Is your copy layout hurting your sales?

Years ago, newspaper ad reps used to tell people that they needed plenty of white space around their copy. Most people I talked with had the opinion that the advice was just a ploy to sell bigger ad spaces.

But it wasn't.

You really DO need some white space. Breathing room, so to speak. And now that we're using the web it seems more important than ever. We've all gotten in a hurry - so we look at a web page almost to see if we HAVE to read it. It's true - we're looking for an excuse not to.

This is a completely different situation than we have with a newspaper or a magazine. Those you might read while eating a solitary meal, or while riding a bus or an airplane. At those times you're looking for something interesting to read. On the web, most of us are not. We're looking for information, and scanning to see if what we want might be there.

And who can scan a wall of copy? Who even wants to try? It's easier to click away and find a friendlier page.

Even in print the white space around a headline or between paragraphs is helpful. It gives our eyes a rest and lets us focus in and find what we want to read.

And yet - I see web copy so dense, and in such a small font, that the only way I'd read it is if I believed it held something I absolutely needed to find.

I get marketing emails in the same format - but I can't tell you what they're selling, because I've never taken time to read any of them.

Right now you might be thinking about some of the long running ads that are dense copy covering an entire page in something like the Enquirer. But think twice about them. The copy is long, but there are definitely paragraph breaks, and sub heads and bullets scattered throughout.
Those elements keep pulling the reader's eyes along the page - so even if they're scanning, they've got a place to stop and see what's next.

Before you send your next letter, go back and make sure you've left space between your paragraphs - and slice up those paragraphs so that none is over 7 lines long - less is better.
If it's a sales letter, take some of your information and put it in bullet form - and add some sub-heads to build interest and keep your reader moving.

Meanwhile, check your web site. Make sure the font size is large enough to see when you're sitting back in your chair relaxing. Then check the white space for both readability and visual appeal. You don't want all of your sentences the same length, by the way.

Make everything you send out look easy to read - that's the key. Let your reader quickly scan to see what you're offering - and if that's the right person for your product, they'll go back and read everything in between.

Call or write if you need some help!

Marte
writer@marte-cliff.com
208-448-1479