6 Effective Tips for Editing Web Content
When creating a website either by using a design platform such as Editor X or through the use of any other website builder, it’s not enough to write content. After all, the first version of the text is a draft. To make it informative and easy to read, put it in order. Edit it. You cannot show it to the reader at once, you have to show it to the editor. Well, or put the article aside and return to the revision yourself the next day. Sometimes it takes more time to edit and make corrections than to write. After all, you can improve any website content to infinity. There is no limit to perfection. So, editing web content is as important to good results as weeding in the vegetable garden. Here are some publishing tricks on how to get content ready for publication.
Adhere to an Editorial Policy
When reading a piece of text, check to see if the content adheres to an editorial policy. A content policy should answer three questions:
- Who is your primary audience?
- What are you giving your audience?
- How does your content help your audience?
It is the policy that determines the value of content to the business. If the article doesn’t meet these principles, you need to rewrite the text. Remember about formatting and structuring. Whether it’s a service/product page, blog, or “About” section, there should be two elements in the text: a bulleted list and bold or italics words. Each of these signals to search engines and users that there is important information here. But! If it’s a 500-character description, it’s unlikely that a list would be appropriate.
Editing Web Content – Be Mindful of Style Guidelines
A style guide is a set of rules or standards for writing so that texts are consistent and easy to read. Adhering to these standards and not forgetting the rules of grammar and spelling will make your texts better. Here are the most popular publishing guidelines, choose the right ones and use them if you prepare content:
- Associated Press Stylebook. This manual is used in newspapers, news magazines, and many online media.
- Chicago Manual of Style. One of the oldest and most comprehensive publishing standards. This manual has been updated for online media, so it is suitable for content marketing purposes.
- MLA (Modern Language Association) guidelines and academic publishing guidelines. Suitable for academic and technical writing.
Take psychology into account. On the Internet, people don’t like to read long sentences and paragraphs. Often they scan the content, clinging their eyes to the most important information and ignoring what cannot be read quickly. This is especially true for mobile devices.
Use Spell and Grammar Checker Services
Even literate authors would do well to use services where you can check for the correct spelling of words and sentence construction. For example, Grammarly and Hemingway. Of course, these services will not replace a professional proofreader but will help significantly improve the text. Various types of errors can have a negative impact on website content quality:
- Grammatical
- Stylistic
- Technical
- Typographical and other types of errors
Before publication, they need to be removed. This work can be done with the help of proofreading (by yourself or with the help of an editor), as well as with the help of special web services. It is worth paying attention to additional double-checking of facts, which is especially relevant for online stores that sell medications, equipment, baby food, professional equipment, and other similar products. Visitors believe the information posted on web pages, so incorrect information can cause injury, material, or moral damage.
Editing Web Content – Do not Cheat Yourself
It is not easy for an author to correct his or her work on his or her own, without the help of a professional editor. Here are a few tricks to proofread your texts more carefully:
- Written a first draft and planning to proofread? Change the font. Choose a different style, such as serif, change the color of the letters, or change the size.
- Read aloud, so you can see where the sentence is too “convoluted” and the reader will “stumble.
- Move your finger across the screen during proofreading.
Everything is individual, and the main thing is to reveal the topic, not spam it. If you write a short blog post or news story, don’t bloat it with meaningless constructs, just to get the coveted number of characters. There will be more harm done.
SEO Optimization of the Text
Also, keep in mind that content for the website should be optimized for search engines. It should contain the required number of keywords. If you’ve created content that is useful, informative, and interesting to your audience, of course, you’ll want people to be able to find it on search engines. To do this, make sure the headline includes words and phrases that your audience will use. Also work on the title for search engines, the URL, and include keywords and phrases in your metadata.
At the same time, articles should be written for people. If optimization hurts readability and text quality drops, SEO can be neglected.
Take Your Time to Edit
You can not use other people’s website content without reference to the source. It is not recommended to post website content in which there is any kind of errors. Make a content plan for your publications, but take your time. You’re not going to compete with the big news websites, are you? Once you’ve written a draft, set the text aside for a day or two, and only then proceed to proofread it with fresh eyes – you’ll be more useful.
Editing Web Content – Conclusion
Don’t be afraid to cut, crush, and remove website content parts. Only practice will help you achieve perfection. Maximum usefulness, minimum water, and simplicity – these are the three whales any website content is built on. Only without fanaticism: be careful – do not overdo it, so that the full-fledged text has not turned into a dry and compressed plan of the article. Everything must be in moderation. After all, it’s easy to lose the notes of authorship: the thing that distinguishes your website content from others.