The Great Google says you need at least 300 words on a page
Do you want to mess with the Great Google?
You do know that Google can’t actually READ anything.
It’s a computer. It just picks out words for search results.
It also says that topics require at least 300 words to have “authority.”
So if you have less than 300 words on a page, then you’re not telling Google that subject matter is important.
In Naomi Dunford’s newsletter today, she wrote: A Little Copywriting Advice: Sometimes, You Just Gotta Fill Space
Here’s what I really like about all of her letters:
- They have big type and lots of white space. (It looks almost the same on her website.)
- There are generally not a lot of pictures to distract me. Yes, I know that’s counter to everything you read about marketing. But clearly it works for some people in some instances.
- The letter is fun, really more like a letter from a friend and less like a marketing piece.
There’s always a good story.
People identify with and remember stories!
My regular advice to my kids, long ago, was this:
“No matter what happens, if you get a good story out of it, you’re good to go!”
Naomi’s story is always something that makes me like HER.
I want to have a drink with her, or have her stay over here. I’d even like to meet her son, Jack who I think is about 5 now. (I remember when he was born!) And I do NOT even like little kids.
What does this have to do with your website?
In my opinion, your website is for three things. You want people to Know, Like and Trust you. It pretty much has to be in that order.
- Let people KNOW, at least, what you look like. If you’re going to meet in person, it’s nice to have an idea of just who you’re looking for in the mall. And it’s nice to know that the person you’re thinking of hiring shares somethings in common with you.
- Share something about yourself so that people will LIKE you. Let visitors to your site know something about your history, or what made you decide to do what you do. Stories are great for that.
- Share information that proves you know something about what you want to talk about, so people can TRUST you. It’s not necessary to always cite studies and famous people, but it’s also not necessary to dumb down your content. If you like working with “heady” then write for them. Just the same as if you like working with moms, or artists, or engineers, write for them.
No matter what the service you provide, coach, organizer, web developer, undertaker:
People won’t like you if they don’t know you. Rarely do you trust someone you don’t like.
So think about your visitors when you’re writing your content.
This may be sacrilege: but sometimes the website is just an introduction. It’s not always to keep people coming back for more.
Personally, if I can get thru the know-like-trust thing in a single visit, and that results in a call or an email, I’m ecstatic!
It doesn’t often happen. People do take time to make decisions.
Just remember, it’s just not necessarily the fact that you’ve got an MBA from Harvard that gets you the sale.
If they like you, if they connect with you and then they’ll keep reading what you post.
That’s a good reason to keep adding content.
After a while, they’ll call or write or buy something.
Oh, and by they way… If you’re nice! Show that.
Here’s a question: How do you know if you’ve connected with someone?
Photo credit: Sgarton from morguefile.com