These days, websites are always overflowing with information. Full of invasive popups, sliders or other moving elements that distract us from what we should be doing while browsing a web page.
This is why I think it is important to work on visual, but especially textual essentiality to expose important messages and concepts.
If you feel exactly the same way and want to move away from multimedia web pages tangled with complex and, sometimes, very long texts I suggest you continue reading Anna Rachele Capolingua’s interview that will help us understand how to improve the experience and engagement through the use of precise and studied microcopy.
After you finish reading, I’m sure you will immediately want to change all the text on your website đŸ™‚ .
So let’s get started!
What is a microcopy?
When we talk about microcopy (whether you pronounce it in English or Italian is really irrelevant) we refer to a very short text that guides the user between steps of the customer experience on the web, supports his actions or invites him to take a relevant action.
Basically, these are all those small texts that aim to emphasize the benefit of an action and increase conversions.
They are some of the most difficult texts to write, in my opinion!
Some practical examples where you use microtexts on a website?
Let’s start with some basic characteristics of microtexts. They must:
- Reassure (at the most relevant moments such as transactions, reservations, contact requests)
- Excite (as in sales texts, titles and subtitles)
- Represent the brand (making the tone of voice a little more human but also defining positioning)
- Convince (to buy, sign up, contact, click)
Let’s look together at some practical examples.
AirBnb reassures its users: you will not receive any charges at this stage. Quietly continue your search for information.
Lush excites by telling in one sentence the emotions you can feel with this bath bomb.
Pixar’s 404 page represents the brand, cracks a smile, and makes the company a little more human.
How can call-to-action microcopy be improved?
Call to actions are really important texts: they are one of the most relevant touch points between the company and its customers.
I summarize in 3 practical tips, which you can apply right away, to improve your CTAs.
Tip No. 1: Avoid “find out more.” One of the most important copywriters on the Italian scene explains why: in an interview on the Shopify blog, Luisa Carrada says that “Discover more” is the negation, the antithesis of a precise message. Not so much because it is overblown, but because it anticipates very little, practically nothing, about what awaits us after the click. […] “Find out more” has two flaws:
- “find out” tells us nothing;
- “more” does not tell us the what.
I really wouldn’t know how to explain it more clearly.
Tip No. 2: Pay attention to the verb: it’s about the action you’re asking your prospects to take; make sure it’s clear, specific, and allows them to understand what they’re going to do.
Tip No. 3: emphasize the benefit: and explain what the user will get after clicking the button.
If these tips are not enough for you, you can learn more about this topic by watching this webinar of mine.
Off-site microcopy: newsletters and adv campaigns
Yes, microcopy is everywhere!
Paying attention to small text in newsletters can mean a dramatic change in the results of our content marketing campaigns.
Let’s think about newsletters: paying proper attention to subject line, preview text, and call-to-action means trying to improve the most relevant KPIs and conversion rates with respect to the marketing objective we set.
image source: https://it.semrush.com/blog/esempi-microcopy-come-trasformare-piccoli-testi-in-grandi-risorse/
Check out the awesomeness of this Welcome email from Tonki!
It best represents the brand’s tone of voice and, in just a few simple words, really makes you feel the warmth of this community.
The use of one’s contact’s name immediately makes the text warmer and more personalized, a shrewdness that can make each microcopy a little more human and less robotic, but equally effective.
In adv campaigns, microcopies follow the rules of sales copywriting, but compress them into text that must respect the character count of the platform we have chosen.
Your goal is to persuade, and to achieve this you can apply Cialdini’s levers, work with the A.I.D.A. or P.A.S. scheme. insert some small storytelling element… But, above all you have to know your target audience thoroughly. And I’m not just talking about biographical data but also their needs, wants, and how the product you’re sponsoring can meet their needs.