TOC #98: Not The Vodka Ice
(Nov 8, 2022) How To Tell If Your Website Needs A Refresh (And What To Do About It)
“Oh my gosh, thank you so much!” I said, accepting the drink and taking a big, fat slug.
At the risk of sounding like (what my dad would call) a lush, I'd been looking forward to that vodka sprite all day.
Literally, 5 hours earlier, as I was pushing the stupid ass sled across the stupid ass gym, per the bullying of my tiny-but-mighty personal trainer, I was thinking longingly of the ice cold liquid burning a hot hole in my stomach.
And I don't even like drinking like that.
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I'm always down to be the sober friend, I'd rather drive than drink (so I can be in control of when I get to ditch), and I don't care if I never take a sip of alcohol again in my life—but it had just been that kind of freaking week.
Anyone who knows me would also be able to verify this: I'm a big Chamber of Commerce girlie. Huge. If there's a networking event, you can count on me to be in attendance.
It's an interesting crew, the Chamber people. I don't know what it is about these events, but when I go, I'm suddenly best friends with anyone and everyone, age be damned.
76-year-old podiatrist? Check.
Just-turned-24-year-old financial advisor? Check.
48-year-old marshmallow saleswoman? Check.
Ambiguous-age boy handing out the Fuck Your Landlord stickers? Check.
This particular drink was from a 40-something-year-old (probably) lawyer in town, who I'd met a few times before. He walked up to my group of friends—the motley but mighty crew that I'd gathered with on that particular night at the Wong—and asked if anyone wanted a drink.
“Ooh, vodka sprite, please!” I requested, with a smile. “I'll get the next one!”
(What I did not know at the time of that comment was that there would definitely be no next one.)
I meandered over to the table where two of my neighbors were sitting, to chat with them about work (aka get the tea on what they thought of their son's new girlfriend).
Mid-convo, Lawyer Man comes over to me, and awkwardly hands me my drink. At the time, I didn’t understand why he was looking at me with such an unsure grimace.
(In about 14 seconds, though, I would become painfully aware.)
So, I accept the drink, and like I said I was dying to do, I took a big, fat slug.
…then immediately wished with every fiber of my being that I could spit it out.
The man must have said vodka ICE, not vodka SPRITE. 🤢
Do you know how freaking nasty that is? And disappointing?
Picture expecting a sweet, sugary sip of soda with a baby splash of Tito's, only to be aggressively met with the equivalent of cold rubbing alcohol.
Whoever poured that drink deserves jail time.
It was literally an 8oz glass filled to the brim with a liquid so intense it could have burnt my nose hairs off, and I was expected to drink it and like it.
My utter shock and disgust must have been showing, because both my two neighbors and Lawyer Man were looking at me funny, so I quickly rearranged my face into what I hope was some semblance of a smile and thanked him profusely.
I was very appreciative of the drink—especially since I didn't know him that well, and he definitely didn't have to buy it for me—but DAYUM I wanted nothing more than to throw the entire experience (I'm hesitant to call it a drink, because it was nawt drinkable) in the nearest trash can.
But I didn't.
I sipped it.
And suffered. Deeply.
Because dammit, someone paid for this drink!
I hate wasting things, especially when someone spent their hard-earned cash on it, so I told myself to make the best of it.
I settled with a drastically subpar experience because I felt like I had to. Has that ever happened to you?
Have you ever scarfed down a meal at a family friend's house that you wouldn't normally eat, because you didn't want to be rude?
Said “sure, I'd love to!” to a plan that didn't sound like much fun, just so you wouldn't disappoint someone?
Stayed with your toxic ex just because you didn't want all your years together to be a waste?
Settled for a website that isn't working for you just because you invested time, energy, and money into it? 🤔🧐
How To Tell If Your Website Needs A Refresh (And What To Do About It)
If you're guilty of settling for your website because you don't want to admit to yourself that your investments—whether it be for design, copy, SEO, a template, images, whatever—are no longer serving you, you're not the only one.
Far from it, actually. A lot of people stick with a subpar website because they feel frustrated that they poured so much of themselves or their resources into it, and they don't want those efforts to be rendered irrelevant.
“It's good enough,” they say.
And sure, it probably is.
But is “good enough” good enough for you? Are you okay with your brand's digital home base being good enough? Or would you prefer it to be great?
Your answer may very well be yeah, actually, IDGAF about my website, Sara, my leads and clients don't care about it. And that's fine! If you know that having a good enough website doesn't negatively impact your business, then, genuinely: I love that for you.
Because a beautiful, strategic, action-inspiring website is not a small investment.
If your answer is more along the lines of well… how do I know if my website is falling flat? What does that even mean? I'll tell you.
Your website may be due for a refresh if…
It's difficult to navigate.
It doesn't make you feel like you're putting your best foot forward.
It looks outdated.
It doesn't adequately represent your services.
It's not relevant to your brand anymore.
It isn't bringing in the results you want.
& of course, I have a solution. 😏 (Actually, I have several.)
You know I'd never point out all the things that could be wrong without offering some way to help you make it right, so click the link below to read the full post about the problems that lead to the need for a website refresh, and how to fix them.
I know I already mentioned this, but…
Do you want writing your own website copy to be wicked easy, First name / friend?
If yes, I made the Wicked Easy Website Copy Guide juuuust for you. It's the perfect mix of education, resources, and templates, so you can get your web copy done faster than you can say lobstah roll.
Here's what's included:
Helpful Website Copy Resources Master List
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Website Copy Checklist (complete with a step-by-step guide of what to put on every single page of your website, including Home, About, Services, Blog, Contact, Single Product Page, Resources, Portfolio, and 404 Error, as well as a list of SEO best practices for each page)
Easy-To-Edit, Fill-In-The-Blank Website Copy Template
The Ultimate How-To Overview, explaining how to write every section of every page, organized in the exact template that you'll use to draft your copy
[70+ minutes of training] Page-Specific Website Walkthrough Videos (to show you how to put all of the tips in action!)
It's available for $348, or 2 payments of $180—aka almost a thousand dollars less than my website copywriting course, and six thousand five hundred and fifty two dollars less than working with me one-on-one.
If you are looking for done-for-you website copywriting services, though, I'd love to work with you! I'm currently booking into March 2023 for 1:1 website copy projects, and my books reopen in a few weeks, so now is the perfect time to join the waitlist.
Hi, I’m Sara Noel—website copywriter and marketing mentor for creatives, copywriters, and all-around cool people. Thanks for reading this edition of the Tuesday Table of Contents! If you like my content and you want even more BTL in your life, here are a few ways you can connect with me:
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