Web copy or web design - which should come first?
Gillian Jones is here to kick off our Guest Blog series. Once a month, we’ll be sharing a guest blog post from an industry expert. Gillian is a conversion copywriter who offers brand storytelling, origin stories and messaging for SaaS (software as a service) and B2Bs (business to business). She has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to copy, and often works on web pages for clients. Whilst web design is important, there’s more to your website than the design. If you want a fab website that converts, you’ll need to consider both web design and web copy (copy = the text on your website). Gillian answers the question “web copy or web design - which should come first?” and leaves you with some tips to action for your website.
Web copy or web design, which comes first?
This question comes up a lot, and while most in the main do agree that copy should come first, there are those that are still on the fence about it. Today, I’m going to argue in favour of the reasons why I believe copy should come before design.
Web design or web copy? Both are of equal importance, and both are integral to the other. I mean, an empty website is of no use to a business, and copy doesn’t exist without a base for it to sit on, a home for it to lay, where prospects can read and navigate its contents easily. A clever, beautifully designed website complete with logo, well-written copy and carefully curated images can be the catnip your prospects are drawn to.
I believe web copy should always dictate the design of your website. Don’t get me wrong, both are of equal importance as we’ve seen, but the copy should be completed prior to starting the website, with the web design built around the words.
Ideally, your copywriter will have provided the copy in a wireframe with an outline of how the copy could look - I say ‘could’ rather than ‘should.’ A copywriter is not a designer and there should be room for manoeuvre. I always create my wireframes in black and white, that way I make it clear the wireframe is only a mockup. It does not in any way undermine or take over the web designer’s role. The frame may not be something the designer will agree with, there may be anomalies in how the copy will sit, and if they don’t think it’s going to work, they should feel comfortable enough to say.
Hopefully, both designer and copywriter will work together and be able to work through any problems harmoniously. A good relationship between a web designer and copywriter should be a symbiotic one, where both parties bring something different, something that can be fused together to produce one beautiful whole.
Admittedly, web design first and copy last can be quicker, but does it make for a better website? - this depends on what type of website you’re building.
Domenico Loia | Unsplash
If you build it they will come…
Building a website from the ground up requires a lot of thought and skill from the web designer, and copy created first helps your website to be found on Google. It won’t be your website that converts, it’ll be your copy. In 2021 Unbounce looked at nearly 40,000 English-language landing pages using machine learning, or basically a deep learning-based natural language model to predict conversion rates. They found that the copy had far more impact than the design.
The flow of the copy on a website is important - for example, if you’re using storytelling techniques you need to be able to ensure the narrative works seamlessly throughout. There are always going to be tweaks and errors which can be worked through between designer and the copywriter, and if they communicate well from the outset any issues will be easily resolved.
Lee Campbell | Unsplash
What if you’re using a template?
Templates are good if you don’t have the budget for a web designer, and they’re quick and easy to use. But you may find that you’re slightly hampered by the fact that the design has already been created for you - although you will have a wide choice of design templates to choose from.
Keep in mind you might find it difficult to change things around on your website, because sometimes even the smallest changes can send the design off-kilter, and may even affect the overall layout of your page. If you’re not tech-savvy you could make things worse by trying to squeeze copy in to fit the template and create anomalies within the page’s design. This could make it look odd or even remove certain elements of how it’s been arranged.
Ben Maffin | Unsplash
So to round up,
if you have the budget, hire both a website designer and a copywriter. But hire the copywriter first and get your copy down, ask if they provide wireframes for you to hand over to your designer. Ideally, hire a copywriter who knows something about SEO, or hire an SEO specialist who is also a copywriter.
If SEO isn’t a priority right now, hire someone who can at least provide basic keyword research so your website will be found on Google. A conversion copywriter is also a good hire as they’ll have trained in using conversion techniques. Once it’s done, hand your copy with wireframe over to your web designer and let them weave their magic.
Copy first, website design later will help you create a website that will be found on Google, and provide prospects with a good overview of what your business is and what it does. It should be easy to navigate around the site and the copy should effortlessly guide the reader from one page to another, making it easy to take whatever course of action you want them to take. Copy first, design next!
👀 Watch this space for more Guest Blogs throughout the year! If you’re interested in writing a guest post for The Bloom Blog, get in touch.
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