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If you’ve been treating website copy like an afterthought, you could be damaging your conversion rates and leaving money on the table. That’s why we talked to entrepreneur and copywriting expert Joanna Wiebe about how to craft awesome copy that reduces bounce rates, increases clicks and boosts sales.

Here’s a snippet of our conversation:

“Everyone says people don’t read online. Not true. People just don’t read things that are boring. Anything that doesn’t grab their attention they won’t read and you can’t blame them for it. Eye tracking studies prove that people do read online. It just depends on whether or not you’re holding their attention.

Everyone says people don't read online. Not true. People just don't read things that are boring. - @CopyHackers Click To Tweet

That’s where you have to say something a little different. Say something that’s trying to get their attention. It doesn’t mean you have to be really salesy, but you can’t be a wallflower and fade away. There’s this tendency for small businesses to write in a very polished style. And that’s where you end up with messages like “save time,” but surprise, surprise nobody cares. That doesn’t mean anything to your customer.

Even if you think you understand your customers’ needs, it’s far better to go out and listen to your customers and find out what words they’re using. Email them. Survey them. Get in there and immerse yourself in what they’re saying and how they’re saying it.”

Even if you think you understand your customers' needs, it's far better to go out and listen to them. - @copyhackers Click To Tweet

LINKS:

Joanna’s companies: Copy Hackers, SnapCopy.co, Airstory

Follow Joanna on Twitter @copyhackers