copy Examples
It's as if this web design firm has intentionally made an effort to ignore their site visitors. They use their company name, "the client," "customers," and practically every other word to describe who is reading the page. Except, that is, the most important: you. You must address the one, single person who is reading your web page at any given moment, not a collective population of people.
"ABC Web Design is dedicated to customer service. We make great strides to offer high levels of customer service and communication with clients. As a small company, we understand one-on-one service is needed. Our designers have developed hundreds of small-business websites and we make the process simple. Contact us for pricing and a free consultation today."
Do you see that not a single "you" is used? The site visitor is never addressed. It's all about the company. Now let's change it to be about the customer:
"ABC Web Design is dedicated to your success, promising high levels of customer service and communication. You'll be kept up to date — on a one-to-one basis — about the progress of your project. Relying on years of experience, your web designer makes the creation process simple, guiding you through every step. Contact us for pricing and a free consultation today."
Here's another example:
"We have the finest contractors in the marketplace today. Our kitchen experts have been recruited from the most successful companies. XYZ Kitchen Remodeling Company of Kalamazoo has the support of a large network that has over 300 reliable and professional kitchen remodeling contractors serving most of North America."
Here's the rewrite:
"When you want to work with the finest contractors in the marketplace, XYZ Kitchen Remodeling Company of Kalamazoo answers the call. Not only will you benefit from using experienced kitchen experts, your renovation is backed by the support of the largest network of kitchen remodelers. That gives you the knowledge and skills of over 300 reliable, professional kitchen remodeling contractors in North America."
See the difference? Is it a sin to use the words "us" or "our"? Certainly not, but your copy should be weighted far more heavily with customer-oriented words than company-focused ones. Tell visitors about your service, your results and your experience. But do so in a way that makes them and their success the center of the copy.
When you keep the focus on your company, you prevent your target customer from knowing the benefits they'll reap after working with you. However, when you adjust your focus, you shine a bright light helping visitors to quickly see why you're the best choice for them.
Karon Thackston
Marketing Words
[Jill's comment: You might also be interested in FutureNow's "We We Calculator," which measures your copy for customer focus vs. company focus.]
Share your comments and thoughts here.
Twitter Question of the Week ++Will you care if Google turns off toolbar PR?++
This week's Twitter question was:
"If/when Google turns off Toolbar PR, will you care? Why/why not?"
joehall "No I won't because it's a pointless metric."
Matt_Siltala "I don't care now, so I won't care then!"
yankeerudy "Losing the Google Toolbar PR will make one less thing I have to waste time explaining to clients. Won't be sad at all."
chiropractic "I won't care, stopped relying on it, have seen enough sites with decreased PR increase in rankings and traffic."
JulieJoyce "I'll only care because my clients will fuss. I don't think it's useful. They do, despite our efforts."
DavidWallace "I uninstalled Google toolbar some time ago but either way, I'll be glad to see it go. So many other metrics to use."
FPMarcil "I won't care for SEO, but I do care for transparency reasons. Google should be more transparent, not less."
portentint "I will thank the gods & all that is good in the world."
AlanBleiweiss "I already don't care. 1. It's never been current. 2. PR is the wrong thing to focus on."
netmeg "No, won't care, haven't looked at it in months if not years. PR not on my radar for a long time."
SebastianX "Since a while now I enjoy surfing with Chrome that totally lacks green pixel entertainment. I certainly don't miss visible TBPR."
brettpringle "Can't wait for Google to turn off TBPR, good riddance :)"
davematson "Not a big deal, but will miss the small comfort in seeing even a PR1 on my sites."
trevox "No I won't care. It's no substitute for proper analysis. Toolbars too easily cluttered with add-ons anyway. Dislike 'em."
Interestingly enough, and unlike most of my colleagues who tweeted, I will actually miss the little green bar if and when it goes. Surprised? My reason is that, while it's not a good indication of actual PageRank, it can sometimes point out site architecture problems on websites. You do have to take it with a grain of salt, but it's a starting point of something to look at when a particular page of a site isn't getting indexed at all.
Want to participate in the Twitter Question of the Week?
Follow @jillwhalen on Twitter.
Share your comments and thoughts here.
Stuff You Might Like ++20% Off All Karon Thackston Marketing Books!++
For a very limited time (until 10/30/09 at Midnight EST), Karon Thackston is offering HRA subscribers a 20% discount on any of her copywriting and marketing books and courses.
Simply enter hra1030 into the "Coupon" field as you place your order and your 20% discount will be automatically calculated.
Advanced Forum Thread of the Week ++SEO Best Principles for Local Service++
Forum member "Purple3" asked about the best way to write your website copy when you're focusing on a local geographic area, such as for a dentist.
See the responses or share your own comments here:
SEO Best Principles for Local Service
Advisor Wrap-up
That's all for today!
Our last SEO class for 2009 went well last week. We'll be posting next year's schedule sometime over the next few months. Be sure to check back if you're interested in this sort of in-depth, personalized SEO training.
Catch you in 2 weeks! – Jill
 Today's issue is also available online in the newsletter archives. If you prefer RSS/XML please feel free to use our newsfeed here. Feel free to forward this email in its entirety to anyone you feel might be interested in it. Paid sponsor ads are clearly marked as advertisements and neither High Rankings nor Jill Whalen take any responsibility for the claims made within these ads, nor the websites they point to. Paid ads do not constitute an endorsement for the products, services or companies advertising in the newsletter. Please visit our sponsors and use your own due diligence for any purchases you make on the Internet.
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