Last week I mentioned my four-month break from this ezine. I've been studying online copywriting and "website optimization." So, what is website optimization and how can it convert your site's visitors into customers?

This week's copywriting tip: The World Wide Web is a customer driven medium. It changes the way you think about...and write...your sales messages.

Let's take a look. Your prospect is out there, searching the internet. She doesn't know you yet, but she's looking for exactly what you offer. She types into a search engine, clicks, and gets a page full of results. Will she choose your site? Will she stay there? Will she even find you?

It comes down to this...the Web was invented as an information forum. That's how you and I still use it. It changes the way you think about advertising because your customer finds you thru the search engines!

Successful site owners know this, and they take full advantage. The secret to online marketing is user friendly AND search engine friendly content that gets visitors to your site and then moves them easily toward a sale (or contact, donation, subscription).

We call it website optimization...customer focused content, search engine optimization, and a fast, easy user experience. I'll get into more detail on all this in future issues, but for now remember this when writing content for your website—visitors usually arrive with a question in mind. Construct your customer-focused messages to answer their questions.

As to search engine optimization, the main thing to remember is to use the same words and phrases (keywords) in your writing that your prospects type into the search engines. This increases the chances your site will turn up in their search.

How do you know what those words are? Professional SEO research can get complicated, but the first step is to just ask your customers, and your CSR's, what words people use when they describe your product or service. Work those words into your writing.

Finally, make sure your site is easy to navigate. And create a look and feel pleasing to your visitors. Remember, they're searching for information, and they want it fast. They probably don't care that you have the fanciest site with all the bells and whistles.

I think you'll be hearing lots more about website optimization during these tough economic times. I'll be talking more about it here, too. Businesses are starting to ramp up their internet marketing looking to add new dollars to their bottom line...and so can you.