Web Writing Is Not Blog Writing

There is a difference between writing for a website and writing for a blog. Here is a short list showing the differences between the two.

Web Writing
1. Written with marketing action and focus on features and benefits.
2. Desired action is to get a client to contact the office for more information or to buy something.
3. Written to expose your products and services in-depth and supply adjunct informative information.
4. Although is user centric the focus is on selling and putting you in the best light.
5. Content typically does not change with any degree of frequency.

Blog Writing
1. Informational in nature and tone and is focused on current news events.
2. Written in a very conversational style and with casual use of slang terminology and euphemisms.
3. Short one topic per page piece. Typically about 250 to 350 words maximum.
4. Does not hard sell your services. May mention your website or service but soft sells.
5. Typically is not all about you, but a newsworthy article or event, but may refer briefly to you or your website.

There is a very big difference in the quality of writer that should be used for blogging and for web content creation. The price is indicative of the quality of writing. It is not uncommon to spend $1 per word to $70 per hour for research and writing for website content.

Blog content on the other hand is more production oriented and is typically not done by a highly skilled and degreed journalist, but rather a good writer who may or may not have the critical marketing and communications background that a professional journalist or professional copywriter may have.

It is very important that if you are looking for web content writing that you not consider blog content or a blog writer an appropriate source for important website content. Rather a content specialist who has website content creation experience is the most appropriate choice. You will pay more, but the quality will be more appropriate for the use.

Google Explains the Name HotPot

Google sent me a note on Twitter when I tweeted about Google HotPot recently when I had blogged about it last week. Turns out there actually is a story behind this queer name they chose for their terrific new online review interface.

“Hot pot, the dish, is about community. You and your friends huddle together and add ingredients to a pot of boiling broth, creating a delicious soup to be enjoyed by all. Sometimes you take your own food from the pot, and sometimes you taste what your friends have added. This shared experience of gathering around a fire to cook and eat communally is a fundamental illustration of how we’ve come together to enjoy food from the earliest days of humanity.” Read the full article on the HotPot blog.

So it appears that the Google HotPot team is watching Twitter which that in itself is an interesting note. Okay I’m not sure I buy into the HotPot thing for food, who wants people double dipping into food you actually will eat, but the concept of sharing information on reviews, restaurants, businesses, hair salons, all makes perfect sense.

I like Google HotPot, it is similar to Four Square, but I like HotPot better as I can be at my computer updating Facebook and jot a note in HotPot. I don’t have to be on my mobile phone to write a review like you do with Four Square. The sharing aspect is cool and I am personally using it to write reviews for the local businesses that I use.

Even more interesting for me is that HotPot is integrated with Google.com and Google Places. So anyone who is in my HotPot group has their reviews shown on my Google.com searches and all HotPot reviews appear on Google Places. I think Google has a winner with HotPot, but here are a few names that I ask them to consider while they are at it: Stew Pot, Add to My Stew, Fondue It, Tell Me More, Crazy Spot. What weird and wonderful names can you think of? Just put them in comments below. Google appears to be listening.

It’s Christmas Eve!

I want to take this moment to thank all my readers and clients for this past year. I have enjoyed tremendously working, communicating, and sharing with each one of you and look forward to a wonderful new year ahead.

Have a Merry Christmas tomorrow and next week a Happy New Year.

I will be on vacation next week and will be back blogging on January 3rd.

Are You Watching Your Website Stats? Why Not?

You can’t find out if your website is working for you if you never take a look at your website statistics! It is great to have a website and every business should have one, but sometimes just having one is not enough. Sometimes you need to “nurture” and “feed” your website to help it be the best promotion vehicle in your advertising arsenal.

When I say “nurture” and “feed” your website I mean specifically know what your website visitors are looking for when they come to visit, how long they stay, and what they do when they get there. I have found in many cases by a careful analysis of website statistics will allow us to recommend new pages, optimization, and areas for enhanced engagement with readers. Here’s just one example: from the integrated web search report we get for a client we found over and over that users were searching for a specific product. Based on this information, to make it easy for them to find it and to feed sales, we created new content on the home page to speak to this need and point readers to the shopping and more information sections on the product. In other cases, reviewing Google Analytics, we have found new search terms to use for optimization of content, new terms for AdWords programs, and services that readers are looking for and possibly not finding.

One key indicator to review in Google Analytics is a page’s bounce rate. Over 75% and you have some challenges that you need to address as your readers are not finding what they want or you are directing untargeted traffic to the page with pay per click programs and may need to add negative keywords to your program to cut costs and be more targeted.

A careful review of  your website statistics can be used to really review your online health. It is more than a gage of how many visitors you have a day, the wealth of information can help you develop new services, cater to an audience, and more carefully target pay per click advertising. As Google Analytics is free, there is simply no reason you should not be tracking and reviewing what is going online with your website.