Writing for the Web versus writing for print

Online marketing communications are cost-effective, quick to implement, and give you immediate, measurable feedback at the click of a mouse. It’s no wonder more and more corporations – large and small – are turning to Web sites, blogs, micro-blogs, and other social media.

A common mistake, though, is to just take your print materials and drop them onto the Internet. They simply don’t translate, and here’s why:

•    People have no time – they are trying to do three times as much in the same time, just like you are
•    People have no attention span – they want access to answers immediately, and the Internet has trained them to expect that
•    People have no tolerance – they  know they can click somewhere else in an instant if they’re dissatisfied or disinterested

So before you go online with your 8-page white paper or even your 3-page brochure, consider these three tenets of writing for the Web:

1.    Make it quick – Make one clear point, support it and get out of there
2.    Make it relevant – Know the answers your customers are looking for and don’t clutter your message
3.    Make it good – Do whatever it takes to deliver high-quality online content