How To Formulate The Perfect FAQ Page
Customers ask questions. They always have done, and always will. The content spread across your website may answer common questions indirectly, but if a site visitor needs to know something, they’re more likely to navigate to the FAQ page to get the lowdown.
Skim-worthy, substance, SEO, and selling are the four “S’s” to consider before you start building FAQs. Keeping this quartet of consonants in mind can help you create a site section that gives visitors exactly what they came for. Let us show you what we mean…
Skim-worthy
The average reader skims and scans their way through articles online. But if someone is visiting an FAQ page, they’re likely searching for a particular piece of information, and they’ll scroll past all the words until they find it.
So make it easy for them. Adopt a simple Q&A layout and don’t go overboard with length. Keeping things concise prevents the user from becoming alienated by too much content, and makes skimming the simple task it ought to be.
Substance
Keeping a lid on the character count means you’ll need to make each sentence a powerful one. There’s nothing more frustrating than venturing onto an FAQs page and being unable to find what you’re looking for – so get to the answers quickly without waffling on. The user shouldn’t have to wade through too much text, but they shouldn’t be left feeling short-changed either.
It’s true that certain questions don’t have concrete answers. For example, your pricing structure may differ depending on what the customer is asking for. In these instances, simply explain the situation (“our prices vary depending on the nature of the project”) and offer a contact number for the customer so they can learn more.
SEO
Like with any other page on your website, it’s vital to consider SEO in the FAQs – particularly Google Answer Boxes. Consider the questions that people will be searching for so your page ranks highly in search engines, and integrate these into your site.
If you’ve got a strong and noteworthy brand voice, you’ll need to tone it down in the FAQs so your extraordinary vocab doesn’t prevent you from ranking. Use clear, recognisable English wherever possible. If there’s jargon involved, link to a page on your site that includes a definition, or offer a quick summary there and then. In some cases, you may want to create a whole new question out of terminology that few are familiar with e.g. “What is copywriting?”.
Sell yourself… softly
The FAQ page is where the cautious customers hang out. These people want to learn more information before they are ready to hand over their hard-earned cash, and this is where they come to find it. It’s also worth remembering that lots of people visit FAQs because they’re wary of contacting you directly and being forced to stomach a sales pitch.
So go for the soft sell – carefully explaining why you’re good at what you do and perhaps even asking the question: “Why choose us?”. Repetitive use of superlatives will raise eyebrows, but clear, confident answers will help to ease customers’ suspicions and turn you into a company they feel they could do business with.
A terrifically written FAQ page can drive traffic to your website and transform nonchalant site surfers into solid leads. Give us a call on 01616 609 206 or email [email protected] to learn how we can help you assemble an FAQ page that adds real value to your business.
