5 things I don’t want to see on your website

Before I read someone’s website, I feel it. I look at the colors. I evaluate the amount of white space. I look at the sorts of words they use. Are they engaging? Human? Conversational?

Does it feel grounded, expansive, real? Do I feel excited by the possibility? Are they talking to people like me?

What many business owners don’t realize is how many people are doing this. Before they even get to your words… they are picking up on the emotional honesty and what the business stands for.

That said, here are 5 things I don’t want to see on someone’s website, word-wise:

  1. The words struggle, overwhelm, stuck or broke. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – you need to solve a problem for your people on your website… just watch the language you use to describe it. It’s not that these words are completely forbidden – but typically, they are evidence that you are in danger of attracting clients who are so overwhelmed or so stuck, they are not willing to hire you.
  2. Asking people to buy from you first. There are exceptions, but for most of us, you want to give people something BEFORE you ask them for their hard earned money. It’s like dating. You want to woo someone before you kiss them. Few people click on a buy button without knowing and having a relationship with the person doing the selling, anyway.
  3. Clichés. You do not need to sound like you are writing an advertisement for it to work. Please stop with the “take your business to the next level” and “now you can have it all”s. Clichés won’t ring true with savvier customers – it just sounds tired and played out.
  4. 6 and 7 figures. In certain circles, it’s impressive to talk about how much money you make. But it seems like this sort of language is on the outs. In fact, in the coaching world, there’s even a backlash – people who are making a great living, saying “you know what? A lot of people just want to make an extra grand a month or have a meaningful side gig.” It’s that sort of precision — and clarity about who you work with and what they want – that really resonates with people in a fresh way.
  5. Lots and lots of words. You don’t need to write a lot for your website to be effective. In fact, in most cases, there’s an inverse correlation between the volume of words – and your ability to connect and move people to action.

I’m a firm believer that you don’t need to follow some pattern of writing a website for it to be good enough. Where’s the fun in that? But over the years, my clients have convinced me that working from a template is a time saver.

So we give our clients templates for the pages they write with us in the Write Your Website production lab. But I encourage business owners to never stop there – find your own voice in your writing… and find words to express the world you’re fighting for (or creating) with your work. It’s an adventure not all business owners take, but the ones who do are better off for it.

Mighty thanks to vance_jl flickr photostream for the webpage image.

Stella Orange is a copywriter who helps people put their work into words. For eight years, she wrote email campaigns that resulted in more than a million dollars in sales for her clients. In that time, Stella also taught popular marketing writing workshops to business owners on both sides of the Atlantic -- and a few in Australia and New Zealand. In 2017, Stella cofounded a creative and consulting shop offering a complete and slightly unorthodox line of business advising and marketing services. She continues to write copy and advise clients on customer delight, how to resonate with more sophisticated, discerning clientele in your marketing, and just who, exactly, your ideal clients are. Stella is the founder of Show Up And Write, a weekly writing group and writes a letter every two weeks or so (here’s the sign-up). She lives with the Philosopher and their two kiddos in Buffalo, New York, a fifteen-minute bike ride to the Canadian border.

3 Comments


  1. Lisa Hamil

    Love these tips and I expect to incorporate. One other thing that I find difficult is videos that go on for 15 or 30 minues before delivering the message. Too many, ” but before I tell you this important secret, let me
    summarize the last 10 years of my life and why that is important…” or some such verbage.
    I am enjoying the learning with you, Stella! Blessings on your NEW look!

  2. Sue Kearney

    I love all five. And I’m adding one. When I see a sales page that goes on, and on, and on, and on(!) and does not, ever, reveal the fees, I’m done. I’m gone, and I’ll never buy from you. Just sayin’. Hiding the pricing feels nothing but sleazy to me. (And I’m posting this without even checking if you do this. Ah well….)

  3. Lisa Manyon

    Excellent points. I’m still a little wordy 😉

    Write on!~

    Lisa

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