How to Get [Good] Content for Your Website
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When clients contact me, one of the most often asked questions is: do you provide copywriting services or can you connect me with someone who does?
While I don’t provide copywriting services, I do understand that good engaging content is a key ingredient when it comes to designing a great website.
What do I mean by content? In this article I’ll be referring to general website content, not blog post content. Content is pretty much anything that can be observed by a visitor to your website. That includes all text, images, videos, all of it.
For example: this blog post article you’re currently reading is made up of sentences and paragraphs, there’s a sidebar over there with text, images, and links. There are photos scattered throughout. All of this qualifies as “content”.
Go to the homepage of a website you like to visit. Pay attention to the wording, the imagery (not just obvious photos, but any graphics too), and everything else that makes this website so engaging to you. All of that is content.
Many clients come to me needing a website, but they aren’t clear on what kind of content is needed, or how to get engaging content. So that’s exactly what I want to address in this article!
Disclosure: This blog is reader-supported. I publish free content to help my readers, and some articles include affiliate links. If you click on those links and make a purchase, I might earn affiliate commission. Thank you.
The Importance of Good Content
Good content tells the story of your brand (company/business/etc.). It helps inform and engage visitors to your site, intriguing them to learn more, to peruse your site, and to eventually work with, or buy from, you.
Succinct sentences that capture and educate are a great first impression. Tell the reader what you do and how you can help them. Let them know what your brand is all about, right out of the gate. Most people aren’t willing to search around a site to get their questions answered, and most of us have a time scarcity so we don’t want to read walls of text either. This is why well-written text content that is direct and concise is ideal.
Pair this kind of high-quality text content with captivating imagery. Let the visitor get to know you, your team, let them see you at work, or creating a product, or the office where your employees talk to them from, whatever the situation or your business model may be.
Read my article “What Should You Include On Your Homepage?” to help with idea generation.
To get more ideas about visual content, get a hot cup of tea and take some time to browse the websites you love. Pay attention to all of the visuals— graphics, photos, logo, and more.
Good Content really does make a website. Bad content breaks it.
Should your web designer create content for you?
Not usually. A designer takes the elements provided by you and organizes it using best practices to create a visually appealing site that functions to engage visitors and meet goals.
There are people who specialize in content development and you can actually hire your own, even on a budget, which I’ll tell you about in a bit.
But no, a web designer does not typically double as a content developer or copywriter.
how to get good content for your website
write your own
Yes, you can always create the content for your website or your company’s website on your own. Many people take this route.
It works well because who knows your business best? You do!
I would never want anyone writing content about me and my business— only I know the value I can bring to my clients.
Now, if you’re just not a good writer or have a difficult time articulating thoughts and ideas into clear messages, then be self-aware enough not to write your own content. In that case, go with the following options…
hire a freelancer via fiverr
Honestly, this is probably the best route for most people and especially businesses.
Good news: there are indeed people out there whose job it is to transform a few key details into well-written sentences and paragraphs for the various pages of your website!
Whether you’re a solopreneur or large business, you or a select co-worker can provide important info about your brand, and a good copywriter/content developer will be able to turn that into easily digestible and engaging content for the viewers of your website to enjoy.
The best part? You can find really affordable freelance copywrites and content developers online using a platform called Fiverr. It’s easy to use, and it’s reliable, using a review/rating system so you can make sure you’re getting someone of quality to generate your content.
Want to hire a professional to create your content for you so you don’t have to worry with it?
Here are the steps to hire a professional:
Sign up on Fiverr (#afflink)
In the top search bar where it says Find Services, enter Website Content and search
Browse freelancers, paying attention to their ratings and reviews, location, expected pay, and anything else that’s important to you.
Reach out to freelancers and decide who you want to work with
Hire a freelancer!
Or you can just use this fancy little box I made especially for you. Enter Website Content and click Search for Freelancers:
And here are some content developers I found who you could reach out to:
outsource to friends or employees
Maybe there’s someone on your team who is a fantastic writer, good at articulating concepts and ideas. Great! Hire them to write content for your website! Even better, as someone on the inside they’re likely to understand the company on a more comprehensive level.
Or maybe you have a friend or family member who’s a great writer. See if they’d be willing to write content for your website.
How to get good visual content for your website
If a website isn’t pleasing to look at, it’s not going to engage your visitors, which means your bounce rate will be high, your Google rankings will decline, and your website won’t work to grow your business (as it should be doing).
What kind of visual content do you need?
Graphics :: A good website tends to make use of graphics to add visual appeal throughout. Whether it’s icon packs, infographics, or background banner images, having graphics professionally designed to be cohesive with your brand identity is a good idea.
High-quality photos :: Good photos MAKE a website. Whether your hire a professional or wing it yourself, be sure to have plenty of high-quality images ready to provide to your web designer. Try to get a good mix of product/service images and you/company employees. Usually some more general photos are useful for web designers, too, whether as background images to add contrast or otherwise. To find high-quality general photos which are free to use, check out Pexels and Unsplash.
Video :: I like using video as a background banner from time to time because it brings an element of movement and makes for a more dynamic and impressive experience for the viewer. You can make your own video pretty easily, or just hire someone on Fiverr or a local videographer. You can see an example of a video background if you scroll down a bit on my homepage.
Incorporating SEO into your Website content
Last but certainly not least, try to incorporate search engine optimization into your content where possible.
I’m not suggesting that your site be boring and robotic with keywords scattered everywhere- no.
BUT if you can find a content developer who’s also an SEO Specialist, definitely do that. Tell them that you want to incorporate target SEO keywords into content where possible, especially in main headings, while not sacrificing user-friendliness or aesthetic.
Look, I found some SEO copywriters for you on Fiverr:
Know your keywords
If your website is going to be on Squarespace, you can invest in my Squarespace SEO Expert course to figure out the keywords you’re going to target for your website.
You or a member of your team can complete the course in a timely manner and, in my personal opinion, it’s one of the best things you could do to grow your brand over time.
SEO is crucial.
Supplying your web designer and content developer with your target keywords will really help with the success of your site.
I hope this has been a helpful article for you and that now you have a better idea of what is meant by content, how important it is, and how to go about getting it ready for your designer!
Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below; I’m happy to help!
Thanks for stopping by and I’ll talk to you again soon!
x
Tiffany
Welcome!
Hey there! I’m Tiffany ~ a Squarespace Web Designer & SEO Expert. I design beautiful & professional websites that rank well on Google, & I teach courses on becoming a Squarespace SEO Expert and Starting Your Own Squarespace Design Business!
Feel free to contact me at: tiffany@tiffany-davidson.com
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