Building a solid reputation in the ecommerce industry can be difficult due to fierce competition and ever-changing expectations of international customers. One of the most basic and direct forms of building trust with website visitors is through copywriting and subsequently, through representative, relevant blog content.
According to 99 Firms, 85% of customers conduct online research before making a purchase, however only 2.86% of ecommerce visits convert into purchases. Likewise, close to 70% of shopping carts are abandoned before purchase is made, making professional copywriting a necessity rather than just a welcome addition. How can you benefit from copywriting in 2020 when it comes to ecommerce, and what are some of the things you should keep in mind? Let’s discuss it further.
Advantages of Good Copywriting in Ecommerce
When we discuss “copywriting” in ecommerce, what do we refer to? Does it involve your UI elements, your blog or calls to action directed at sales conversion? The truth is – a little bit of everything goes into copywriting. What is colloquially referred to as “copy”, represents every piece of written content present on your website. From navigation elements and customer forms to blog posts related to your industry – these are the pillars of copywriting in ecommerce.
Isabella Ryan, Content Writer and Editor at Best Writing Advisor said that: “What separates your Ecommerce platform from others lies in your copywriting. Avoid generic sales buzzwords or click-bait messages on your landing page – instead, aim to build a pro-consumer practice by treating each customer as an individual. A friendly tone of voice will always work better than a corporate, robotic approach to copywriting –and your platform’s performance will reflect such writing efforts.”
Due to the nature of ecommerce, very few business owners have the time to carefully craft their copywriting strategy in accordance with their target audience. The fact that ecommerce platforms are typically international and involve localization writing as part of their accessibility strategy doesn’t make things easier in this regard. Thus, if you commit to improve copywriting on your ecommerce platform, you stand to gain important benefits:
- Streamlined ecommerce platform navigation
- Higher SEO ranking due to targeted copywriting
- Better brand personalization, industry authority and customer loyalty incentive
Copywriting Trends to Consider in 2020
- SEO is Still Relevant
Despite the push toward personalization and UX, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) remains an essential part of online visibility. According to Impact BND, first five organic results in search engines account for 67.6% of clicks, while 91% of all pages never receive organic traffic. This makes informed copywriting a must for success in 2020.
Thus, you should aim to include trending keywords and phrases in your copywriting content as much as possible. Using an SEO audit tool to scan your ecommerce platform prior to making any changes to the formula is a great way to get started. Don’t make DIY changes to your SEO and always use reliable tools to double-check what works and doesn’t work in terms of search ranking.
- Personalization & Customer Appeal
In order to differentiate your ecommerce platform from the competition, you should aim to build a brand persona within your copywriting content. A brand persona represents a specific tone of voice and style of writing prevalent throughout your website, from its landing page to individual product pages.
Personal pronouns, casual wording and friendly messages can help in this regard as they will let the customer know that you appreciate their visit. You can go a step further and curate ecommerce content based on customers’ browsing habits, further appealing to their emotions and sense of being welcome. Failing to facilitate a personalized browsing experience will reflect on your platform’s performance in 2020 – make sure to consider it in your copywriting efforts.
- Testimonials & Numeric Data
Ecommerce platforms without any form of social proof on their landing pages or blog posts can easily lose public trust due to fear of misconduct. According to Social Media Today, 68% of customers trust opinions posted online, with 84% who trust purchase recommendations from people they know (including online influencers).
Thus, customers love to see numeric data which indicates how good a website is performing – this is especially true in ecommerce. Testimonials, short reviews and quotes from satisfied customers placed on your landing page can quickly help generate more leads. Social proof content should be included in your copywriting efforts as it will act as a literal “proof” of your professionalism and audience approval.
- Emphasis on Benefits over Features
Depending on the types of items you sell online, there should be a balance between “utility” and “technicality” in your copywriting. A typical customer looking for a microwave won’t care about its material or industrial design – they will care about how they can benefit from it.
It is pivotal that you emphasize benefits over features in your product descriptions and sales pitches throughout the ecommerce platform. Technical features, while still important, should be secondary when it comes to selling products to would-be customers. This type of personalized copywriting will allow visitors to imagine using your products, thus bringing them a step closer to the checkout page.
- Blog Posts within Product Pages
A simple yet effective way to bridge the gap between your blog and products is to write about your product portfolio in the articles themselves. Blog posts can find their way into your product descriptions as internal links leading to further information on any given item.
Doing so will enable visitors to quickly inform themselves of how to use certain items, what their benefits are and why they should purchase them. You can go a step further and integrate trending keywords, external resources and multimedia into blog posts, improving the content’s appeal. Such a copywriting initiative will not only improve your conversion rates but also your ecommerce platform SEO ranking as a whole.
- Ask for your Customers’ Opinions
Lastly, engaging your audience beyond direct sales is a sure-fire way to build loyalty and brand advocacy in 2020. Customers simply like to be heard, and enabling them to say what they think about your ecommerce platform will pay off in spades.
You can write special polls or surveys and post them on your social media pages or landing page, or you can create discussion-based blog posts. Aim to spark a conversation with your audience as much as possible through questions about their opinions on the industry and your own practices. Copywriting such as this will provide you with a plethora of comments and feedback which can easily be used to improve your website going forward.
Ecommerce Copywriting – An Ongoing Effort (Conclusion)
Settling into a copywriting routine and resting on your laurels can be detrimental for your brand – which is why you should commit to progressive innovation. When it comes to copywriting for ecommerce, the process never really ends. You can always improve your writing style or enrich the content you produce for the customer base through self-reflection, platform analysis and constructive feedback. With so many competing brands fighting for audiences’ attention in 2020, being original is the best thing you can do for your website.
Bio: Helene Cue is a passionate writer, content writing specialist and editor, exploring a broad spectrum of topics which revolve around digital marketing. Her career portfolio includes best term paper writing service contributions, as well as essays, articles and case studies on trending industry topics. Her pieces are always captivating and informative.
Image source: https://unsplash.com/photos/Hcfwew744z4
Helene Cue
Helene Cue is a passionate writer, content writing specialist and editor, exploring a broad spectrum of topics which revolve around digital marketing. Her career portfolio includes best term paper writing service contributions, as well as essays, articles and case studies on trending industry topics. Her pieces are always captivating and informative.