"It's Your Turn To Create
Copywriting So Hot
It Sizzles Like A Steak On Fire."

Copywriting is generally considered a form of persuasion, but that is true only in the offline world.  When it comes to copywriting for the web it must serve one more dynamic; it must serve as bait.  That bait must attract your visitors to the web site so that your copywriting can finish the job of persuading.

Copywriting for the web should begin before your web site ever appears anywhere except in the corridors of your own mind. It should be an integral element of your web site, built in, ready to use. If you are just starting out in your career as a web writer you probably don't understand what I'm talking about, so let's break it down.

1. After determining what it is you intend to accomplish with your web site your next concern is to create a name for it that will maximize your sales copy, help it get ranked highly on the search engines and be easily remembered on the "social sites."  Whenever possible that name should be incorporated into the domain name. 
   Listen to the repentant voice of sad experience, "choose your own domain name with caution."  Take the time to make sure you choose a domain name that means something or at least tells people what they can expect when coming to your web site.  Then register it so nobody can steal it from you. On talewins.com/Post1.htm you will find a shortcut to the process of maximizing the impact of your domain name.
2. Use your Hidden Agenda wisely.  Every page on your web site should have a purpose.  That purpose should be expressed in a blazing headline.. "It's Your Turn To Create Copywriting So Hot it sizzles like a steak on fire."
   That's what the visitor sees when they come to your page, but that doesn't HAVE to be the title of your page. The hidden agenda title COULD BE, "How To Use Your Copywriting Skills To Make Money On The Web" 
   The code to do this is "<title>How To Use Your Copywriting Skills To Make Money On The Web</title>" and it goes inside your header -- and it should be at least close to the top of your header.  You now have one headline, and one title, 2 shots instead of just 1. Both these should work together to create a powerful to visit your web site and continue reading your sales material when they get there.
3. Next you want to write an ad and hide it in your header.  Your ad should be about 40-50 words but I have seen major corporations exceed the 400 word parameter.  The code to hide this ad in your header is.. <meta name="description" content="Professionally written copywriting must serve one more dynamic; it must serve as bait.">  This too goes inside the header.  When you think of this "description" as an opportunity to create an ad you will produce much better copy.  But, note this disclaimer, almost every word in your ad should be found openly visible on your web page, preferably in consecutive orders -- in other words, you can take a sentence from here, there and beyond to make what might look like a paragraph.  What I like to do is use some of my secondary headlines in the ad, called the description.  It is also quite handy for introducing a second, powerful benefit paragraph in your sales material that would ordinarily appear well down the page. This gives the search engines an excuse to present it instead of the real first paragraph when it more perfectly matches what their customer is asking for.  Again, you have scored 2:1.  Let's do it again.
4. Tags, Keywords, Subjects; THINK, BENEFITS!  When you do you will be thinking copywriting, and advertising.  Here is a little secret.. By listing your BENEFITS you will think of producing a matching set of secondary headlines.  With 5 words in each of 5 headlines you will have 25 tags or keywords.  (basically the same thing, depending on when you were introduced to the web)  BUT, the benefits listed in the headlines will be doing double weight because they are bolded in your copy.  Therefore, you are perfectly welcome to produce 25 MORE keywords that will appear in your header.  Again, you have scored 2:1.  There are now 50 tags crying for the attention of your search engine. 
   Beginners might ask, "Isn't this cheating?"  No, this is helping search engines index your page properly (Unless you really are trying to cheat.) and deliver it up to their customers when it meets their needs.  The code for inserting these tags or keywords in your header is, "<meta name="keywords" content="advertise, copywriting for the web, web, promote, trigger, convert, features, copywriting, suggestion">" and this too goes inside your header.
5. Now we are ready for the triple score.  Your header may not be seen by most visitors to your web site, but it is a goldmine when it comes to advertising to the search engines and directories like DMOZ. Here is your basic code format.. "<meta name="whatever"  content="whateveritis">" 
   Replace "whatever" with the term you wish to use, and please note, <THOSE QUOTATION MARKS INSIDE THE BRACKETS ARE ESSENTIAL.> The quotation marks outside the brackets MUST BE REMOVED before putting them inside your headers.  So, what are some of the legitimate permutations you can employ in your header? 
   If this page is a bylined article you could identify the author with "<meta name="author  content="Lin Stone, the Great Collaborator!">"
   Another suggestion is, "<meta name="subject"  content="Maximizing The Persuasion Power Of Your Sizzling Hot Copywriting Skills.">"  Then we have..
   "<meta name="Classification" content="self help"/>"
   "<meta name="Reply-to" content="V" />"

   As long as you are HONESTLY trying to help the search engines identify your content and give you a meaningful ranking, the coast is pretty much clear on other meta tags you can employ.
     
    

Once the visitor has come to your web site you should try to grab his attention immediately. Remember that most of your visitors won't have much time to read the whole text of your web site; therefore one of the very first things you should do is offer them a chance to learn more about your offers by signing up for your newsletter, or by selling them a free "report" that can be quickly downloaded to their machine and read later.

One way I have of establishing rapport with my visitors is by posting my phone number right up there near the top.  Then, at the bottom I provide an opportunity to send a message to me.  If I happen to be online at the same time, we can even chat.

In all events, you will want to be precise and coherent -- Your words should indicate that you are communicating with only one customer at a time. By emphasizing the way you think and speak directly to that visitor can move mountains in making them feel comfortable and welcome.  Maybe you can't offer them a real vibrating recliner but you can definitely let your company personality shine through everything you write.

One final precaution.. stay away from that flash stuff on your landing pages -- and most of your important pages are landing pages -- Introduce your sparkling, zippy-doo-duhs on subsequent pages the visitor can reach AFTER they are sure they want to invest more time with you.  Not only will this save you bandwidth, it will offend fewer visitors.  Connect to these pages with links like, "CLICK HERE TO VIEW OUR 7 MINUTE VIDEO THAT EXPLAINS THIS PROCESS IN DEPTH."