Content, bloody content

A website is kinda boring without content.

The semantic web has no meaning without meaningful content.

So why is content the last thing people think about when they are planning a website?

It may be because people assume that the web is a visual medium and think visually about what they want. The boring words can always be grabbed from the company brochures, the tender documents, the introduction letters.

This is why most small Australian websites have a bounce rate higher than 50%.

People do not watch a website like they blindly watch the TV, YouTube excepted, although even YouTube requires an average 2 minute concentration span. People read a website, they read headings, sub-headings, lists, paragraphs and navigation. They gaze over banners and quickly discern which information will take them somewhere and which is trying to sell them something.

People are smart about how they use a website.

This is why every small web-team should include a copywriter in addition to a designer and a coder.

Someone needs to be responsible for creating what the website says and how it says it. This person needs to be an expert about how people read and interact online.

The advertising world has worked like this for years. A copywriter will work with a creative designer and they will create the message, the concept which will have us rushing to the shop, wallets open.

So there should be as many copywriters as designers out there all pitching for work. And every designer should have a copywriting buddy.

Oh and lastly the copywriter should have a deep understanding about search marketing. But that’s another blog.