Read time: 7 min 9 sec
Whatup Reader!
No fun story to set the scene today. I've been deep in the computer finishing up the rebrand of my second podcast and its associated website. MOAR on that next week. BIG stoked.
Today we're once again talking about, you guessed it, the website messaging audit!
If you've been with me for the past 16 months or so, you know that post-election was a tough time. It forced me to reflect on what I was building, making, and doing, and whether it was what I would consider to be an act of resistance or just perpetuating the bullshit.
I retired offers and I stepped back from creating to allow myself time to figure out what direction I wanted to take things. Real talk, I'm extremely grateful to have been in a position to do so. And now feels almost as though that opportunity has morphed into an obligation, that I gladly and willingly accept, to speak about this new direction.
So, as I implied in the opening of this email, if you know my writing style, you know that I like to open these emails with a story or an anecdote that sets the scene. An event that has happened recently in my life that I can tie in in the least LinkedIn influencer kind of way and impart some sort of knowledge, or wisdom, or viewpoint. I share my two pennies, then prefer to bring it back around and close that loop to end the email. It's how my brain works. It's how it feels good to write. It's how I communicate.
I'm pointing this out because awareness of my stylistic patterns and preferences is actually very relevant to the website audits that I perform. Understanding and being able to identify how people communicate, what they're doing instinctively versus unintentionally, where their patterns serve them, and where those same patterns create blind spots are all at the heart of auditing someone's messaging.
What I figured I'd do today, which is also in true Maestro email fashion, is to pull back the curtain and share exactly what I'm looking at when I run one of these website messaging audits.
By all means take this list and give it a shot yourself. You already know I've never been one to gatekeep and there's absolutely tremendous value in running through the items on your own. That said, there's a reason that a second set of eyes hits different, especially trained eyes, and I think you'll understand it as we go through these.
Without further ado, the five areas of inspection for an audit:
1. Overall Clarity: Is it immediately obvious what you do and who you help?
The most common issue here is vague messaging. Something like, "I help women come back to themselves", on its own, is super hard to land. I will however say that your website gives you more real estate to work with (aka more places to write more things), but that means the rest of the site needs to do the work of explaining HOW you do the things, and WHAT your avatar's concerns actually look like in real life. You can absolutely have esoteric language and a less traditional niche, but the site as a whole needs to provide complete messaging. You can't just put a dot on the page and expect people to see the whole picture.
2. Avatar/Audience Alignment: Does your messaging speak directly to your ideal client's actual problems, wants, needs, and values?
The biggest issue I see here is what I'll refer to as broadcasting: talking AT people instead of WITH them. Yes, your website is static text that you wrote on one cloudy Sunday when you forced yourself to sit down and do your work, but it should still be written as if you were having a conversation with a prospective client. What might they ask? What might confuse them? What needs more context?
Classic example: Physical therapists love to lead with the fact that they offer hour-long sessions and no double-booking. Real talk, do patients actually care about that? Or do they actually care about getting out of pain, and the only reason the session length matters is because they believe it'll increase the likelihood that you'll solve their problem? Think about what your people actually care about, not just what you want to say.
TLDR: Are you considering what the other person cares about or are you just focused on what you want to communicate?
3. Voice Presence: Can people hear YOU in the writing, or does it sound bland and basic AF?
Y'all already know my whole schtick is MOAR you, so of course I'm going to be looking to see if that comes through (Yes, even in the case of a business with multiple employees. In that case I'm looking for the business' voice.). But two additional things that I see constantly and honestly don't even need to be on the lookout for because they're so obvious:
- People trying to sound "professional" and ending up sounding like they're wearing a turtleneck in summer and have a stick up their butt. Y'all, stop that.
- This is a relatively new one but it's obvious AF: copy that was clearly written by AI. Look, I realize that writing might not be your jam, but if you can't take the time to write it why should anyone take the time to read it? Your voice is a differentiator. Use it. And yes, in the audit I absolutely provide copy suggestions. Think of it like copy-consulting.
4. Intent-Impact Congruence: Does what you're trying to communicate actually land the way you want it to?
This one is about filling in the gaps, reading between the lines, and listening around the edges. Messaging is communication and communication isn't just spoken or written. It's implied. It's inferred. I'm looking at your photos, font choices, readability, word choice, the order of your bullet points. It all says something.
Examples of messaging that misses the mark:
- Someone who says they help busy moms but has dense, big ass walls of text and a site that is absolute shit on mobile
- A physical therapy practice that says they value transparency but doesn't list their prices
- Someone who performs admin work for people but their site is a mess with broken links and an impossible maze just to try and schedule
I'm looking to see if you walk the talk.
5. How does it feel?
Yes, this one is all vibes. When I run an audit I look at the website before I look at the intake form and before we have our intake call. My goal is a first impression with no context so I can see how the site feels. You know what I'm talking about. You get served a Reel on IG, you go and check the full page, and within seconds you know if you want to follow that person or not. That's what I'm doing. From there I'm looking at whether that vibe is intentional and being leaned into, or whether it's just kind of happening by accident and being glossed over.
One of my favorite examples of this: I did a first pass on a website and could immediately tell that the owner was a teacher and an amalgamator (a person who combines, merges, or unites two or more distinct things into a single, cohesive whole). These were literally her superpowers, her essence, and yet nowhere on the site was it highlighted or clearly explained how all of her parts fit together to make one awesome solution.
Needless to say, we changed that. 😈
So, there you have it. No fun story or scene-setting, but hopefully five helpful things that you can look at on your own website (or honestly anywhere your messaging lives).
By all means, run through them with your own stuff. There's absolutely value in the self-audit.
If you go through all five and realize you'd like a second set of eyes, or if you only make it through two and then are like screw this, that's exactly what the Website Messaging Audit is for. Written report, video overview, pinned feedback directly on your site, copy-consulting for those of you worried about not being able to find the right words, and two weeks of support while you implement.
Here if you have any questions. Stoked and ready to help you if you decide to make moves.
If you've made it this far, big thanks for reading. This was another long one and I appreciate you sharing in the excitement I have for this new direction.
Happy Tuesday, Reader.
Maestro out.
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