HOME PAGE COPYWRITING – Are you writing for your market?

One of my pet peeves is white text on a black background. It’s hard to read. As I get older, it gets harder to read. This week’s anonymous website review loves white on black. It’s a site for a cooking school in Northeastern US. And it works, even with that crazy text.

This cooking school has a very busy sight. Lots going on…live chat, rotating photos, tour option, action video, “Meet the Chef”, etc. It’s a lot to take in, but it’s also clear that the school is targeting under-25’s, which helps explain the frenetic feel. There’s a TON of information, for me an overwhelming amount, and it made me realize something.

This site ranks highly in Google. Part of that’s a function of the school’s renown, but this website does a lot right. My biggest problem with it is I have trouble reading it because of the white text and the abundance of data. For me it’s too much.

But I’m not the market. This site is geared toward potential students, and does a good job of laying out the features of the school. This is what you get, and this is what your experience will be like. All your questions answered.

But am I the market? This is an expensive school, one which parents will likely need to pay for. If I’m paying for my kids to go to school, I’d like to be able to access the information easily. But I can barely read the text!

Actually, I’m just a sub-market for this school – the checkwriter in this instance. It’s an important role, though, and there are a few elements I’d like to see emphasized if I were sending my child off. For example, after spending 150k, what kind of JOB can my kid get?

BOTTOM LINE: When you’re writing your website content, be very careful to identify and write for your market and any sub-markets. For example, fishing knives are men’s toys. But who do you think the primary buyer is? Their wives!