The Number One mistake most service providers make with their website copy.

Who is the hero of your brand’s story? Is it you? Or your client?

Everyone loves a good story. Storytelling is the most effective marketing strategy and tactic for compelling people to take action.

Why? Because a good story makes people feel something. If you’ve held your reader’s attention long enough to make them feel something, there’s a very good chance they’ll take action toward working with you.

But the number one mistake businesses make in their messaging and website copy is making the story all about their brand, rather than the client.

It’s understandable why this happens. You’re eager to stand out and prove your business is the very best in the market. As a result, most of your messaging centers your business and what’s so great about it.

Problem is, your client couldn’t care less.

They don’t care about how long you’ve been in business, your impressive background, or even all the wonderful features included with your service or product.

All that’s helpful to know, but it’s not what motivates people to buy.

Your client cares about how you can help them. They care about the person they’ll be and what their life will look like on the other side of working with you.

When someone visits your website, they’re looking for a solution for their current challenge. Your goal is to show them you understand that challenge and how you’ll help them overcome it—without making your brand the center of the story.

Because you are not your brand’s hero. Your client is. (Or, they should be.)

Your brand is the guide. The Donkey to their Shrek. The Obi-Wan to their Luke. The Haymitch to their Katniss.

Your business is a character who’s essential to the plot, but it’s not the protagonist.

Businesses that understand this and craft their messaging in a way that centers their client always win.

Because it’s where your potential clients are actively seeking a solution, your website is the most important piece of online real estate where you can use storytelling to stand out.

Some shifts to considering when writing your website copy are:

• Leading with your client’s biggest challenge or desire (voice of customer research can help you pinpoint this)

• Sentences that start with “you” or “your” instead of “I,” “me,” “my,” “we,” or “us”

• Describing the transformation your clients can expect when they work with you

• How your experience or approach directly benefits them

A website copywriter with branding experience will ask those deep-diving questions to bring your messaging into focus and help climb into your client’s brain.

That’s how you capture your audience’s attention and create raving fans.