How to refresh your site content with minimum pain

1st December 2021 | Posted in Web content

Already got plenty of content, but it needs updating? That’s the story for many organisations.

As an established business you may easily have a website that you set up years ago. The content is still valid, but it may no longer be to today’s tastes.

What do I mean?

When websites were first created, they were often duplicates of what had already been available in brochures. And that meant a pretty formal approach. Customers and suppliers were referred to in the third person. We talked about the ‘data processing manager’, the ‘financial services organisation’, and ‘the recruitment consultancy’, for example.

That approach worked fine once, but now it not only seems a little stilted and not focused enough on the actual individual who is visiting the site.

Consistency is also something that can be lost over time, as various people contribute to the site in their own styles – even down to whether they ‘-ise’ or ‘ize’ in words like organise.

Bringing your content together with key messaging, similar page structures, and a consistent use of language are just a few of the ways to make your site look fresh, professional and easy to navigate.

So how can you fix this?

When you’ve lived with your content for a long time, it can be difficult to see yourself how to make these changes, and what a difference they can make. That’s why an external copywriter can help you by standing outside your business with a fresh pair of eyes, to check that your words are working hard for you.

Option 1: A long-term relationship with a good copywriter

An experienced copywriter can help you tweak your content to make it work better for today’s audience. Perhaps that’s changing the tone of voice to create more of a direct conversation with the reader, without losing the professional approach. Or it could be rewriting headings to give visitors clear reasons why they should read on. Or altering the flow a little so that potential customers are guided gently on the journey from landing to buying.

It doesn’t have to happen all at once. If you’ve got hundreds of pages of text, it’s going to take a while to assess and refresh your content. But build a long-term relationship with a copywriter you trust, and you can pace the change to suit everyone’s availability and budget.

Option 2: Ask a professional to train your own staff

If you regularly add content to your website, you may have given a member of your team the task.

Do they find it difficult? They may be familiar with the products and services you offer, as well as your content management system, but perhaps they struggle to get the words right?

If they’ve not learned the art of writing for marketing, they may be missing a few valuable tricks.

If you’ve already got a staff member earmarked for content writing, you could find they would benefit greatly from coaching from a professional. All those good things that a copywriter would do for your site can be taught to some extent.

Option 3: A bit of both

And why not?

Would you like some help with refreshing your business website? Drop me a line and we can talk.