Writing website content, why is it so difficult?

Suddenly it’s on your plate, an “about us” page is needed and you get to write the website text. Feeling overwhelmed already? You’re definitely not alone! It’s quite something when you have to write the second most important page of a website. A Google search and a look at the competition give you an idea of what exactly is expected of you and you start typing. You’re not alone in this either, but this is precisely why many companies place meaningless texts, full of buzzwords, on their websites. And which customer is convinced by that? We discuss the most common pitfalls, how to avoid them, and then how to write truly remarkable texts.

Every organization is unique, the text on the website must reflect this. But there is always organizational blindness, so from the inside you actually don’t see what makes you unique. Instead, we often choose what we see as the safest route: mediocrity. What are the pitfalls that lead to this? And how can you write a remarkable website text? We’re happy to list them for you:

The most important pitfalls when writing website text

You don’t know how to tell what makes you unique – Often the core of the problem. To avoid this problem, you start using so-called buzzwords like customer-oriented, reliability, and result-driven. Sounds good, until you look at the competition and see exactly the same list. First determine which story truly shows what makes you unique!

You copy, consciously or unconsciously, the competition – Actually, you don’t really know how to write a text, but you do it anyway because it’s expected. Often you end up with a result that is basically a copy of the competition. In your head, you think: “they probably know what they’re doing.” Often, this is not even true!
Inactive or too formal language – “We would gladly assist you if” versus “We solve this problem for you with pleasure.” It’s just an example, but if you’re already inactive on the website, what happens when I sit down with you? Keep It Simple! Use words you also use in daily practice and be as clear as possible.
You have no idea who you’re writing this for – Why are you actually writing this? Who should understand and remember what is written here? Are these your current customers, colleagues, suppliers, or potential new customers? It makes quite a difference who you write a piece for, so think about that first.

So how do you come up with a compelling text that truly shows what your organization stands for and invites contact? Actually, you can just do the opposite of what’s stated above:

Step 1: Think about what makes you unique.
Start with a short story or a list. The acid test? Put the competitor’s name above it and see if it still fits. If it does, start over.
Step 2: Who are you writing this for?
If you don’t know who you’re writing for, you don’t know which tone, word choice, or structure to use. Think about this until you really understand who you’re talking to.
Step 3: Write the text
Now you can start writing the website text.

You know what makes you unique and who you’re trying to convince. You have talked to enough people about your organization to know what they really want to know. Write that down.

With this piece, we briefly addressed what really makes writing a text for a website difficult and what you can do about it. These seem like simple tips, but in practice it often proves difficult to give a good answer to these questions. So feel challenged, at least we hope we have made you think.

In our In practice: Writing website text we cover everything involved, check out the first post for the previously discussed topics. Next week we’ll tell you which texts should definitely be on your website.

If you want to talk further with us after reading this piece we’d love to hear from you.