Most businesses would never dream of skimping on their website design. They know cheap, unprofessional design will turn most customers off before they even look at what’s on offer. Straight back onto Google search*. (*other web browsers are available)

Professional copywriting is often seen as an unnecessary expense. “Here’s what we are selling”. It’s not rocket science. They can get by with doing that themselves. Which is understandable, really. Especially for start-ups trying to squeeze every penny from their pound. Who knows the product better than the business owner who has been slaving so hard to get to this point?

They’re absolutely right.

However, while no-one knows the product better than them, the ability to communicate its benefits to the customer most effectively- and then covert that interest into sales- is a science.

And it doesn’t take a scientist (rocket, or otherwise) to recognise businesses happy to ‘get by’ will always be in the slipstream of the ones who recognise its value.

Copywriters talk to the customer how they like to be talked to. They don’t like to be sold, they like to feel like it’s a conversation. A jargon-free explanation of how this product or service will serve them best- because that’s all they really care about- and leading them down the buying path to act. Which words to use and when. A time-tested mixture of language and psychology.

Led by emotion, sold by logic. It’s a skill and an art hard-won by hundreds of hours of practice and experience. Trying to muddle through without that is a false economy- draining precious time away from other areas of the business and with an end result that will only stand-up as long as the customer doesn’t test it against more professionally-crafted competitors.

And on that note. Copywriters know the strategies necessary to push your website up those precious rankings. What the algorithms look for, how they rank the credibility and usefulness of sites, and how to tailor your copy with that in mind.

Clever SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) ensures more and more customers find your business when they search for keywords and phrases. And the more that find you, the higher up those rankings you go again. Whether keywords on your landing-page or blogs and articles you post, a small one-time investment repays itself many times over with traffic sent your way for years to come. The gift that keeps on giving.

So businesses can ‘get by’ without professional copywriting. I could probably cut my own hair if I tried but there’s a very good reason I go to the guy around the corner. And it’s not just because I like the way he runs his fingers through my hair.