That's copywriting, not content writing. Content writing educates and does not have a call to action that involves buying anything. Although, the two can merge into something I like to call copytent writing (that's a joke, kids)...which is still copywriting but with a more educational slant.
Telling's not selling, always be closing. Fact is, your content -- articles, etc, is a big part of your sales process. The content talks about a problem or how to solve a problem and low and behold your product does just that. You giveaway a few clues, but they need your product in order to solve the puzzle.
1. keyword density - 3-4% 2. A professional article should be in the following format: Summary Intro Body - with subheadlines Conclusion.
Quality is most important thing, however font size and other stuffs do matter as these things show how professional/perfectionist you are.
Font size and style mean nothing.. When you put content into a website the site is already set to display a certain font and size. The most important thing in web content is it needs to have real content and keywords. Not keywords as in the same word over and over (this is useless garbage). Keywords as in useful content. For example a useful article on skateboards Skateboards have a basic design first you have the deck, the best highest quality decks are usually created out of durable plywood and made to withstand lots of use. Next you have trucks these are what hold the wheels and bearings on a skateboard… Keywords- Skateboard, deck, best, plywood, trucks, wheels, bearings, This gives you real keywords that people use, it also give the reader useful info. A bad article- Skateboarding can be fun and give you good exercise there is nothing more rewarding then a good day of skateboarding, so next time you are at the store look for a skateboard to buy. Skateboarding can be fun for the entire family… Keywords- Skateboard… the rest Garbage… And it gives the reader no useful info and google will know it is garbage and it will never rank and if it does rank for skateboard with backlinks it will fall off the page soon. **Yes the grammar is bad.. this is just a content example Not a grammar example.**
I feel as though the basics of good content writing are just using good English and writing in a professional manner. Clients will be paying for copy and expect the best so there is no need to try and fancy any thing up. Simply write the precise way that they wish and you cannot go wrong. Good research skills are also vital for the odd times when you won't have any experience of what you are writing about.
here are some tips that might help you.. When writing for the web, use - shorter sentences, words and paragraphs - one idea per paragraph - concise text – half the word count (or less) than writing for print - the inverted pyramid style, putting the most important point or the conclusion first. - simple words - objective language to build credibility, rather than exaggerated claims or overly promotional words like “greatâ€, “tremendous†etc. - bulleted lists - highlighted text (bold or color, also hyperlinked text) for scannability - meaningful headlines and subheads, avoiding cute or clever lines Write better web content. Understand how people (don’t) read on the Web 1.Reading on the web is too much work! Reading from a computer screen tires the eyes. People read 25% more slowly on the web than they read print material.That’s why, web content has to be 50% shorter than print. 2.Readers on the Web scan text According to a study by usability expert Jacob Nielson, 79% of readers on the Web tend to scan or skim text rather than read word for word.Highlighted text (bold or color, also hyperlinked text) and bulleted lists aid scannability. 3.Readers on the Web are impatient Readers on the Web are in a hurry to get the information they want, and move on. They don’t have the patience for obscure and complex text. They don’t enjoy scrolling through masses of text either.Since there are millions of alternative websites in cyberspace, they will quickly move to another site if they don’t enjoy the information gathering experience on your site. Attracting attention and retaining reader interest is a challenge, specially as you have just 10 seconds to grab attention with your web site content 55 seconds to develop an understanding of your company or product Cheers, Josh
As others have stated, formatting rules are a matter of client preference. It is more important to ensure that the content itself is high quality and serves the purpose of selling the client's product/services/ideas. If you want a little more information, check out the article at Suite 101. http://freelancewriting.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_improve_at_web_copywriting