Let’s say you want to update your website content, but you’re not ready to dive in all the way.
You know that you want to change the written content on your website.
And you know exactly why:
- It’s been way too long
- Your budget is lacking
- The team doesn’t have time to do a complete overhaul for new copy
- Your current content doesn’t reflect your strategic goals
- You want something new sooner rather than later
My advice is to refresh your website content.
So, what does it mean to “refresh your website content”?
When I use the phrase, I use it in terms of editing instead of rewriting.
Refreshing is like a combined approach of line editing and copyediting. Let me break those down:
What is line editing?
Line editing is exactly what it sounds and reads as; it’s line-by-line editing that focuses on the “how”, which includes how you:
- communicate key messages
- use tone and voice
- choose words to convey ideas
Let me show you an example. Recently, I updated a few of my blog posts to better reflect the topics and also showcase my own growth as a writer. One of those was my post about red flags to watch out for when hiring a copywriter.
Here’s a paragraph that I did a line edit on:
Specifically, I cut it down to one sentence to better communicate the key message: what I’m describing is a red flag. On the left side (red) , you’ll notice that I don’t even use the phrase “red flag”, which is not great.
Also, the tone of the text on the left does not align with my own. In other words, it reads like a rant instead of an explanation of what the red flag is.
Lastly, the text on the right is too long. I can convey all of that in one sentence, which is why I did exactly that on the right side.
Think of line editing as the first pass at clarifying your big ideas.
Once you do that, you move onto copyediting.
What is copyediting?
Copyediting is the second part of what it means to refresh your website content. It’s the more technical approach. Copyediting focuses on the what, including:
- syntax
- grammar
- punctuation
- spelling
Let me show you an example:
In 2012, the Guardian published an entire article of the worst typos and grammatical errors. This one is especially fascinating:
If you copy and paste this title into a word processing program, you’ll see a ton of red squiggly lines. Everything I mentioned – syntax, grammar, punctuation and spelling – would need to be improved.
Here’s the thing:
We all make grammatical errors, even the best of the best copywriters.
But it doesn’t have to be this way!
Over to you
Sometimes time is money. This is especially true for the nonprofit sector.
That’s really it.
If you aren’t ready to figure out what you want the content to do, consider just refreshing it so it’s at least current and up to date. Later on, you want to invest in really making your written content shine.
Like in any case, you want to hire someone who can actually edit vs. only write.
Editing is just as much about knowing how to refresh website content as it is about knowing what’s best for your content.
My best advice for figuring out who knows how to do this is to learn about how they think. This is important because pretty content does nothing on its own, especially when it’s just living on one page on your website.
The content has to be intentional based on your organization’s goals and of course, your target audience. This is how you optimize it to “work” for you.
Here is a list of questions to ask copywriters that you can adapt for your specific situation.
Once you find the right writer who can edit or editor, it’s refresh time!
Looking for someone who knows how to edit website content with precision?
You’ve come to the right place.
Take a look at my marketing and communications bundles to help get your website content in order. Get the same content with a different angle and better results.