Interest in domain development continues to rise as domain owners seek ways to offset declining PPC revenue. That makes a new seven-part series on Domain Development at SearchEngineGuide.com especially timely. Author Stoney deGeyter just released the 6th part of the series (with the final installment due soon) called Seven Building Blocks of a Destination Website: #6 Voice. 

Stoney deGeyter

In the latest chapter DeGeyter wrote about how to craft the content on your site, regardless of how many people contribute to the writing, in a way that allows the site to convey its own special personality. "Understanding who your audience is and what type of voice will speak best to them is key to developing an effective voice that goes beyond just engaging your readers with your product or services. To engage them, you must be engaging," DeGeyter said. 

Before you start developing your web content 

DeGeyter believes you first need to determine what kind of voice you want your site to have and how you'll ultimately deploy it. He added that your voice could have any of several possible characteristics - it could humorous, serious, whimsical, thoughtful, brutally honest, etc. He gives specific writing examples of each in his latest article.

By giving your website a voice DeGeyter said, "you create a unique personality that each visitor is able to identify with. This personality you have developed is then able to do more than just sell your product or service, it becomes one of the main draws that brings visitors back time and time again. The visitor no longer feels like a guest, but instead has become a friend." 

It's an interesting series that is well worth reading for anyone planning to tackle the development process.
(Posted August 1, 2008)