Who is your audience?
Photo by Justin Scott Campbell
Your website’s content needs to be part of a robust communications strategy. You need the determine the tone that will attract your audience and prove the worth of your business.
Start with the basics. Your website should conform to typical communications standards for your business, as laid out in your brand stylebook. Clarity should be a top priority.
Think like a journalist. Who is your audience and what do they need to know?
If your website is aimed at experts in your field, you don’t want to talk down to them. But if you are trying to reach the general public, a landing page full of jargon will turn people away as quickly as poor web design will.
When writing directly to consumers, make sure that your website is approachable. Tell your potential customers the what and why of your business. If you reference complex or technical concepts, explain in layman’s terms.
If your company deals business to business, consider who is likely to be reading your site. Will they have background knowledge of your products and services, or will they need more explanation?
For consumer-facing websites, consider more factors, such as the age of those you are trying to reach. You will usually want to avoid slang terms that not everyone will find familiar. However, depending on what you represent, you may determine that your brand’s character is chatty, informal, and aimed at a particular demographic.
Whatever you conclude, keep it consistent throughout your site. Your tone should convey the sense of an established brand identity. Just as the author of a novel uses dialogue and narration to create a character that hangs together, your company should use your website, blog, social media and other brand communications to build the character of your company. A thoughtfully developed tone is the way to do this.
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Websites can be informal … but they should always follow these basic rules.
