Couple readers asked about this one:

“Are there certain words, phrases, colors, and fonts that convert better than others?”

Right.

Let’s start with…

(1) Words. Two things I’ll say about this. First is, use less adjectives & adverbs… and more nouns and verbs. This makes your writing sound less ‘bloated’… and more action-packed. More exciting. So instead of saying “she closed the door firmly”… say “she slammed the door.”

Second thing is, when you choose your verbs… use highly descriptive & vivid verbs. “Power verbs” as we writers sometimes call them. Conquer, enchant, discover, destroy, inhale, cringe, murder, restore, enrage, devour… these are all “power verbs.” They convey vivid images, and stir up your emotions when you read them. Use lots of these verbs in your copy… and always try to replace [adverbs + weak verbs] with [strong verbs]. So replace “walk quietly” with “tiptoe.” Replace “eat quickly” with “devour.” Replace “cry loudly” with “weep.” For more examples of good power verbs to use in your copy, see this article. It’s got a good list.

(2) Phrases. My prime directive while crafting good phrases is this: short, simple, emotional, and be sure it makes sense. One of the best ways to improve your copy is to go through it once you’ve written it all out… and to cut out every line… every phrase… every word that doesn’t need to be there. We often make phrases way too long. Too complicated. And it ends up just being confusing, and tiring to read. So my advice here is always choose the simpler phrases. Always prefer simpler words. Try to NOT use industry-specific or technical jargon – and instead use easy, universally-accessible words. That’ll sky-rocket your conversion. Because more people will actually read your stuff.

(3) Colors. This is one of those topics where there’s not a lot you can say that’s both (a) universally true, and (b) helpful. The one thing I will say is, whenever you have text… make sure it sharply contrasts with its background. So if you’re using a white background, use black text – or another dark color. Don’t use bright yellow. Or light green. That hurts your eyes when you try to read it. And if the page you’re writing on is black or another dark color, use white text… or another light color. High contrast when you’re writing text may seem like common sense. But I see a surprising number of sites that ignore this principle. And so their stuff ends up being really hard to read.

(4) Fonts. In general, you want to use “Sans Serif” fonts when you’re writing on the web – and not Serif fonts. What’s the difference?

See the difference? Serif fonts have the little lines and pointy thingies at edge of their characters – which are called “serifs”. And in general, you want to avoid these kinds of fonts… and use SANS(“without”) Serif fonts when writing on the web – that is, fonts that DON’T have the pointy/line-y edges on their characters. If you’re a curious little caterpillar, and want to know why that is, read this article.

Summary: the best words, phrases, colors, and fonts for you to use when writing copy… are the ones that make your copy most (a) simple, and (b) readable. In copywriting, the biggest conversion killer is complexity. Sentences, paragraphs, headlines and phrases that don’t make sense. That are too complicated. Too inaccessible. Too rambly. Too unnecessary. Too friggin’ hard to read. Ruthlessly eliminate all complexity in your copy, and your conversion will soar.