You've invested countless hours and spent serious money designing a Web site that makes your company look good. If only you put the same time and money into writing the content for your site.

Most Web sites fail to achieve their goals not because they don't look good, but because they are poorly written. Bad writing translates into a poor corporate image, lost sales, and the likelihood that your Web visitor won't return.

So how do you prevent this from happening to your company?

Easy. Learn what experienced Web writers have discovered over the years. In particular, if you follow these five keys you will be well on your way to writing effective Web copy:

1. Put the customer first

2. Use simple words and short sentences

3. Use jargon only when appropriate

4. Write with verbs and nouns

5. Format to improve readability

Key #1: Put the customer first

You know you have a great company that offers great products and services. Your natural inclination is to tell your potential customers all about who you are and what you do. The problem? You are so wrapped up in trying to communicate everything about your company that you lose track of the customer. The customer has come to your Web site for a reason: to solve a problem or fulfill a need.

Help them. Put their needs ahead of your own.

Show them how your products or service can solve their problem. As you learned in Marketing 101, emphasize benefits over features. Show customers WIIFM (What's in it for me?).

For example, go beyond saying that your state-of-the art accounting software was designed for scalability (a feature), tell customers that your software reduces can reduce a growing business's accounting costs by several thousand dollars a year because they won't have to purchase additional software (a benefit).

Key #2: Use simple words and short sentences

You're smart. You probably graduated from college and maybe earned a masters or doctorate degree. Consciously or subconsciously, you want people to know this. So you write Web copy that looks something like this:

We support you in creating an endurable vision and work with you to develop an effective strategic process that ensures successful implementation of your strategic objectives. As buy-in is paramount to the success of any strategy, we apply leading edge processes that enable consensus to be reached throughout the organization. And we assist you in implementing a governance structure that is aligned with your strategic needs.

I'm not a 100 percent sure what this means, but I think they are trying to say this:

We help you create a strategic plan that will achieve your long-term goals. We also ensure that your management team and employees understand and support this plan and that your team is properly organized to meet your goals.

The point is to make your copy easy to understand, even when you are writin

g about relatively sophisticated topics.

Key #3: Use jargon only when appropriate

Webster's defines jargon as "the technical terminology or characteristic idiom of a special activity or group.” All of use jargon to some extent in our work. When it comes to your Web site, however, be careful. If you have a business-to-business Web site and you customer knows what a "three-eighths-inch, three-chip HD camera” is, then by all means use this jargon. But if you are communicating to an audience that doesn't have any idea about what this means, then tell them that "their video image will be rich enough to be featured on broadcast television or a feature movie.”

Key #4: Write with verbs and nouns

The inexperienced writer overuses adverbs and adjectives. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives modify nouns. They are not bad when used properly. But too often a writer will pack a bunch of adjectives and adverbs into a sentence, robbing it of its force and vitality. Take a look:

Bad

Our time-tested, economical, and value-added service will promptly and assuredly provide satisfaction for you and your customers.

Better

Our proven and affordable service will keep you and your customers happy.

Even better

With our service your customers will save money … and so will you.

Cut out the deadwood of adverbs and adjectives and inject life into your copy.

Key #5: Format your Web copy to improve readability

This may be the most important key of all. Writing for the Web is not like writing for print. Here's why:

Web reader don't read word for word

Web readers skim and scan

Web readers are on the hunt—they're looking for something specific and want to find it quickly

Web readers are ready to click their way to the next site if they don't find what they're looking for on your site.

Help your reader out by using formatting that is easy to scan and that directs them to the information they need. You can do this by using:

· Headings and subheadings

· Bulleted or numbered lists

· Charts and tables

· Bold and italicized text (but don't overdo it)

Break up long stretches of text by applying formatting that is easier for your reader to follow. As a guideline, I suggest that no stretch of straight text be longer than 100 to 150 words. If you do this you will give your Web site a fighting chance with the impatient Web reader.

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