In this age of content strategy marketing and organizational storytelling, very few Web sites provide “just the facts, ma’am.” This is a good thing, because humans love a good story. A memorable story can elevate your company by creating camaraderie among your customers, helping you stand out from your competitors. There’s nothing wrong with using clever, compelling language to sell a product or service, as long as you take an authentic approach, as well as an entertaining one.
A good solution is to combine information with narrative. Information comprises the facts, data, and statistics about your organization: what do you do, how do you do it, what do you produce, how does it work? Narrative is the connective tissue between your facts: what are your customers’ challenges and success stories? How have your products made people’s lives better? It is a tricky balance – you need to combine the efficiency of a technical specification with the excitement of a good story.
To strike a good balance in writing for the Web, be sure you avoid the following three pitfalls:
- Purple prose – language that is overly ornate, flowery, or excessive. Yes, business writing – even technical writing – can exhibit purple prose. It’s not just a problem in literary fiction. Often, new writers who are trying to make a big splash fall prey to this. Metaphors, similes, and other literary devices are great, if used sparingly and appropriately. You want to write in a way that helps your customers connect with your company; you don’t want to confound them with an epic poem. Learn more about purple prose from The Advanced Edit.
- Weasel words – These are shortcuts that writers take to avoid doing necessary research. Here’s the example that the Web Designer Depot uses:“These are vague generalizations that are made for the convenience of the writer, not the audience. If a writer is rushed for time, he may write something like “most people feel that juice is 100% tasty”. The proper procedure is to find out the statistics and facts and work those into the sentence.”
- Inside jokes – if you have a narrow audience, industry-specific language or shared cultural references are perfectly fine. But don’t talk about the rivalry between the fans of Captain Kirk and Captain Picard unless you are a retailer of Star Trek collectibles. Don’t reference obscure movies or poorly known historical figures; don’t use jargon that only you and three other people in your field understand. Do have a glossary for those terms and give your users an unobtrusive option to learn more.
Before you publish your Web page, think about your readers and users. Will they find your content clear enough to act? Will they buy a product, request more information, or share your story with their social network? If the answer is yes, then you’ve struck a good balance. If the answer is no, or you’re not sure, edit!