terms*of*research

The best copywriting isn't about writing better. It's about using the words of your target audience.

Cléa Cassutti 3 min read

We spend hours working on our copywriting—searching for the perfect phrasing, the word that packs a punch, the sentence that convinces. But in reality, the best words aren't invented; they're found.

In Webful, the Audience tab has a section that shows the exact search terms that bring visitors to your site. Not the keywords you’re targeting. The ones they actually type in.

The gap between your words and theirs

There’s often a disconnect. Your visitors aren’t searching for your product using the words you use to describe it. They’re searching with their own words, tied to their own pain points.

And that’s exactly why those words matter more than yours. A word that your target audience types spontaneously is never a coincidence. It’s literally how she frames her problem in her own mind. Not your solution. Her problem, specifically hers.

What you need to do with this, specifically

First, compare the actual search terms to your landing page. If a word comes up often in searches but doesn’t appear anywhere on your site, your target audience is talking to you, and you’re not listening yet.

Next, use those words exactly as they are. Don’t rephrase them to sound cleaner or more professional. Use the exact words, because they speak directly to the pain that prompted the person to search in the first place. Precision matters more than elegance.

How this affects your search engine optimization

This is also the real key to being found more easily. Not more keywords. The right words. Your target audience’s words, not yours.

Content that uses the terms your visitors naturally type in will rank higher, be better understood by Google, and—most importantly—be better recognized by those who read it. Because they’ll feel like you’re speaking directly to them.

Your marketing shouldn’t sound like you. It should sound like the voice in the head of the person you’re trying to reach.

Want to test this on your own site? Try Webful for free: 30 days with all features enabled (automated reports, white labeling, API), then choose the Free Plan for life or the Pro Plan at 3 € per site per month. No credit card required to get started.

About this demo, the figures presented are based on Cléa’s experience, expansion-studio.fr, as measured with Webful Analytics. 


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