If you want to kill off your authenticity in your web copy and subsequently destroy any chances of people trusting your brand ever again, fill it with insincerity. Cheesy marketing language is a massive turn off for your readers and be assured that they’ll see through the hyperbole quicker than you can say ‘used car salesman’.

Roll up, roll up for the greatest product on earth…

So what do we actually mean by insincerity? With regard to web copywriting, we’re talking about copy that is ‘hollow’ or seems to have some kind of hidden agenda. The obvious agenda of all sales copy is to sell, but the buying public is far more discerning than the marketing gurus of the 1980s gave them credit for and they don’t like branding that seems to promise too much. The saying ‘if it seems too good to be true it probably is’ has never been more accurate or more of a fundamental guiding principle for anyone involved in creating web content.

Lies, damned lies and statistics

Hollow or insincere copy can include deceitful copywriting – outright blatant lying, in other words. But more generally it is the sort of unsubstantiated claims such as ‘the world’s leading’, ‘unparalleled’, ‘the only (insert product type) you’ll ever need’ and so on. These unsubstantiated claims are merely hollow words that mean nothing at best, and at worst can make your site look like a used car salesman’s attempt at an advertising campaign.

UK copywriters know about insincere copy in that they are trained to avoid it at all costs. If a client asks for this kind of copy a professional UK copywriter will ask to see evidence before they include such claims in the web content they create for you. They know that obvious insincerity insults your customers and drives them away from your site, no matter how good your product or service actually is. Without substantiated correlation (preferably from a neutral third party or verifiable statistics), hollow copy will fail to attract customers and could actually do some serious damage to your reputation. In a time when everyone is desperate to pull in customers, the last thing you want to do is alienate your audience by using over-inflated, hyperbolic copy that grates on the nerves of a very discerning public.

Focusing on the story

A professional UK copywriter will produce copy for you that is fresh, original and, most importantly, sincere. There’ll be no inflated claims, no ‘this is the best thing since sliced bread’ and no sales patois. Focus on your story, your product’s journey and use gentle persuasion that’s honest and sincere, not blatant arm-twisting. Once you know what your brand story is then the sincerity will shine through effortlessly. When you write copy from this perspective avoiding insincerity is very easy.

Spinning off track

Get rid of insincere buzzwords, meaningless jargon and spin. People have been force-fed spin for years and it’s left a bitter taste in their mouths. It’s also made them extremely wary of any company that obviously spins their product’s capabilities. We’re in a new age of advertising honesty now. Be honest about your brand and you will quickly build up a level of trust with your customers that will allow the product to sell itself. Give it a helping hand with some killer web content, certainly, but don’t overdo the hype.

About the author:

Derryck Strachan is the managing director of Big Star Content, an award-winning UK copywriter service with a wealth of experience in copywriting, web content, SEO creation and branding. The company currently works for both national and international organisations, creating unique content, articles and press releases on a regular basis.