10 ways to write really bad web copy

Emily Hill // February 9, 2012

1. Use the words “we” and “our” instead of “you” and “your”.
2. Waffle on about “providing a top class service” without actually spelling out what you do.
3. Don’t bother to include keywords in your titles, copy and anchor text.
4. Put fake testimonials on your home page (or anywhere, for that matter).
5. Add unnecessary text just to stuff it full of keywords.
6. Make spelling mistakes.
7. Concentrate on your competitors’ flaws rather than your company’s attributes.
8. Use elaborate words and long sentences just to try and sound clever.
9. Put your most helpful articles and advice behind a log-in screen.
10. Design your website so your users can’t easily navigate from one piece of information to another.

Posted in Web Copywriting | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

A matter of course: Digital marketing comes of age

Jonathan Woolley // February 9, 2012

Digital marketing used to be the junior partner to print, film and product placement. In the days of pop-ups and spam emails, the marketing channelled through the internet and other digital media seemed to be more of an irritation than a useful tool for reaching consumers and managing a brand’s image.

How things have changed. With the current ubiquity of social media and the constant invention of new and exciting technologies, there are far more potential channels to reach new and existing customers than there ever used to be in the past. As a consequence, marketing has become ever better integrated with our virtual lives, and thus far more effective. A recent report published by Econsultancy and SAS reveals that in 2011 72% of companies surveyed increased their digital marketing budgets, in comparison to only 26% increasing offline investment that year. But the same report also indicates that companies are feeling less able to perceive the ROI digital marketing provides in this brave new world. As the digital sector of the industry grows and matures, greater expertise and specialist training will be required.

The Leicester Business School at De Montfort University has responded to this demand with the creation of a new undergraduate course – the BA (Hons) Digital Marketing and Social Media. Incorporating elements of social media management, interactive marketing, online customer engagement analysis and online media design, the intent is that this course will give a new generation of young people a head start in this high-growth part of the sector, providing them with a diverse online portfolio that can be shown to prospective employers upon graduation. The three-year course is the first to combine both social media and digital marketing into a single honours degree, and can be extended to four years if students opt to take a 12 month industrial placement in addition to their academic programme of study.

Industrial involvement does not end with placement schemes. The course content has been designed in collaboration with IBM and has the backing of the award-winning Rabbit Agency, which specialises in social media. Peter Jakob, IBM UK and Ireland Brand Manager, argues that “customers are sharing their experiences widely online, giving them more control and influence over brands … The skills that the Digital Marketing and Social Media degree will offer are exactly the type of new competitive skills that marketers need.” The emphasis on social media is further warranted, as Derek Singer of the Rabbit Agency says, because “social media marketing has matured to an extent where there is a real need for a course like this that matches the theory with hands-on experience.”

As the marketing industry is waking up to the full potential of these new avenues of communication, they are looking to universities to fill the knowledge gap. The appearance of courses such as this is proof of how digital marketing, particularly through social media, is coming into its own.

Posted in Digital Marketing, Social Media | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

ASA ruling against TripAdvisor highlights perils of user-generated content

Emily Hill // February 7, 2012

The easy circulation of information provided by the internet has lead to the meteoric rise of user-generated content, or UGC, in recent years. Inspired by its early and successful adoption by social networking sites such as YouTube and Facebook, a great many businesses have been set up to draw on the opinions and creativity of ordinary members of the public to produce reviews of goods and services on behalf of other consumers.

This model has many advantages – not only is it cheaper for ratings sites to rely on copy produced on a voluntarily basis; it also provides small businesses with affordable publicity and puts power into the hands of consumers. But there are significant challenges posed by such a system – critically, the question of how to prevent users from contributing inaccurate or malicious content.

It is because of this issue that the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has recently ruled against TripAdvisor; a UK-based company that uses UGC to provide online reviews of hotels, flights, restaurants and other holiday facilities around the world. According to the ASA, TripAdvisor cannot claim that its reviews can be “trusted”, because it cannot verify their accuracy.

The ASA began investigating TripAdvisor after complaints were lodged against it by two hotels and the online reputation firm Kwikchex, alleging that the reviews hosted on the site were misleading.

In response, TripAdvisor contested it had a sophisticated anti-fraud system in place, drawing on both users and professional editors to identify and remove fake reviews. Although the ASA acknowledged this, it nevertheless felt that this system was not
effective enough to provide sufficient protection against fraudulent contributions from the some 50 million users of the site.

Matthew Wilson, the ASA’s spokesman, announced: “This should be regarded as a benchmark ruling which applies to all web sites which make claims about the reliability of their user-created content.” From statements such as these, the scope of this judgement is clear. As ASA chief executive Guy Parker put it: “Advertisers must apply the same scrutiny to their websites as they do to their campaigns in paid-for space. And don’t major on trustworthiness if fake reviews can appear.”

Here are some key points to consider about user-generated content:

• Be pragmatic: UGC is not a magic bullet – it has limitations. It’s worth thinking carefully about whether it suits your circumstances before going down this path.

• Be pro-active: Putting in place of measures that correct or adjust for the presence of malicious or deceitful copy is vital. Businesses must be prepared to manage their online profiles pro-actively, whilst advertisers must take care to police the contributions of their user-base.

• Raise awareness: As with all types of marketing, awareness is fundamental. It is important to be honest about the possibility of inaccurate, or even blatantly false, contributions.

Posted in Digital Marketing, Web Copywriting | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

A diamanté watch that will sparkle all day and all night – how to write a product description

Emily Hill // January 9, 2012

E-retailers frequently have long lists of product that tell the potential customer technical specifications and price with very little zest in the descriptions.

Writing product descriptions is an art that can help to boost online sales but in a hundred words(which tends to be what writers get) how can you maximise the impact of your prose?

Here are five ideas for attracting the eye of browsing customers to your lines:

Accurate – The description must accurately enumerate the characteristics and qualities of the item being described whether it’s a camera or a cushion. But there’s a world of difference between merely stating that something is red (for example) and using more exact words. Is the product magenta, scarlet, crimson, red as a rose? Does the metal of which a waste bin is made have the appearance of silver, tin, bronze or gold? Search for the exact word. A thesaurus can be useful here.

Imaginative – This shows not merely in the choice of nouns, adjectives and verbs, but also in the use of exciting contemporary references. This is where wide acquaintance with contemporary culture is useful.  Does a given piece of clothing remind you of something Marilyn Munroe might wear? Then refer to the film ‘My Week with Marilyn’. Look at any pictures and see what comes to mind as you dream a little.

Targeted – While it’s great to be imaginative, as stated above, bear in mind who the product is for. If it’s comfortable walking shoes there’s no point in referencing Lady Gaga. Judi Dench might be more appropriate. On the other hand,  a product such as  apiece of jewellery might be made to appeal to a young woman and her boyfriend who wants to buy her  a present.
Amusing – if we laugh we are in a good mood and maybe more likely to buy.  Gentle humour could be useful, but no irony at the expense of the product. This will undermine your message and displease the client. Your job is to attract buyers through your description. Take your tone from your client’s website.

Truthful – Last but not least, go back to the manufacturer’s or retailer’s description and check that you have not made any unjustified claims. Imagination is one thing. Lies are something else altogether. Phrases such as ‘has the appearance of’ and ‘puts one in mind of’ are useful here.

So write with pleasure next time you describe the funky, turquoise, viridian, gold, midnight black and scarlet hat that might grace the head of the Duchess of Cambridge at the 2012 Olympics.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Breaking news to get views

Emily Hill // January 3, 2012

It might be tempting to put successful blogging down to luck, rather than hard work. But as previous posts on our blog have pointed out, there are a vast number of things you can do to increase traffic and to reach the right readership. It’s all the gentle art of blog management.

In the fast-moving world of up-to-the-second information and 24-hour searching that is the internet, fate can sometimes present opportunities for the switched-on social media user.

Writing an article or tweeting as quickly as possible after a press-release by an industry leader or a legal ruling that impacts your sector can get you many times more views than you might otherwise receive, simply because clients, consumers or competitors will all be simultaneously searching for information on this new turn of events. If they find a well-written piece of analysis or a great synopsis of the key issues when they find your post, they’ll keep coming back in future.

Although posting on a breaking story is, to a certain extent, dependent on whether or not you happen to be within arm’s reach of a keyboard at the right moment, here’s a couple of practical steps you can take to make sure you are best placed to seize such opportunities when they arise.

•    Don’t wait on a piece of news. If you hear about something of interest in the real world, then it’s worth putting it online as soon as you possibly can. If you’re in a hurry, tweet it; as soon as you’ve got more time, post on your blog.

•    Fact-checking is key, as is putting together insightful comment, but don’t let these important considerations prevent you from seizing the initiative. If you’ve only heard rumours about some earth-shattering development, then say so. The hypothetical can be just as interesting to your readers as the actual – just be honest about which is which.

•    If you get more information, don’t be shy about posting updates and clarifications. If you’re interested, your readers will be interested.

•    If you do get something wrong – easily done, if you’re writing up-to-the-second – admit to it. Correcting yourself demonstrates your own commitment to giving your readers the right information, and is far better than paying no heed to changes in the story as it unfolds. Otherwise, you’ll risk looking out of touch and dishonest.

•    You don’t need to be the first person to write about something to get a share of the buzz. A diverse and regularly updated RSS feed and a well-populated list of twitter accounts to follow can be incredible tools for making relevant posts on trending topics.

Posted in Social Media | Tagged , , | Leave a comment