How to design a website

 

How to Prepare Copy for a Website Design Brief: Top Tips & Best Practices

When working with website designers, it’s important to provide them with a clear, detailed brief. This will help them understand what you want and ensure they deliver a website that meets your goals. Here’s how to prepare copy for a design brief, what kind of content drives sales, and how to create a user-friendly website that’s optimized for search engines.

1. Know Your Audience

Before you start writing anything, take time to understand who your customers are. What are their needs? What problems do they have? Tailor your messaging to speak directly to them. For example, if you’re targeting busy professionals, your copy should be concise and to the point.

2. Clearly Define Your Goals

What is the main purpose of your website? Do you want to get more leads, sell products, or build brand awareness? Make sure this is clear in your brief so the designer knows what they’re working towards. For instance, if you want more leads, your copy should focus on encouraging visitors to sign up for consultations or fill out contact forms.

3. Provide a Brand Voice Guide

Your brand’s voice is how you “sound” to your audience. Are you formal and professional or fun and casual? Make sure the designer understands this so they can match the design with the tone of your content. For example, a playful brand might use bright colors and casual language, while a corporate brand might use more muted tones and formal language.

4. Highlight Key Services or Products

For service-based businesses, focus on what makes you different from competitors. Be clear about the benefits of your services. If you’re selling products, make sure product descriptions are detailed and engaging. For example, instead of just saying “We offer consulting services,” say “Our expert consulting services help businesses increase revenue by 20% within six months.”

5. Include Strong Calls-to-Action (CTAs)

A call-to-action (CTA) is what encourages visitors to take the next step—whether it’s buying a product or booking a consultation. Use clear, action-oriented language like “Get Started Today,” “Book Your Free Consultation,” or “Shop Now.” Place these CTAs throughout the site so users always know what to do next.

6. Use SEO Best Practices

Search engine optimization (SEO) helps people find your website on Google and other search engines. Include keywords related to your business in headings (H1s), subheadings (H2s), and throughout the body text. Also, make sure images have descriptive "alt text" so search engines can understand them better.Example of On-Page SEO:

• Title Tag: "Affordable Web Design Services for Small Businesses"
• Meta Description: "Looking for affordable web design? We specialize in creating custom websites that help small businesses grow online."
• H1 (Main Heading): "Affordable Web Design Services"
• Alt Text for Images: "Custom web design for small businesses"

How Designers Use Your Brief

Once you’ve prepared your brief, here’s how designers will use it to create an effective website:

1. Visual Hierarchy

Designers will organize the content based on its importance. For example, headlines will be bigger and bolder than body text so visitors can easily scan the page.

2. User Experience (UX)

The designer will focus on making the site easy to navigate by organizing content logically. They may create wireframes (basic layouts) before adding colors and images.

3. Mobile-Friendly Design

Since many people browse websites on their phones, designers will make sure your site looks good and works well on mobile devices too.

Copy That Drives Sales for Service-Based Businesses

For service-based businesses, the right kind of copy can make all the difference in converting visitors into customers.

1. Problem-Agitate-Solution Formula

This formula works by first identifying a problem your audience faces, then emphasizing how it affects them (agitating), and finally offering your service as the solution. Example:

• Problem: "Struggling with low website traffic?"
• Agitate: "A poorly designed site could be costing you potential customers."
• Solution: "Our web design services can boost traffic by 50% in just three months."

2. AIDA Formula

AIDA stands for Attention-Interest-Desire-Action:

• Grab attention with an engaging headline.
• Build interest by explaining how your service benefits them.
• Create desire by showing how it solves their problem.
• End with a strong action step like “Contact Us Today.”

3. Social Proof

Including testimonials or case studies builds trust with potential clients by showing real-world results from previous customers.

Best Formats for Selling Products vs Services

The way you present information depends on whether you're selling products or services:

Business Type	Best Formats
Service-Based	Landing pages with strong CTAs, case studies/testimonials
Product-Based	Product pages with high-quality images/videos and customer reviews

For both types:

• Use clear headlines that immediately communicate value.
• Make sure there are multiple calls-to-action throughout each page.
• Keep navigation simple so users can easily find what they need.

Creating Great User Experience (UX) for Websites

A great user experience is essential for keeping visitors engaged and encouraging them to take action—whether that’s signing up for a service or buying a product.

General Websites

1. Fast Load Times: People won’t wait around if your site takes too long to load.
2. Easy Navigation: Make sure menus are simple and easy to understand.
3. Mobile-Friendly: Ensure your site looks good on phones and tablets.
4. Accessibility: Make sure everyone can use your site easily, including people with disabilities.

E-Commerce Sites

1. Simple Checkout Process: Reduce steps during checkout to avoid cart abandonment.
2. High-Quality Product Images: Use zoom features or 360-degree views of products.
3. Clear CTAs: Buttons like “Add to Cart” should be easy to find.
4. Breadcrumb Navigation: Helps users easily backtrack through product categories without getting lost.

SEO & SEM Strategies

To get more traffic from search engines like Google:

1. On-Page SEO

Optimize key elements like:

• Title tags
• Meta descriptions
• Headings (H1s)
• Alt text for images

For example:
If you're selling shoes online:

• Title Tag: "Buy Comfortable Running Shoes Online"
• Meta Description: "Shop our collection of comfortable running shoes designed for performance and style."

2. Technical SEO

Make sure your website loads quickly, works well on mobile devices, and has clean URL structures like “/services/web-design” instead of random numbers or letters.

3. SEM (Search Engine Marketing)

Use paid ads through platforms like Google Ads to target specific keywords related to your business offerings (e.g., “affordable web design”). Combine this with retargeting ads that follow users who have visited but not made a purchase yet.

Using Meta Tags & Scripts

Meta tags are snippets of code that help search engines understand what’s on each page of your site:

• Title Tags: These appear as clickable headlines in search results—make sure they include important keywords.
• Meta Descriptions: These short summaries appear under the title tag in search results—write compelling descriptions that encourage people to click through.
• Alt Text: Descriptive text added to images so search engines can “read” them—this also improves accessibility.

By following these tips for writing briefs, creating persuasive copy, optimizing user experience, and implementing SEO strategies, you'll set yourself up for success with both general websites and e-commerce sites!