subject: Choose style to set yourself apart [print this page] Choose style to set yourself apart Choose style to set yourself apart
If you want internet users to return to your site, you need to know how to set yourself above the competition. In many industries, this involves a lot of hard work and creative energy. In a surprising number of industries, however, all it requires is a site that is more polished than theirs.
As any business owner knows, presentation counts for a lot. People have a basic trust of anyone who looks presentable. If you turn up to a meeting in a well-pressed suit, with your hair neatly brushed, and your competitor turns up with a stain on his tie, you're already at an advantage. The same thing goes when it comes to your website.
If you've been reading about search engine optimisation then you've probably come across one or two articles on the importance of basic good housekeeping for your site. This means no broken links, a decent design, and correct spelling and grammar in your text. This should be a basic thing for any site, but thousands of sites simply can't be bothered. If you're already keeping your site spic and span, you're in a good position. There is, however, another very basic thing that can help you to retain users once they're on your site. It's style. Of course, having your own sense of style is important when you want to set yourself apart from your competitors, but that's not the style we're talking about here. It's more about word style, a set of rules that you choose and conform to in your content.
Style sheets and publication It's probably never crossed most people's minds, but the way different people use words varies enormously. Although in our culture just about everyone gets taught the rules of writing in their early years, the way this is taught, and the things that happen to us over the years, result in the development of an individual style. This can be a good thing, but for a website, where several people are composing content for search engine optimisation, it creates a big mess. Every publication or publishing house has its own style guide. These are kind of writing rule books that set out what region of English is to be used, how things should look and even how punctuation is to be used. This ensures their style stays consistent.
Why is this important? Changes within text, even when they're small, are irritating. Even tiny things, like switching from the English 'Mum' to the American 'Mom' between pages can put internet users off. This is because the small changes are subconsciously picked up, and the user's brain tells them that there is an error somewhere. This can lead to users perceiving your site as unprofessional or badly composed. Talk to us at SearchEngineOptimization.co.uk about how correct content affects SEO.
Many publishers use existing style guides from other institutions and modify them for their needs. If you're in charge of the content for your site, or if you're considering developing content as part of your search engine optimisation, set yourself apart by maintaining a consistent style.
