The Australian Building Business During WWII
After the declaration of war in September 1939 house construction went through a period of decreasing activity. But it did not drop to its minimal level until February 1942 when National Security Regulations posed severe restrictions.
Private building ceased in many areas and was limited in others. However, under the War Housing Program, state and commonwealth authorities did continue with essential housing, such as that needed for munitions workers and their families.
Clear indication of the degree of change is seen in the official statistics. More than 40000 new homes were built throughout Australia in the financial year 1938-39, but in 1942-1943 there were fewer than 4000.’
In the editorial of the Australian Home Beautiful for January 1942, we read of conditions up to that time. Building restrictions, at the moment of writing, limit expenditure on new domestic buildings to £3000 and on renovations to £250; but conditions grow harder week by week. In spite of this, a great deal of new and interesting building is being carried on over a widespread area and this will continue as long as materials are available.
War in Europe and North Africa was distant enough for Australia to seem relatively secure. With the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, and their inexorable advance in our direction, any remaining complacency evaporated.
A. V. Jennings, the well-known construction company founded in 1932, continued building houses on its construction within 25 miles (40 km) of the Melbourne GPO as well as restrictions on the transfer of land brought development of the estate to a halt.
As early as May 1941 wartime conditions had begun to cause shortages of building materials and dwindling sales. In that month A.V. Jennings advertised seventeen villa sites and seven business sites, all lots to include, electricity, gas, sewerage, roads, paths and crossings.’
Of the 121 residential blocks, fifty-nine houses had been completed by the beginning of 1942. They were typical of the well-built, double-brick houses constructed by Jennings over the previous decade. Beauview Estate was in a very attractive elevated area with panoramic views and a mere six-and-a-half miles (10.50 km) from the city.
In 1942, with home building now at a standstill, A.V. Jennings averted complete disaster with the sale of all unsold blocks on the estate to the large Melbourne estate agency T.M. Burke. As a company Jennings actually gathered strength through the challenges offered by wartime government construction contracts, so that when it returned to housing on a large scale in the mid-1950s it was able to regain and extend its early reputation in the domestic field.
Brick houses of the type built by A.V Jennings between 1932 and 1942 were basically conservative in their design when compared with the few examples of International Modern built at the same time. Some of the forms or details suggested the continuing popularity of `Spanish Mission’ or `Old English’, but generally, there was a tendency toward a common sense functionalism with easily maintained surfaces, modern kitchens, hot-water services reticulated to five or six points, internal toilets and many other features taken for granted by generations.
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Sphere: Related ContentHow to Sell Your Car
Unless you are thinking about keeping your old vehicle and giving it to someone else, you will eventually need to sell it. There’s many ways to sell your car, but first let’s discuss the preparation of your vehicle prior to advertising or trading.
Presentation is the key factor
The first thing one should consider when selling an old vehicle is how you can sell it for more money. The technique, which most people seem to overlook, is to simply make it look absolutely stunning!
This does not mean just washing and vacuuming it, although that’s a very good start. It is the overall preparation and detailing that counts. This is a well-known secret of most used motor dealers.
You would be surprised to see the condition of some of the vehicles they purchase, but after a few hours in the detailing shop you wouldn’t think it was the same vehicle! The best advice to anyone selling his or her car, is to have a professional car detail carried out. This will cost you around the $200 mark and it will be money well invested.
It will, in effect, save you hours of hard work trying to do it yourself with nowhere near the same result. This alone will add hundreds of dollars to your vehicle, particularly when selling via the newspaper.
I know of people who have had their car detailed and fallen back in love with their car deciding not to go ahead with the sale.
Once the detailing has been carried out you should make sure any minor defects are fixed. It is also important that you have the service books and any relative mechanical history at the ready, as this is now becoming a critical factor when buying or selling a used vehicle. If a service is due or near due, make sure you have it done prior to selling. This will give a prospective customer an appreciation of how well you have kept your vehicle.
What is your car going to sell for?
Before you start selling your vehicle, either privately or to a dealer, you must know its market value. There is nothing worse than advertising your vehicle with a highly inflated price.
One way to find out the value of your vehicle is by studying the motor section of your local newspapers, which will give you a reasonable guideline. Another way is to look in dealership yards to see what price similar vehicles are being sold for, but you must remember these vehicles have profit margins built into them to cover the dealership’s operating costs and over-stock.
Alternatively, the internet can provide a wealth of information on vehicle valuations. This is only web-based information and is generalised, so it does not give you accurate pricing on your own vehicle because of the specific condition and accessories fitted.
Web sites where you can gather this type of guidance are the individual dealership web sites and vehicle pricing-guide sites such as www.redbook.com.au and www.glassguide.com.au
This data is only to assist you in making a qualified and rational decision when buying or selling your vehicle. Remember, these sites are to be used only as a guideline, they are not entirely accurate as they do not take into consideration the individual buying or selling trends within the different states.
There are always variations to the rules about pricing, so you should follow your intuition when setting a price and be sure to leave room for negotiating in your asking price. Your starting price should be higher than the price for which you really want to sell your vehicle.
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Sphere: Related ContentCan You Grow Your Wealth with Home Based Businesses?
The answer to this question is a definite YES! I have lots of business associates in the USA, Europe, Australasia and New Zealand who are working in a home based business and making thousands of dollars each week. In fact the woman who introduced me to my new business is only 25 years of age and she made over $500,000 in her first 12 months of her business.
I am now duplicating her results, but please read on and you will learn about what I have actually done and experienced in 3 very different situations and how in the end I succeeded in taking control of my future.
My Traditional Business Experience
I used to own and manage a very profitable and high profile restaurant and bar in Brisbane, Australia for a period of over 12 years. I started it from scratch and like most traditional businesses it was really expensive to set up and the running costs were enormous.
Although I made a lot of money with this venture, I finally decided to sell it when I came to realise that the long hours and constant stress of managing over 30 employees, dealing with various government requirements, endless paper work and hundreds of customers per week was ruining destroying my life.
You can become rick with a traditional business but you will need to be extremely committed as you won’t be able to walk out and close the door anytime you want. There will be lots of work to do and deadlines to meet, customers to please and more than likely, staff to hire and mentor unless you want to do all the work yourself. The hours are generally very long and in most cases the business can end up taking over your life. Another point to consider is that you’ll be on your own to work things out and solve any problems as they arise.
My Job Experience
After selling the business, I decided that a job would be a better alternative to owning a business so I set about finding one and little did I know what I was in for! I spent 8 hours a day scouring the employment classifieds, networking, perfecting my resume and attending interviews for jobs I didn’t even want. I felt undervalued and demoralised and almost gave up hope before I finally landed a job with a firm as an Events Manager.
All good you might well think, but unfortunately this was not the case as now I was into something that would cost me 12 hours of my time, 5 days a week as I got dressed up for work, traveled to and from work and actually did the work. I was working under considerable pressure and was totally stressed out by having to answer to a boss and co-ordinate every single element of each event from travel and accommodation arrangements, key note speakers, entertainment and right down to sorting out what type of lettuce should go on the dinner plates of the attendees. What a nightmare! But the thing that irked me the most was that I was doing all of this to make my boss richer while I had to settle for a small pay packet at the end of each week. JOB = Just over broke.
My Home Business Experience
As you might have guessed, I didn’t stay in my job as an Event Manager for long. I had spent seven months of my life trying to find the right career and after only 1 month I resigned.
I had no idea what to try next but I was determined to find something that would tick ALL the boxes for me and knew that I first needed to get very clear about what I really wanted.
I did not want to:
Own and manage a stressful, traditional type of business
Outlay a lot of money to get started in a new business
Answer to a boss and have to beg for time off work
I did want to
Earn a lot of money
Work from home
Take control of my future
With the above in mind, I spent the next couple of months researching my options until I was eventually attracted to an advertisement (placed by a 25 year old lady) about a home based business opportunity. I must admit that I was pretty hesitant to begin with but I decided I had nothing to lose by finding out more so I answered the ad and within 1 week I was up and running with my very own home based business.
On my best day so far, I earned five thousand dollars but what I really love about my home business most is that I actually took back control of my own life. I now work the hours I choose, from the comfort of home or anywhere I like really with my laptop and phone. I don’t have to juggle and manage staff anymore and gone is all the stress. I fit my work around my life, generally about 25 hours per week and I absolutely love what I do.
It’s not for everyone however and if you are considering getting started in a home business you should ask yourself the following important questions:
1. Is the business aligned with your income and lifestyle goals?
2. Do you have some money and time to invest into the business?
3. Can you work diligently as your own boss and without supervision?
4. Will there be anyone to help or guide you if you get stuck along the way?
Yes! You can make money with home based businesses. Lots of money!
Christine Hamilton is currently making money in with home based businesses. For more information about what she is actually doing, click work at home BSCH110509
Sphere: Related ContentUnited States Influences on Australian Lighting Design
Electrified candle brackets with wrought iron or aluminium holders and brass or timber candelabra with small individual fabric shades in imitation American colonial or mission style were common in Australia during the 1920s and 1930s. They were hung in Spanish mission or neo-colonial styled homes and also in Californian bungalows.
It was quite often the case that different styles of light fittings were mixed in one home. The entrance hall and internal passages could have wrought iron lantern fittings either circular or rectangular in shape. The dining room might have one or more American colonial style wrought iron candelabra; the lounge, French revival chandeliers; the master bedroom, a floral ceramic rococo chandelier. All these rooms might have wall sconces matching the central light. The children’s bedrooms often had English styled Arts and Crafts fittings; the bathroom a modern fitting — similarly the servants quarters — and the kitchen, fluorescent strip lighting.
By the 1950s the standard or table lamp had become a major centre piece in a room with the new television and blinds. Sometimes a metal standard light came incorporated in a side table or large ashtray. The background lighting was subtle. Except for the table lamps little attention was drawn to the light fixtures.
Mass production churned out inexpensive plastic, plaster, metal and buckram lamp bases and shades. The traditional colonial designs had been replaced by a plethora of folksy designs and do-it yourself instructions on how to make ballerina lamp-shades or African and Fijian raffia shades. The style was kitsch: a multitude of designs for table lights was-available, from Russian ballerinas, Spanish matadors, Chinamen, happy Mexicans with cacti, Arabian snake trainers, African dancing girls, happy couples and leopard or tiger skins. The colours were gaudy and beautiful. For football player agents and sales training options, visit digitalbrands.com.au.
Sphere: Related ContentResearching Your Company’s Service Positioning
Once you have decided on possible positionings for your product or service, it’s wise to research them and see which of them your target market finds credible and appealing.
For example, one of our clients sells a wide range of kitchens and home hardware to the public through shops. We wanted to find out what the right positioning for them could be - and then reflect it in their advertising.
Accordingly, a number of lines were written, each reflecting a different position. I am going to give you these lines with a brief indication as to how consumers reacted to them. This should prove thought-provoking if you ever feel tempted to brag or misrepresent what you offer.
- ‘The best DIY store in town’ - consumers appreciated that the stores were not DIY outlets, so this was seen as inaccurate.
- ‘The ideal home improvement store’ - consumers thought this dealt only in superlatives, which were glib and self-congratulatory.
- ‘The store for top quality home improvements at value for money prices’ - consumers thought this was not distinctive; it was overused phraseology; nor did it appear credible - people expect to pay a premium price for quality.
- ‘The home improvement store where service really is personal service’ - the idea of service was good news, but not enough; products had to be good, too. In any case, this claim was seen as something other stores like Marks & Spencer could make.
- ‘Find out what “the trade” has always known’ - people had mixed feelings about the trade. Some thought of it in association with craftsmanship; others thought of cheap workmanship and cowboy operators.
- ‘The store traditionally used by the trade’ - here the same negatives aroused by the previous trade line came up, though in a better sense because of the use of the word ‘traditionally’. One problem, however, is that the line implies such products need proper experience to install.
- ‘Made to last by us. Sold direct to you’ - this conveyed that the company was personally involved in the making of the products, as opposed to being an importer.
Moreover, the line was seen as patriotic, because it clearly meant these were British goods. It also conveyed craftsmanship, durability and the good value you get by buying direct. Readers also appreciated that the line was to the point, not gimmicky. This line came out on top.
Successful companies tend to have a clear positioning from which they rarely if ever deviate - and then only with great care. I make no apology for reintroducing American Express. It was positioned single-mindedly for many years as ‘the world’s most prestigious financial instrument for business travel or entertainment’. This positioning came out in everything American Express did. For instance, the letter sent out to market to new members which began: ‘Quite frankly the American Express card is not for everyone …’. This reflected the positioning so well that for many years in most countries of the world it was the most cost-effective direct mail used.
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Sphere: Related ContentEstablishing a Unique Selling Proposition
Your brand image is primarily an emotional construct. Emotion is probably always more powerful in swaying people than reason, but people like to be able to rationalise their choices. This is where awareness of another advertising theory - the USP - can be helpful to you.
The USP, or unique selling proposition, formula was developed by Rosser Reeves, an ex-copywriter who became head of the Ted Bates agency in New York. He wrote an excellent book, largely dealing with this theory but also covering other aspects of advertising, called Reality in Advertising.
To establish your USP, you compare your product or service with your competitors. Then you determine one feature you have which no one else can offer. This is your unique selling proposition. It is this which you must promote single mindedly.
A 1987 issue of Marketing Week, the British trade paper, gave a wonderful example of how little the average marketing executive understands the phrases he deploys with such gay inconsequence. The subject was ‘Store credit cards’. A bank executive said: The whole point of a Marks & Spencer, Boots, Dixons or even Fortnum & Mason card is to bring people into the store - and to provide a bit of a LISP’ (my italics).
How a credit card can be a unique selling proposition when the same facility is offered by any number of retailers is difficult to comprehend. It reminds one of people who refer to things as being ‘rather’ unique, or ‘fairly’ unique. Here are some typical USPs:
‘Cleans your breath while it cleans your teeth.’
Colgate toothpaste. ‘The too good to hurry mint.’ Murraymints. ‘There’s more for your life at Sears.’ Sears Roebuck. ‘It ain’t fancy but it’s good.’ Horn & Hardarts. ‘The mint with the hole.’ Polo Mints. ‘It takes a tough man to make a tender chicken.’ Perdue Chicken
And, finally, another gentleman in the chicken business: ‘It’s finger lickin’ good.’ Colonel Sanders
One of the problems with the USP is that you sometimes have to rely upon some pretty trivial points of difference to arrive at your proposition - as you can see from the list above. And although, for simple products a good USP may often supply a successful selling idea, I think it is difficult to arrive at one for complex services such as American Express or The Consumers Association.
However, comparing yourself against your competition to discover what USP may exist is a great aid to clear thinking. For example, I was able to improve results for Odhams’ Kathie Webber Cookery Club by writing a headline which was simply a personal way of expressing a USP: `My cookery cards mean you control your weight without giving up luscious food you love to eat.’ This did well in the UK, and even in France, home of gastronomy. Moreover, subsequent approaches to selling this product revolved around this original thought. ====
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Sphere: Related ContentMarketing Segmentation and the Rise of Database Marketing
Marketing academics have noted increasing media fragmentation. In recent years, the role of advertising and promotion in the overall marketing process has changed considerably. The audiences that marketers seek, along with the media and methods for reaching them, have become increasingly fragmented. Advertising and promotional tactics have become more regionalized and targeted to specific market segments.
The extraordinary expansion of media options to reach niche markets has been fully documented. Along with the growth of products and services and the segmentation of types of consumers has come an extraordinary proliferation of media. There are new kinds of media, new developments in the traditional media, and new uses for media. Increasingly, the new media are tools for targeting rather than for saturating the mass market.
Information and the role of the marketing database In the information age marketers are not only focusing on analysis, but also understand the value of information collection.
In the past, direct marketing has been distinguishable from other marketing disciplines because of its emphasis on initiating a direct relationship between a buyer and a supplier, a relationship that until recently centered primarily on the exchange of goods and services. However, in today’s market, exchanging information is becoming almost as important as exchanging goods and services. With rising costs, crowded supermarket shelves, and over stuffed mailboxes, smart marketers are not just efficiently consummating a sale, they are also providing a chance for customers to communicate with them.
Of all these changes surely the most revolutionary is the ability to store in the computer information about your prime prospects and customers and, in effect, create a database that becomes your private market. As the cost of accumulating and accessing the data drops, the ability to talk directly to your prospects and customers — and to build one-to-one relationships with them — will continue to grow.
The new marketing landscape The effects on consumers of overwhelming change and the acceleration of change in our time have been brilliantly documented by Hugh Mackay in Reinventing Australia: So apparent is our national malaise that it has become fashionable to talk about the Age of Anxiety.
For people given to applying labels to decades, the 1980s was popularly described as “The Anxious Eighties” and there is no doubt that the decade lived up to the promise of that rather anxious label. Australia has not been alone in all this. All around the Western world, social commentators have been impressed by the rising level of angst over the past 20 years. The mind and mood of consumers in the 2000s provide interesting challenges.
The growing number of market segments and the simultaneous increase in available products have made marketing much harder. Manufacturers are in a quandary about what to produce; retail merchandise buyers are overwhelmed by the task of product selection; and advertisers feel swamped trying to convey appropriate messages to so many market segments about so many products …companies are grappling with the fact that mass advertising campaigns have become less and less useful in reaching diverse groups of consumers.
Marketers must now fight to establish the relevance of their products in an extremely noisy marketplace. The marketing future will undoubtedly look different in another respect as well: customer information technologies will change the relative roles of retailers, manufacturers, and media companies.
Retailers have a natural advantage because they can directly measure customer response and get first option at the broadest range of information. Indeed, point-of-sale scanning systems have already played a significant role in shifting power from manufacturers to retailers.
Most important, the balance of power between large and small companies will change. As customer information technology becomes more prevalent, only those companies that can invest the resources and show technological leadership will succeed.
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Sphere: Related ContentThe Fascinating History of Grape Wine
It is said that an attempted suicide by a woman thousands of years ago gave birth to wine. This article looks at the fascinating history of wine.
While the origin of wine is still unknown to the world, ancient Persian fable credits a woman as the discoverer of wine. According to the fable, the woman lost to the King and wished to end her life by eating spoiled table grapes stored in a jar. The suicide attempt did not go as she planned; instead she got intoxicated and eventually passed out. When she woke up, she felt as if all her troubles had vanished and this event encouraged her to continue taking the spoiled grapes. So going by this pleasant story, one can say that wine is not an invention of man but was rather found by luck.
The history of wine is as old as the civilization, the agriculture and the man himself. Archeologists suggest that wine was discovered accidentally during 6000 and 5000 BC. in the Fertile Crescent area, a region in between the Nile and the Persian Gulf. Archeological evidence has uncovered the earliest European wine production from crushed grapevines in Macedonia 6500 years ago.
From the time of discovery of wine to this present date, wine has played a very crucial role in many rituals and customs of the society. . In the ancient Egyptian period, wine became an integral part of ceremonial life, mainly funerary ceremonies. Only the wealthiest Egyptians like the Pharaohs were able to enjoy wine. Wine was also common in ancient Greece and Rome and in many other Western European countries.
The Egyptian Era
Though scientists have identified a wine jar from Hajji Firuz Tepe in the Northern Zagros Mountains of Iran, the widespread knowledge of wine cultivation is believed to have come from ancient Egypt. The wine- making process was represented on tomb walls dating back to 2600 BC. Maria Rosa, a master in Egyptology says that wine in ancient Egypt was of great importance and only the upper class people and kings had access to wine. Rosa further points out that the ancient Egyptians labeled the wine jars with product, year, source and the vine grower’s name, but there is no mention about the color of the wines. A recent discovery has shown that the wines in ancient Egypt were predominantly red.
The Greeks
Arrival of wine making process in ancient Greece is not well documented; many believe that wine- making tradition was introduced to Crete by the Phoenician traders. Strong evidences of wine production have also been collected from Minoan Mycenaean cultures.
Wine was a very important trading article in Greece commerce. The Greeks were able to set up their colonies throughout the Mediterranean and this in turn eased the export of Greek wines in the region. The Greeks learned how to prevent wines from spoilage by adding different herbs and spices. Wine in ancient Greece was stirred in a bowl before drinking.
Apart from trading, the Greeks used wine in the field of medical sciences. One of the well known medicine practitioner, Hippocrates, also known as the “Father of Medicine” studied wine extensively for its use in medical sciences, specially to cure fever, convalescence and as an antiseptic. It must be mentioned here that the Greeks were equally aware about the negative health effects produced by drinking wine.
The Roman Empire
The Romans developed the viticulture (cultivation and study of grape growing) and oenology (the science of wine and winemaking). In the Roman Empire, wine formed a vital part of their daily meals as water could not always be trusted to be safe and healthy. During this period, wine- making technology became more established with a significant impact on the Roman business. The Romans developed barrels to store and ship wine, while bottles were used for the first time in the history of the wine world. The Romans are also known to have dissolved pearls in wine for their better health.
With the expansion of Roman Empire, wine production expanded to all of its provinces. During the Dark Ages when Roman Empire fell and when Europe passed through social and political turmoil, wine production was kept alive by the efforts of monasteries. Churches are known to have developed some of the finest vineyards in Europe.
Wine in Ancient China
Although wine was not much of a favorite of the ancient Chinese people, its production and consumption was popular in three different periods, mainly the Han Dynasty, Tang Dynasty and the Yuan Dynasty. In ancient China rice wine was not as much popular as the grape wine.
Wine in the Middle Ages and Modern Life
Wine became popular in the Middle Ages, it was considered as a social drink for all occasions. In the northern regions of the Europe where no grapes were grown, beer and ale were predominant and in the Eastern part Vodka was the preferred drink.
America, Chile, Argentine, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand that produce wide varieties of wines are considered as the New World Wine Producers. The products of these countries were not well known to the wine lovers until late in the 20th Century.
The industrial revolution in the 20th century has provided wine manufacturers with new technology and innovation that has made production much more efficient. Considerable R&D advances in viticulture and oenology have helped the present day manufacturers to produce more varieties of wines of much superior quality.
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Sphere: Related ContentCopy then Artwork
A good marketing advertisement pays attention to both content and layout. But always, always, always, compose the copy first. The design must reemphasize the strongest points in the copy, and never be created independently of it.
Otherwise, your stuff might look great but have too little substance, or have a visual message that conflicts with the copy, or force your most important points into some hard-to-read corner.
Copywriters often have a sense of good design, and prepare a rough layout for the graphic artist to work from (or, if the design is simple, actually create both elements together). But trying to fit text to suit illustration and design is a definite mistake.
The only exception is in a very small piece. In some instances, like a business card with a strong graphic, you may have a very clear idea of the look before you write the words. If the whole idea is to dominate the page with a graphic, such as your company logo, and fit in contact information around it, obviously the words come second place.
But always ask yourself if this card is doing the strongest selling job it can. Maybe you need a sales sentence and should shrink the logo down a bit unless your product, too, is graphically oriented. Make sure the graphic is appropriate to your message and if it is not, throw out the concept.
Effective Copywriting and Wonderful copywriting:
1. Catches the reader’s attention with something relevant;
2. Addresses the reader’s fears, anxieties, or aspirations;
3. Stresses benefits to the user, not the features that lead to those benefits;
4. Offers to solve the reader’s problem, in the most specific terms possible;
5. Gives the reader with a chance to acquire something of clear value, but only for a limited time;
6. Pulls the reader toward an immediate next step;
7. Shows the consequences of a failure to act;
8. Backs up claims with comparisons to the competition;
9. Includes solid, substantial proof of your claim by someone else (a customer, an expert); and
10. This should be obvious, make sure you provide the necessary order form, address, telephone number and e-mail to allow the reader to take action.
You may not get all ten in every marketing document, but aim to include as many as you can. These group together into several bunches.
Writing promotional material is both a science and an art. Doing your own press release or flier copy is pretty straightforward. But if you’re going to spend a lot of money doing a brochure or newsletter, make sure the copy is worth the investment.
Certainly you can try to do your own, following the principles outlined above. But before you print the final, try out the advertisement on people who will give you accurate and detailed feedback. Writers who sell are writers who revise, so be prepared to do several drafts. Then leave it for a few days and come back to it with a fresh mind.
Or call in outside help. Either outline the project to a writer and wait for a draft, or write the first draft yourself and then let an editor put the magic in it. Whether you or the outside consultant prepare the first draft, expect to play with it. Make sure each section uses strong sales language. Examine the different sections together, to see if they fit well and are in the right order.
Where do you find writers and editors? Get recommendations from other business owners whose marketing materials you respect. Look in the Yellow Pages under Editorial Services, Marketing Consultants, Public Relations, or Publicity. Or, of course, have a look on web sites like elance.com or getacoder.com
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Sphere: Related ContentOnline Copywriting Tips - Words as Weapons
While visual design is crucial online, so too is the copy. It should not be neglected in favour of fancy slow-loading graphics.
Similarly, despite all your best efforts to optimise your site or search engine marketing strategies, if you don’t get the copy right you could see plenty of traffic but very low conversion rates. Rather than simply replicating your offline marketing collateral, copywriting in the online space needs careful attention if it is to address the different needs of your online customers.
While some of the same principles as print apply online, the interactive nature of online means the need to write with your online user’s behaviour in mind is paramount.
Headings
Arguably the most important aspect of online copywriting content, headings must be kept simple, relevant and grab attention. Think strong and engaging and make full use of your keywords in headings, particularly on the homepage.
Engage emotion
The most effective sites clearly identify the value proposition from the home or landing page. Write with your visitor’s expectations in mind — why are they online, why are they visiting your site, what do they really want?
The content on your homepage needs to resonate with your reader so they carry on to complete the desired action. A principle that applies both off and online is that if your copy emotionally engages the reader it transforms a passive reader into a proactive buyer.
Customer centric
Online users tend to be in information-hungry mode. They want to know what you can do for them, not all about your company, so tell them clearly what’s in it for them. Be generous with your information and highlight the fact that you have free content, top tips, a latest news section to build traffic to your site.
Most people go online to find information and research purchases, so if your information is free, useful and accessible it will help you to establish credibility which will do wonders for your brand and build repeat visits. By giving you will get back.
Benefits
Use the online space to communicate the direct benefits of your products’ features, don’t just describe the features, but build on how these will add value to them and their lives.
Answer these questions for your target market by always asking:
what’s in it for them?,
is it better value than our competitors product(s)?
is it more reliable?
will it make our customers lives easier?
how will it improve their lives?
You can go into a lot more detail online so don’t miss the opportunity to do so.
Keep it brief
However, while the online environment allows you to provide more information it also means seriously low levels of patience, so make sure you get to the point before your visitor clicks out of your site altogether. Use short blocks of text, plenty of headings, short sentences and clear link text that makes sense.
Use your copy to coax visitors along the site process and in action until the point of conversion or until they complete he desired action. Clearly articulate how easy it is to respond by communicating how simple it is to pay online, how quick delivery time is and highlight online cost savings.
Know your target market and who you want to attract. Make sure your copy style and tone connects with your readership if you’re an upmarket luxury travel agent, for example, you need the copy to reflect the lifestyle of your target market. Be relevant otherwise people won’t stick around for long.
Remember Keywords
Think carefully about your keywords, ie those that you optimise to drive traffic to your site. While popular keywords are likely to be used by many online players, if you pay careful thought and attention to keywords you can select niche ones that will see targeted traffic arrive at your site keywords need to be deftly woven into your copy, sp ~` as well as writing with the reader in mind you should always write with search engines in mind.
Consistency is key
Make sure the style of your copy is consistent, that it flows across the pages, talks directly to the user and is grammatically correct. Building and maintaining your customer’s trust online is intrinsic to effective online copywriting and it stands to reason that sloppily written and badly punctuated copy is not going to build much faith in your company or products. Checks f and double-check your website’s copy to ensure there are no embarrassing typos or lazy writing.
Build Trust
Consumer cynicism is at an all time high in the online environment - make sure you engender trust in your products via your copy or you could see sceptical consumer leave your web site swiftly.
Since anyone can establish a web site it’s important that you build trust online so that customers are happy buying or sharing data with you rather than deciding a big-brand competitor is a safer bet.
Once you have established trust they will buy from you and copy is crucial for reassuring online users. Make it clear that customers have a money-back guarantee, state upfront that postage and packaging is extra, and never forget to point them to an offline, bricks and mortar customer contact point.
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