Do you remember the advice you got when searching for a job?

Career counselors repeatedly tell students, “Know the company well.”

You had to do your homework. And before the Internet, there was the library.

Those who hoped to snag a lucrative job offer would have to hustle on down to their local library (usually the main branch) and research the company. Armed with a knowledge of what the company did and how one could help them, the job-seeker was better prepared for the interview when asked why they wanted to work at that particular company.

Key word: preparation.

Job-seekers were told to practice their answers to often-asked questions.

Why do you want to work here?

What are your strengths?

What are your weaknesses?

Define one of your biggest challenges. How did you overcome it?

The more you prepared, the more confident you felt.

Smart job-seekers even went a step further to identify what they hoped to get out of the job interview and envisioned themselves landing the position.

Know what you want your copy to do

This week, I was part of a solid meeting for a website redesign. All the stakeholders were asked to identify what they hoped to achieve with their web page.

First, it’s smart to ask yourself that very question when you look at your own website. Identifying your desired outcome is key to achieving it.

Second, once you know what you want website visitors to do, then you’ll have an easier time writing copy and creating the design that will lead them on a path that makes sense to them.

Many companies look at their website with an eye toward telling the visitor what the company does.

Not building a page that gets the visitor to do something.

Give your website visitors a map

Your copywriting should be aligned with the “doing.” It’s not just about telling your visitor what your product or service can do for them. It’s about tapping your visitor’s wants and needs, and then getting them to move forward to the next step.

That next step could be downloading a white paper, signing up to receive more information, watching a demo, or any other act that includes delivering content. You have a very limited amount of time to capture your visitor’s interest.

The best way to do it is to have copy that immediately engages them with a compelling headline that offers a benefit, followed up with copy that fulfills the promise of that benefit while leading the visitor toward taking action.

The success of your web pages comes down to building a strong foundation. And that foundation is rooted in identifying your goal for the page.

Resist overwhelming your website visitor

Too often, I see companies trying to fit everything plus the kitchen sink into their copy. The result is a mish-mash of offerings that do not clearly lead a visitor to the next step.

Clarity is paramount. As the old sales adage goes, “A confused mind never buys.”

This is why shorter copy on a squeeze page works well. If you have invested time and money in producing a white paper, you do not need to go into detail about every angle for the squeeze page. Just give your visitor tidbits to nibble in order to arouse her curiosity.

For a web page that describes your product, you don’t have to present every specification. You instead want to identify a problem your product will solve and then give a thumbnail sketch of how your product will do that.

With all copy, you want to have a goal and keep that goal clearly in your mind as you write your copy.

Keep distraction to a minimum. For instance, avoid:

• Pages that have too many design elements
• Complex calls to action that force a visitor through a number of “click here” hoops in order to get what you promised
• Too many offers on one page – keep it simple and only present one offer
• Clever headlines that don’t communicate who you are or what you do
• Overly long paragraphs that intimidate the visitor

There are many ways to arrive at a destination. But the important thing is to know where you want to go. Give your copy the best chance it has to bring in business by clearly identifying your goal first, then build your copy around it.

The more you understand exactly what you want your visitor to do, the more you’ll achieve results. The “build it and they will come” approach only goes so far. Ultimately, it’s always about your prospective buyer, not you.