Writing User-Friendly Website Content

15 years ago, I wrote "Write Better, Sell Better". The tagline that defined my career. Since then, I've written copy for Fortune 500 companies, projects that made millions, and taught copywriting at the university → Yep, writing is my life. But you don't have all semester long to learn. This post contains my 7 biggest writing lessons: (Save and repost this 60-second class ♻️) --- 1. Clarity is 90% of your writing Clarity beats cleverness 10 times out of 10. Remember: First, write clearly. Then, write creatively. Most focus on "creative" right off the bat = big no. (If you can do both, jackpot) --- 2. Use signposting to showcase authority I teach this technique to every single client. (This sentence you just read was a signpost) Signposts are short "signals" to your expertise and results. Think of them as signs on the side of the road, which allow you to "trust" the journey you're on. Can you notice where else I used it in this post? 😉 --- 3. Too much copy? Make it choppy. Here are 2 examples (the second one is better): Sometimes, we write super long sentences that we have no time to breathe and neither do our readers. Sometimes, we write super long sentences. We have no time to breathe. And neither do our readers. Chop it up! It's easier to read. --- 4. Write unselfishly. Edit relentlessly. Think about it. Writing is 80% editing. You are tweaking, optimizing, and making things sound perfect. One bit of advice: Don't hold back. Edit (ehm, delete) anything that isn't on-topic. I've deleted probably 40% of this post. --- 5. Use sensory words. Add texture to text. That had to hurt! → That had to "sting"! Having a bad day? → Having a "rough" day? A seamless process → A "silky-smooth" process All of the 2nd descriptions above can be "felt". It's how your readers "touch an emotion", not just "read text". --- 6. Never write to "everyone" Remember this for all time: "Everyone" is not your audience. Sales happen when your prospect can clearly "see" themselves in your writing. So how do you go about this? --- 7. The "Dear son" writing method Pick "one" person to speak to → I speak to my son. For you, it could be your best friend, the old you etc. I start everything with "Dear son" and end with "Love, Dad". In the end, I simply delete these 2 parts. Doing so creates such a powerful connection with your readers + a consistent tone of voice. With every word. Where there's connection, there's trust. And where there's trust, there's sales. Words to live by. --- Write Better, Sell Better = that's the whole game! Let me know which lesson you enjoy the most. Professor Jay, out. (Repost this for your network ♻️)

75% of visitors that land on your PDP bounce. That’s 3 out of 4 potential customers, gone. Why? Because most sites make visitors do the work: • Finding key product details • Figuring out why it’s worth buying • Searching for trust signals before committing But shoppers shouldn’t have to think. They should instantly believe you’re the right solution. In this post I'll be sharing a comprehensive guide of 12 changes you can do to your PDP to highlights benefits and convert shoppers.  1. Show key concerns your product solves. Keep them as a badge and place it above the product title. Gets them interested from the top of the page.       2. Highlight who is this product for. Place this under the product title. Important for skincare, personal care websites.       3. Highlight the quantity they get for the price they pay. This cab be grams, litres, days of supply.       4.  Add a badge like "Best seller", "Most loved". Do this where it's relevant. This builds confidence in their purchase decision.       5. Add the results the product has driven. This can be for other customers or the result of a clinical study you have conducted.       6. Show image thumbnails. The image gallery is the fastest way to tell what's in your product, how to use it, when to use it. Get them to scroll through it.       7. Highlight 3-5 key benefits of the product. Keep this in 1 line and have them in bullets or with icons.       8. Tell WHY is your product effective. In this example, I've added an ingredients section to explain that.       9. Keep add-to-cart as the primary CTA. And not buy now. This is relevant for skincare websites since you can cross-sell other products in this routine.      10. Optimize the area around the add to cart. Highlight shipping time, free shipping, where you ship.      11. Motivate purchase with samples or free gifts on orders. Shopper should spend $X to avail this. Increasing your AOV while delighting the shopper.      12. Add a cross-sell. Like 'Complete this routine', 'Complete this look'. Show which products go well with this one. Make it easy to add to cart from this page.      Other changes I did: • Removed auto slide from the announcement bar • Added breadcrumbs to help navigate to parent category (reduces bounce rate from PDPs) • Underlined reviews and added the review count. What’s one PDP change that made a difference for you? Drop it in the comments. P.S. If your product has not clinically proven to solve a problem, don’t mention it. The goal isn’t just one purchase. It’s about building a brand that lasts. One that's trusted and gets repeat buyers. Not one that dilutes its name for short-term sales.

I've reviewed thousands of LinkedIn posts that never took off. They all share one missing ingredient. Not better headlines Not smarter hashtags Not posting at 9:47 am on Tuesday Emotion. The posts that break through (the ones that get saved, shared, and commented on) make people feel something specific. Emotion leads to action, impact, connections and results. Shaan Puri (from My First Million) breaks it down perfectly with his 7-emotion framework. Every strong piece of content hits at least one of these emotional notes: 1️⃣ LOL - that's so funny Your audience laughs out loud. The algorithm notices shares 2️⃣ OHHH - now I get it! You break through confusion. People screenshot and save 3️⃣ WOW - that's amazing! You surprise them. Comments flood in with 'this is incredible' 4️⃣ AWW - that's sooo cute You create warmth. Tags multiply because people want to share the feeling 5️⃣ YAY - that's great news! You deliver a win. Celebrations spark engagement 6️⃣ WTF - that pisses me off You channel frustration. People vent in the comments 7️⃣ FINALLY - someone said it! You validate what they already think... 'Exactly'! becomes your top comment And this isn’t just true for creators. It’s especially true for founders, CEOs, and leaders. People don’t come to LinkedIn to (only) read your press release.. they come to feel inspired, challenged, even surprised. The leaders who get this build real communities.. and see a real ROI on their business, too. That's the algorithm hack nobody wants to hear: there is no hack. Just better content.

✍🏽 How To Write Better To Help People Read. With practical guidelines on how to help readers scan content more efficiently and understand it better ↓ ✅ Users rarely read on the web: they mostly scan. ✅ Chunks of unformatted text cause F-Shape scanning. 🤔 Users miss large chunks of content and skip key details. ✅ They read ~20% of a page; longer page → less reading. ✅ They spend 80% of time viewing the left half of a page. 🤔 When we use longer words, users skip shorter words. 🚫 Avoid long walls of text → max. 50 words/paragraph. 🚫 Avoid long sentences → max. 20 words/sentence. ✅ Write for mobile first: brief, clear, concise — prioritize. ✅ Leave room for translation: text might grow by 40%. ✅ Map your voice and tone against impact and purpose. ✅ Choose your words depending on the tone to match. ✅ Include a plain language summary, even for legal docs. ✅ Use Inverted Pyramid: key insights first, details below. ✅ If it doesn’t sound right, it doesn’t read right either. 🚫 Nothing is more effective than removing waste/fluff. On the web, people scan pages at incredible speeds. They jump from headings to bold keywords to bullet points. They puzzle together pieces of content. They seek insights and answers in unstructured and poorly written walls of text. And too often words are generic, technical, formal, long and overcomplicated. Plain language always works better. Shorter sentences are easier to read. Simpler words are easier to understand. It holds true for everyone, including domain experts and specialists who typically have the most to read. Yet too often, words are chosen almost mindlessly — along with repetitive phrases, unnecessary details and confusing jargon. A great way to avoid it is to test your writing. Read aloud critical parts of your messaging. If it doesn’t sound right, it most likely doesn’t read right either. Ask people to highlight parts that they find most useful. Use Cloze test to check comprehension. And: prioritize what matters, and declutter what doesn’t. ✤ Content Design in Design Systems Atlassian: https://lnkd.in/eGpzQqm4 Amplitude: https://lnkd.in/eaB85T7n 👍 DHL: https://lnkd.in/eF494fkT Girlguiding: https://lnkd.in/eZ8zMyC3 👍 Gov.uk: https://lnkd.in/ekRadXad 👍 Intuit: https://lnkd.in/eGyBUrZ2 👍 JSTOR: https://lnkd.in/eAnyrtcu 👍 MetLife: https://lnkd.in/evVE8sqf 👍 Monzo: https://lnkd.in/edVV8QWz Progressive’s: https://lnkd.in/evx_8bzY 👍 Schibsted: https://lnkd.in/et_BXg6R Shopify: https://lnkd.in/eAKgEHNW Skrill: https://lnkd.in/e2HGTq4q 👍 Slack: https://lnkd.in/ejZ2QtJa Zendesk: https://lnkd.in/euxijT5m 👍 Wise: https://lnkd.in/eWk-Mvf9 ✤ Useful resources: Plain Language Guidelines https://lnkd.in/eV2sxSyJ How To Write Good Interface, by Nick DiLallo https://lnkd.in/edwTaKcQ Content Testing Guidelines, by Intuit https://lnkd.in/ewZSVT3i Voice and Tone In UX Writing (+ PDF Worksheets) https://lnkd.in/e6r4cC8Y #ux #writing

What companies get wrong about content marketing Most businesses approach content like this: → Write a blog post about circular economy principles → Share it once on LinkedIn → Wonder why nobody engaged → Conclude "content marketing doesn't work for us" Here's what's actually happening: Your content is for you, not for your audience. You're writing about what you think is interesting (circular economy theory) instead of what your potential clients are actually struggling with (how to comply with new regulations without blowing their budget). You're using language that makes sense to you (technical jargon, industry acronyms) instead of language your clients actually use. You're answering questions nobody's asking. Good content marketing starts with listening. What language do they actually use when describing their problems? What keeps your ideal client awake at 3am? What questions do they ask in sales calls? What objections do they have? Then you create content that addresses those real concerns. In their language. On their timeline. One blog post shared once isn't a strategy. It's a Hail Mary. A strategy is: → Understanding your audience's actual pain points → Creating content that addresses those specific challenges → Showing up consistently, not just when you feel like it → Building trust before asking for anything → Making your expertise accessible, not impressive Sustainability companies have the expertise. They have the solutions. What they're missing is the bridge between what they know and what their clients need to hear. That's what marketing does. And when it's done right, it doesn't feel like marketing at all. It feels like having a conversation with someone who actually gets it.

Stop trying to sound smart, start making sense. Your clever copy is killing conversions. And sales. Most B2B brands talk like they’re trying to win a poetry contest. - Smart-sounding. - Buzzword-packed. - Internally approved. And completely useless. Your audience? They’re distracted. Tired. Already moved on. They’re not going to sit there trying to interpret your headline like it’s a riddle from an escape room. Every second they spend trying to figure you out… is a second closer to them bouncing. Here’s what actually works: 🛏 “This fits a queen-size bed.” 🎵 “1000 songs in your pocket.” 💸 “Vendors get paid faster.” No guesswork. No confusion. Just pure signal. Meanwhile, the average B2B pitch still sounds like this: “Empowering transformative solutions via synergistic data frameworks.” What does that even mean? Still reading it. Still confused. Still not buying. It's just BS consultese...not human...not brand. Here’s the shift: Smart brands remove friction. They don’t create it. They understand that simplicity isn’t dumbing it down, it’s levelling it up. Yes mom, less is more! Not everyone will admit this, but… 💡 Simplicity builds trust. 🧠 Clarity reduces decision fatigue. 💬 Specificity beats cleverness. Every time. So here’s a quick challenge: Open your homepage. Read your main headline out loud. Ask yourself: would a 10-year-old understand what I sell? If not, start there. Because in a world full of options, people choose what they understand fastest ...not what they think might be better. Don’t make them think. Make them nod. Make them say: “That’s exactly what I need.” Or: "HELL YEAH!!!"

Don't just write to fill the page. Instead, write to inspire and motivate. Many writers focus on things like: - Perfect grammar - Complex vocabulary - Lengthy explanations When there are more impactful elements... That truly touch and inspire the reader. I've written hundreds of motivational pieces, and here are 9 key tips to craft inspiring content... 1. Share Personal Stories ↳ Make your experiences relatable. ↳ Show vulnerability and authenticity. ↳ Connect with readers on a personal level. 2. Use Powerful Quotes ↳ Choose quotes that resonate deeply. ↳ Use them to reinforce your message. ↳ Integrate quotes from influential figures. 3. Keep It Simple ↳ Avoid jargon and complex language. ↳ Ensure your content is easy to digest. ↳ Make your message clear and concise. 4. Focus on Positivity ↳ Highlight the positive outcomes. ↳ Emphasize hope and possibilities. ↳ Encourage a forward-thinking mindset. 5. Be Specific ↳ Provide actionable advice. ↳ Detail steps to achieve goals. ↳ Use concrete examples and scenarios. 6. Engage Emotions ↳ Tap into the reader's feelings. ↳ Use evocative language and imagery. ↳ Create a strong emotional connection. 7. Be Authentic ↳ Write from the heart. ↳ Authenticity resonates with readers. ↳ Be true to your voice and experiences. 8. Encourage Action ↳ Provide a clear call to action. ↳ Motivate readers to take steps. ↳ Inspire them to make a change. 9. Reflect and Revise ↳ Take time to review and refine your work. ↳ Make necessary adjustments to improve. ↳ Ensure your message is clear and impactful. Of course, style and technique matter. But I'll prioritize these tips any day of the week. P.S. Which tips will you use in your next piece?

Most copy fails because of the lack of positioning. (Here's why & what you can do about it →) I have worked with 50+ founders across different niches. From fintech to healthcare and AI. But one thing remains constant. I often see that startups try to juggle too many messages, features, taglines, audience segments and USPs. They spend money on ads and thousands on marketing, wondering why there's no conversion. The problem? A lack of strategic narrative. 🚫 Messy positioning looks like: • Saying too much, and standing for nothing • Messaging changes every quarter • Website copy full of fluff, not clarity • Customers can’t explain what you do ✅ Strategic positioning hits different: • Your core message is sharp and simple • Every word reinforces your edge • Customers “get it” instantly • Your team sounds aligned (because they are) Here's how I'd suggest you get started: 1. Agitate the Problem Start with the pain. Position around what’s broken—not just what your product does. 2. Research Extensively Understand the market. Find your distinct edge. Why you, and not the next tab? 3. Clarify the Who Get specific. Who exactly are you for? Know their pain, context, and current alternatives. 4. Define ONE Core Proposition Don’t sell everything to everyone. Pick a lane. Lead with one sharp, clear promise. 5. Kill Your Darlings Drop the buzzwords. Cut complexity. If it doesn’t land in seconds, it’s not working. 6. Test & Optimise Real positioning lives in the wild. Ship it, learn fast, and refine as you go. Clear positioning leads to confident copy. Copy that gets you clients. What else would you add? P.S. If you need help turning content into sales calls, DM me "positioning". I'd be happy to share how we can map this out for your business ;)

The more you inject empathy into your content, the better the results. Here's proof... 👇 AI is an incredible tool for content creation, but the secret sauce to truly stand-out messaging? Empathy and humanity. When you approach ChatGPT (or any AI tool) with empathy, you get more personalized, impactful, and human-centered content. Here’s why: 🧠 Understanding your audience’s feelings: Empathy helps you ask the right questions, resulting in content that resonates on a deeper emotional level. 🧠 Creating more relevant responses: You’re not just answering questions—you’re speaking to your audience’s lived experiences and values. 🧠 Improving tone and engagement: Content infused with empathy feels more conversational and less robotic, fostering trust and connection. Let me show you how this plays out in action: Before: ➡️ "Our nonprofit helps communities access better healthcare services. Donate today to support our mission." After applying empathy: ➡️ "Imagine not being able to access the healthcare you need. You’re scared, unsure what the future holds. That’s the reality for many communities we serve. But with your support, we can change that. Every donation brings us one step closer to ensuring no one is left behind when it comes to their health." Notice the difference? The second example connects with the reader’s emotions, creating a sense of urgency and responsibility. It's specific, and it invites the reader into a situation that makes them feel uncomfortable. This discomfort motivates them to solve (or prevent) a problem. As social impact leaders, when we build content rooted in empathy, we unlock more effective ways to connect with our audiences on a deeper level. If you're looking to build trust, authority, and credibility in your thought leadership, start by infusing empathy into every interaction.

AI Overviews are changing how content gets discovered. Here’s how to help AI find and surface your content. We still write for humans first. That hasn’t changed, nor will it. But now there’s a new layer to consider, which is making sure your human-centered content can actually be found by AI. Think of it like this: you can be the most eloquent storyteller in the room, but if you're speaking a language the translator doesn't understand, your message never reaches the audience. The shift is subtle but significant. When you say, "Our shoes are comfortable for hiking long distances," you're connecting with human experience. When you say, "Pressure mapping shows 27% less forefoot compression than competitors," you're giving AI something concrete to work with. The best content does both. How to Make Your Content Do Both: 1) Specificity beats superlatives "Industry-leading performance" tells AI nothing. "Recognized as the most energy-efficient cloud provider by independent testing (2025)" gives it something to reference and cite. 2) Structure for scanning Both humans and AI value clear organization. Use headings that summarize what's coming. Break complex ideas into digestible pieces. Answer implied questions directly within your content. 3) Context through comparison Instead of "lightweight and fast," try "At 250MB, our app is 30% smaller than the industry average, reducing load times by 40%." AI looks for relationships and comparisons, not vague descriptors. 4) Define your terms When introducing a new concept, explain it in a way AI can recognize. Instead of "adaptive learning technology," say "AI-driven personalization that adjusts difficulty based on user performance." This improves clarity for both audiences. The goal isn't ever to write for robots instead of humans. It’s about making sure your human-first content is organized in a way AI can actually work with. We need to become bilingual, i.e., fluent in both human storytelling and machine logic. This evolution asks us to be more precise, more accountable, and more clear about our value propositions. Which, when you think about it, makes our content better for everyone. #AI #ContentStrategy #SEO #hicm