Dear Business Owner,
I know you’re busy, but I thought I’d write you a quick letter.
Why a letter? Well, I thought a letter would be the best way to show you a powerful way to improve your website’s performance. You don’t need any special skills to use the ideas you’re about to discover. You just need to be… you.
I’m writing this while I’m sat at my kitchen table with a cup of fresh coffee. It’s raining hard outside, but it’s cosy in my kitchen. My dog will vouch for that (once he wakes up).
Are you wondering why I’m telling you this?
It’s because I want to show you there is a real person behind the words you’re reading. You’ve just imagined me writing this and (like it or not) you’re more connected with me as a result.
And that’s exactly what you should be doing with your website content.
Show the people that come to your site that you, too, are real. You may run a company that doesn’t have hopes and fears, but you do, and so do all the people that work for you. And yes, you guessed it – so do the visitors to your website.
So what does this mean in practical terms?
Be authentic
Don’t try to be something you’re not. If you’re small, don’t pretend that you’re big. Being honest about who you are is simply smart business. Your customers will see through this mask anyway, so why set the relationship off on the wrong foot? Don’t be afraid to show some personality. Don’t be afraid to be you.
Write like you talk
There are all these conversations going on around you, between your staff and your customers, listen to them – they’re real people talking like real people do. This is the tone you need for your website.
How would you describe your business to your mate down the pub? How would you talk about your service to the customer that walks through your door? Now why should your website be any different? (Hint: writing is just a different name for conversation.)
Use real words
Don’t use acronyms, jargon and cliches. Avoid the use of phrases that have no real meaning any more: solutions, development, benchmarking, best practice, cutting edge and so on. People don’t speak these words in everyday language. So why use them?
What effect will all this have on your website?
You’ll sound original. You’ll sound human. Your customers will appreciate the lighter touch and they’ll connect with you much more than before.
By being yourself – by being real – you have lifted your website content above the vast majority of your competitors and that, my friend, is a competitive advantage.
Yours faithfully
Adam
