Websites have two audiences: human visitors and search engine crawlers. Websites have to be search engine friendly while being judged by people in seconds. The key to reaching both audiences simultaneously is well written content.
Interactive elements such as Flash movies give website designers tools that can make a good first impression and establish the validity and trustworthiness of a website, and well written content builds on that relationship. Well written content turns passive browsers into returning customers. Whether searching for information or particular products, the content can make or break a website, and turn visitors from one-timers to regular customers.
Good content also aids in the search engine friendliness of a website. As crawlers get more sophisticated with the incorporation of Latent Semantic Indexing elements and Latent Semantic Analysis, the way in which words are strung together in sentences has a significant impact on search engine rankings. This means that search engine crawlers pay attention to the word construction surrounding keywords, and look for relations between keywords and concepts that play a crucial role in determining website rankings.
Here are some simple guidelines for well written content that will improve your search engine rankings and keep visitors coming back:
Grammar matters. Nothing ruins Web content more than poor grammar. Grammatical errors such as comma splices, incorrect word usage, ending sentences with prepositions and poor sentence structure destroy the credibility already established through Web graphics and interactive elements. Grammatical errors also hurt search engine rankings as the relation between keywords and concepts is unclear.
Use the Inverted Pyramid. Put the most important information first so it is in front of visitors as soon as they visit a Web page. With just seconds to make an impression, using the inverted pyramid enhances the trust and credibility already established by the look and feel of your website.
Be concise. Use only the words necessary to describe your services and products. Keep the sentence construction simple, vigorous, lucid and brief. Long descriptions can bore the reader and run the risk of providing too much information to search engine crawlers that cause your website to appear for irrelevant keywords.
Make important information stand out. Use bullet points, numbered lists, bold type and quotations to draw attention to the more important aspects of your products and services. This in turn will also demonstrate the importance of these words and phrases to search engine crawlers.
Write with style and professionalism. The Internet has torn down the walls of formal writing, allowing for acceptance of more informal yet professional writing. Web content that is engaging, informative and simple keeps visitors returning to your website.
Use the Inverted Pyramid. Put the most important information first so it is in front of visitors as soon as they visit a Web page. With just seconds to make an impression, using the inverted pyramid enhances the trust and credibility already established by the look and feel of your website.
Be concise. Use only the words necessary to describe your services and products. Keep the sentence construction simple, vigorous, lucid and brief. Long descriptions can bore the reader and run the risk of providing too much information to search engine crawlers that cause your website to appear for irrelevant keywords.
Make important information stand out. Use bullet points, numbered lists, bold type and quotations to draw attention to the more important aspects of your products and services. This in turn will also demonstrate the importance of these words and phrases to search engine crawlers.
Write with style and professionalism. The Internet has torn down the walls of formal writing, allowing for acceptance of more informal yet professional writing. Web content that is engaging, informative and simple keeps visitors returning to your website.
These guidelines will help you create well written content to turn one-timers into returning visitors and repeat customers while improving your rankings in search engines. Improved search engine rankings mean more opportunities to change one-time visitors into repeat visitors and customers which further strengthen your bottom line.
