7 Common Copywriting Mistakes to Avoid (Good Copy Vs. Bad Copy)
As a small business owner or entrepreneur, you may be currently attempting to write your own copy.
While yes, of course you can choose to write your own copy instead of hiring a professional copywriter. However, there are things to keep in mind.
While writing may seem like a small task anyone can pull off with perfection, that's not always the case when it comes to copywriting.
Not to mention the mistakes you run the risk of making and how they can hurt your business. Things you may not even realize are mistakes, can hurt your conversion rates, turn potential customers away, and cost you greatly.
You want your words to work for you, not against you! And I want that for you too!
Which is why in today’s article I'm going to share with you the 7 common mistakes to avoid when writing your own copy, and how to fix them.
Technically, this can apply to writing copy for just about anything. Email, social media, direct mail, etc. However, I am going to focus mainly on writing copy for your website.
Well, without further ado, let’s get into it!
1. Making It All About You
Something big to avoid, is focusing the core of your copy on *you*. Or rather, how amazing your business is, or how qualified you are, instead of directing the focus on your target audience. While yes, you know your business is amazing, you’re proud, and want to tell the world all about it. I don't blame you! But there’s a right and a wrong way to do this...
When writing about your business, along with your products or services, you need to know exactly who your target audience is. Then, put yourself in their shoes and mindset.
Ask yourself these question:
What is the common age, gender, interests, etc., of my target audience?
What does the life of my target audience look like? What does their life look like before and after purchasing my product or service?
What is my target audience in need of or struggling with? How can my product or service solve this for them?
You get the idea. Your words should be speaking the language of your target audience.
It should come from their unique perspective.
They should be able to envision how your product or service is going to improve their life, or how it’s going to solves their problems.
They need to know what the *benefit* is if they go with you over your competitor.
They should be able to feel the emotion that goes beyond your product or service.
They should be thinking, "they get me! I need what they have!".
Think of yourself for example. We are emotional, visual creatures, and most of the time we act off that emotion. We want to feel seen, heard, and safe.
So, if you were a potential customer that landed on your website, what would you want to hear? What would you relate to? What would convince you?
2. Being Cold Instead of Conversational
Think of writing to your potential customers as if you're having a conversation with a friend over coffee.
While you may know all the technical ins and outs of your business, odds are your customers don’t.
Keeping your copy friendly and conversational is key. You want your copy to be written in a way that anyone who reads it will understand it and know what you're selling. You also want to come across relatable, rather than a robot.
Every business has its own unique personality, voice, and beliefs. So, the words surrounding your business should reflect that. You should be representing your brand as if it were a real person.
Using buzz words, or cold, stiff, technical speech, is just boring and stand offish. It's not welcoming or exciting to the customers you want to work with.
Let me also add that your business doesn’t have to be something fun, cute, and colorful to achieve this. You can be a business that sells healthcare products, or online courses. It doesn’t matter... it’s all simply in the way you say it.
Staying true to your unique brand while simultaneously keeping it friendly and down to earth, is the key.
3. Writing Your Copy Before Mapping Out Your Goals
When taking a road trip, you would never jump in your car and hit the road before knowing exactly where you wanted to go, would you?
Well, it's the same with writing your copy. Before you ever start writing, you must have all your goals in mind. You must map out and know exactly what you want to achieve from the copy you’re writing.
Whether you’re writing for your website, email, or social media. You should first know what your business goals are, who your target audience is, what action you want them to take, etc.
Without having your goals mapped out, your copy is not going to be set up correctly to accomplish what it is you want.
Let's say for example you're writing copy for your sales page. Make a list of questions similar to this:
What are the immediate goals I want this sales page to achieve?
What are the long-term goals I want this sales page to achieve?
Who is my target audience? What are they hoping to see when they land on my sales page?
What is the main benefit I want to get across to my target audience? What problem will my offer solve for them?
What is the main action I want my target audience to take when they arrive on my sales page? (sign up for my email list, purchase one of my products or services, sign up for my online course, etc.)
You get the idea!
4. Neglecting Your SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
When you optimize for SEO (search engine optimization) you're showing google that your copy/content is valuable to your target audience. This is the key to improving your online ranking, and increasing organic traffic to your website, blog, social media, etc.
Neglecting SEO means your website will not show up anywhere near page one of google, and your target audience will have a hard time finding you.
Studies show that 75% of people never go past the first page of google. So, of course you want to do everything you can to be on that first page.
Don't risk losing your dream clients to your top ranking competitors!
If you don't know how to properly apply SEO to your copy, I suggest hiring a copywriter that is proficient in SEO to help you out.
Or, if you want to do more research on SEO and take the time to learn it for yourself, go for it!
Because when it comes to growing your business and long-term success, SEO plays a huge part in that.
If you're completely new to the idea of SEO and how it works, I suggest checking out my other blog article where I break down SEO for beginners.
5. Forgetting Your Call To Action (CTA)
It may seem obvious, adding a call to action (CTA) on your website, social media, or email copy. But are you doing it the right way? People want convenience more than anything these days. Which means always leaving a clear trail of CTA's for them to follow.
Let's say you're writing copy for your website, there are three rules you should always remember.
Always put a CTA button above the fold. Meaning as soon as someone lands on any page of your site they should see a clear CTA. Typically, the most common CTA's placed above the fold would be encouraging them to contact you or view your services/products.
You should have a CTA every three to four scrolls. As your reader scrolls they should never be guessing what action to take next.
The way you write your CTA has a big impact on your conversion rates. You want to be clear, but try adding a bit of urgency when it makes sense, or simply spice up your wording. For example, instead of saying "contact me" try saying "let's get started" or "get in touch". It's statistically proven that these minor changes in wording go a long way.
6. Not Following the "F-Pattern"
The F-pattern was first discovered by the Nielsen Norman Group in 2006, and is still just as relevant today. The F-pattern is the way in which people generally read content online. Studies have proven that most people read in an F shaped pattern. They will start reading horizontally, then begin skimming down the left side of the page, reading less and less. Therefore making an F shape. (I never realized this before but start paying attention to the way you read someones website, because it's true!)
So, keeping that in mind, this plays a big role in how you should be writing your copy of course!
You should always be writing your most important copy at the top of the page. Then your second most important copy in the next line, and so on.
People are skim readers naturally -I know I am too if i'm being honest-. So, your copy should be designed to hook people in with your first line. And keep them continually engaged with your second, third, fourth... you get the picture.
Check out the actual heatmaps from the eye tracking study done by the Nielsen Norman Group below. The red shows where people read the most. The yellow shows where people read less. While the blue shows where people read the least. As you can probably tell it really does resemble the shape of an F!
So, clearly this is very important stuff to keep in mind when writing your copy, it could take you a long way.
7. Poorly Editing Your Copy
If you do decide to write your own copy, you must take the time to read through a handful of times to check for grammar, spelling, and the overall flow of your copy.
You should try reading it out loud to make sure it flows naturally and makes sense. You could also ask a friend or colleague to do so for you, to have an extra set of eyes.
Sometimes staring at your finished writing for too long and reading it over and over, can start to make it sound off in your mind (and make you go a little crazy). So, you might want to try giving your mind a break by stepping away from your copy for a little while. Then, come back and read it again when your mind is fresh.
Minor errors are bound to happen here and there... we’re human... we may miss things. But catching these things as much as we can before it's made public is so important.
If you set your copy free into the world with spelling and grammar errors, or if it simply doesn’t flow, people are going to take note of that.
They may feel skeptical about your business and the quality of your products or services. You must make a good first impression and build trust with your target audience. Having poor copy surround your business can unfortunately create long-term damage.
Ending Thoughts...
The words surrounding your business can either make or break your success. It's so true and so important to remember this. The way your copy is structured. The way you apply SEO throughout your copy. The way in which you write to your target audience. All of this and more is the key to writing good copy that sells without sounding 'salesy'.
If your copy isn't working for you to effortlessly attract your dream clients and make you sales, it's working against you... simple as that.
Maybe you're thinking to yourself, "I'm not a write" or "I hate writing" or "I simply don't have the time or energy to put in this amount of effort and working into writing my own copy, but I still want it done right" .
Well friend... don't worry! Lots of people feel the same way. Which is why those people hiring a copywriter to write killer copy for them.
Spoiler alert... I myself am a copywriter if ya haven't guessed already. So, if you're wondering if hiring a copywriter is worth it and right for you, check out my blog article where I break down the many benefits of working with a copywriter. Am I biased on the matter considering I'm a copywriter? Well, probably, but it doesn't make the facts any less true!
Either way friend, If you've decided to write your own copy, then I sincerely hope you found this article helpful and hope your copy turns out amazing and brings you all the success you deserve!
If you don't already know me...
Hi, I'm Christa! A freelance copywriter who specializes in writing copy for small business owners and others alike. So, if you're searching around for a copywriter, feel free to browse around my website and learn more about me and what I offer.
Or you can simply check these out as well…
My blog - If you liked this article then you can find more just like this on my blog page.
My services - Feel free to snoop. I specialize in writing copy for websites, social media, and content for blogs. But I'm open to client requests as well.
And for my fellow writers out there who are also interested in becoming a copywriter, view the article I wrote about the amazing, in-depth copywriting course I took that kick started my career as a copywriter (you can thank me later, well… only if ya want).