Many websites make the mistake of being all flash and no substance. Nothing irritates potential customers more than visiting your website hoping to find information and instead seeing only blinding color and flashing borders. Of course, you want your website to be attractive, even snazzy, but if there is no useful information included in well-written copy, customers are going to go elsewhere.

Offering your potential clients and customers informative, well-written copy is one of the most important aspects of maintaining an effective website, one that brings you new customers and keeps the old ones satisfied.

When you write your web copy, it is important to realize that people read differently on a computer screen than they do on paper. People tend to scan online, rather than read every word. Web users also tend to be busy, goal-oriented people, and they want information presented in a no-nonsense kind of style.

Effective web copy makes every word count. Avoid making empty claims like "We're the best ever company in the world!" Your customers are smarter than that. Explain why your company is better than others. Give facts, and be straightforward. Avoid long paragraphs that beat around the bush.

Humor or off-color writing can turn off potential customers when you include it in your web copy. Remember, it is the World Wide Web, and a joke in one culture can be an insult in another. Write in a universal, culturally-sensitive way and you will appeal to a wide audience.

However, that does not mean your copy must be boring. Be creative! Include customer testimonials and comments. Explain what your business has to offer step-by-step. Describe why your business is different from others, and what makes it unique. Also, be sure to write and spell correctly, and your copy will be an effective tool to help your website succeed.

Alan Richardson publishes "Successful Marketing Strategies" an informative newsletter full of internet marketing strategies. He is also the owner of Home Business Discovery where you will find informative articles about internet marketing and get a Free subscription to "Successful Marketing Strategies".