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Every website has Web copy, Web content, or
both. That Web copy and content can help you to
earn money on its own, or can help you earn more
money than you’re currently making online.
First, it’s important to understand the difference
between Web content and Web copy.
Web content – Web content by its nature
either informs or entertains. Web content consists
of most articles on a website. Other forms of
content include photos, videos, and audio files.
Web content often is what an online business uses
to attract visitors to the site, even if indirectly.
Web copy – Web copy generally refers to
text on a website that is either trying to get
a response out of the reader or visitor, or that
works to forward the company’s message in
some way. Copy may encourage readers to buy something,
to sign up for something (such as an email newsletter),
or even to click on a specific link on your website.
Copy also includes things such as a company /
site slogan, and internal / company pages on a
website (about us, contact, media kit contents,
etc.), which goes towards portraying an image
that you want to convey to visitors.
So how can Web content and Web copy help you
make more money? Here’s how:
Web content – Many websites make the majority
(if not all) of their money online as a result
of Web content. Content networks (such as About.com,
owned by the New York Times Co.) are a large example,
while there are many smaller niche websites making
their money in a similar way. To make more money
online with Web content, use content to draw and
keep site visitors while finding ways to monetize
the website (such as including advertisements
or having a membership fee to view the Web content).
There are several keys to using Web content to
help you make more money online:
1. Only publish high quality Web content. High
quality Web content is a natural draw for readers,
is often well-optimized for the Web without much
extra SEO effort, and also naturally attracts
quality backlinks to your website (therefore helping
to increase search engine rankings, and its resulting
traffic, which is then monetized).
2. Publish Web content regularly. By posting
Web content on a regular basis, readers know when
to expect new content, and will get into the habit
of returning to your website. More traffic means
more monetization potential. While ideally you
should publish Web content both regularly and
frequently, even if you can only publish once
per week or once per month, schedule updates as
regularly as possible.
3. Publish Web content that people want to read.
Keyword research using tools such as Overture
and Wordtracker will help you find topics in your
niche that are heavily searched for. While quality
content doesn’t need to be stuffed with keywords
to rank well in search engines, it does need to
address a need of your target readers. If they’re
searching a great deal for specific information
in the niche, a need for Web content on that topic
may very well exist. Don’t forget to compare
highly searched keyword phrases with the number
of results for that same keyword phrase in search
engines to determine market saturation.
Web Copy – Copywriting for the Web is usually
designed with the sole purpose of turning website
visitors into buyers, repeat visitors, subscribers,
or whatever your aim is. A very common example
of Web copy would be an online sales letter used
to sell an e-book, often containing large bold
subheadings and flashy, colored copy with testimonials
and multiple chances to place an order.
Not all Web copy is filled with hype however.
Every online order page contains Web copy designed
to convince the customer to either buy more items
(such as being shown related items for sale before
you checkout) or to finish the order quickly before
you can change your mind. Every time you see a
guarantee, for example, the idea is to get you
to buy now, and think about it later.
Copywriting relies a great deal on psychology,
and understanding what buyers and website visitors
react to. Hiring a professional copywriter (or
even studying copywriting yourself before developing
your website or online business) can easily lead
to higher conversions from website visitors to
buyers, earning you more money online in the process.
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