Make Your Content Pre-Sell, by Ken Evoy

Review by: Nick Usborne

This 159-page e-book by Ken Evoy is about how to write web site content that sells. Or, to be more accurate, pre-sells.

I like it a great deal because it's not one of those 'writing for the web' books that focuses simply on words, phrases and 'secrets'. (I also like it because it costs less than $10.)

Ken and I agree on a lot of things. One of them is that content online is not something you look at or write in isolation.

- The content on your pages lives alongside the design.
- You have to factor in navigation issues.
- You have to understand and address the expectations of your visitors.
- You have to deliver useful, helpful information.
- You have to create a flow of messages that help visitors move forward from the home page through to a point where they can complete their task.
- You have to write with a voice and tone that is appropriate to your audience.
- You have to engage your readers and earn their trust.
- You have to write with care. And then review what you have written and keep rewriting until you get it right.

Ken addresses all these points and more in this book. And he does it all in his own, unique style. Yes, some people find his approach and writing style a little quirky, and perhaps a little too chatty. But there is a reason he writes this way: he wants to share his message with regular people who don't necessarily have years of internet experience behind them.

You'll also find that Ken makes a lot of references to his own product, SiteBuildIt! You are free to ignore or explore these pitches. The book stands very well on its own. One thing I did enjoy is how he used some of the SiteBuildIt! sites to illustrate various points about content creation and design. I was very interested to see the variety of sites and the sophistication of much of their content.

Anyway, back to the point I was making earlier: for me this book succeeds because it looks at content creation within the full context of the online environment. There is nothing simple about writing great online content. To do the job well, you need a complete understanding of the expectations of your visitors. And you need total clarity on the purpose of every heading, subhead, link and paragraph you write.

While this book may appear to be written just for 'newbies' and those who are setting out to write their first site, don't be fooled.

Yes, this book is absolutely perfect for someone starting out online. Read this, and you'll avoid all the mistakes so many of the rest of us have struggled through over the years.

But this book is also for everyone else who writes or edits content online. It doesn't matter how sophisticated you are, or how huge and successful your site may be. There is plenty here to learn. And as with many good books, even when his message is not entirely new or ground-breaking, the way in which Ken presents and expresses the information does a wonderful job of reminding us what really matters, and what doesn't.

Reminder: The final point to make about this book is that it costs less than $10.

I read the book over a weekend and certainly consider it money well spent.

Highly recommended.

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