As I wrote in a previous post, the Internet was conversational before the web as we know it even existed.
Since then many writers, myself included, have worked hard to persuade companies and organizations that writing for the web should, above all else, be conversational in tone.
Have we been successful in turning the tide against old-school promotional copywriting, and boring, stiff corporate writing?
I’d say our success rate has been spotty at best.
If you remember the Internet from way back in the 1980s and 90s, you’ll doubtless recall there was no buying or selling stuff online back then.
No web browsers. No web.
But a lot of text-only discussion lists and bulletin boards.
That’s where we all got into conversation. Lots of conversations.
That why I say conversation is the native language of the web.
If you ever do any public speaking, or give presentations for work, you probably obsess a little over getting rid of all those Ums, Ers and other “fillers” that creep into your language.
Speaking coaches will train you to avoid them when speaking live. And audio engineers will edit them out when producing recorded speeches, presentations or training products.
But… it turns out that Ums and Ers actually have an important function.
I get this kind of pushback all the time.
Traditional copywriters and marketers suggest that conversational copywriting is somehow a compromise.
That it pulls its punches.
That’s it’s just copywriting lite.
They say that work at its best, copywriting HAS to include traditional, hard-selling tricks and techniques.
I think they’re wrong.
If you’re involved in marketing online, you’re doubtless aware of the power and benefits of automation.
Modern online tools allow you to target your future customers, entice them with the best offers, pull them into a powerful sales funnel, send out a series automated emails and then land them as customers.
The better your landing pages, sales funnels and email sequences… the higher your conversion rates.
The process truly is a marvel of modern technology. It really is.
And yet…
Any kind of language that creates distance between a business and its prospects and customers is a problem.
Put simply, you can’t turn a stranger into a customer by creating distance, by pushing people away.
Much of the time that distance is created by the language a company uses in its business and marketing communications.
First, overly promotional language creates distance simply by stimulating the reader’s defenses. Try to sell at me too hard and I’ll defend myself by stepping back, walking away or ignoring you altogether.
Secondly, overly formal, corporate language, filled with impenetrable jargon creates distance.