6 Frankly Odd Website Tips That Make Perfect Sense

Last updated: August 25, 2025

Most website advice sounds like it was specifically designed to put you to sleep. Definie your audience, make your message clear, use testimonials, blah blah blah.

#snooze

It may be seriously good advice. But does it really need to be THAT serious? 

Learning how to make your site work better can (and should) be fun. 

Here are six website tips pulled straight from my new book Making Your Website Work 2. They may sound a little weird at first glance. But give them a second, and you’ll see why they actually make perfect sense.

Ready to learn some copy and design tips from a toaster, a snake, and the three-headed monster? Here they come.

#1 Selling a service is nothing like selling a product

Products are low-risk, returnable, and impersonal. Services? A totally different story.

You, dear service provider, are not a toaster. You are a toaster with a personality who can do real damage, and your buyers can’t even send you back for a full refund.

What does this have anything to do with your website copy?

Lots of things. For example, the fact that the goal of your homepage shouldn’t be to get you hired.

When someone lands on your homepage, they won’t be ready to reach out, no matter what you say. They’re still figuring out who you are, what you do, and whether they can trust you to not burn their metaphorical toast.

The job of your homepage isn’t to convert. It’s to intrigue. Think: “Is this someone I’d want to work with?” rather than “Where do I put my credit card?”

What should be your homepage’s goal instead? You can read about it in Chapter #60 of the book.

#2 When creating urgency backfires

“Today” creates urgency. But fake urgency creates eye-rolls. Most services don’t happen instantly, and your readers know that. So when you claim otherwise, it chips away at your credibility.

Your audience can smell fake urgency and vague flattery from a mile away. 

Want people to take action? Be clear. Be honest. Leave the time travel promises out of it.

Oh, and “today” isn’t the only word pulling this stunt. There’s another, very common word you’re probably using to lie to your prospects. You’ll find it in Chapter #50 of my book.

~ From Chapter #50 “Two popular words you use in your copy to lie to your prospects”

#3 It’s not about any benefits, but the right benefits

Sales pages often rush into features, benefits, and glowing testimonials without answering the one thing your visitor actually cares about first: “Is this for me?”

If that’s unclear, everything else becomes noise.

People don’t read your site like a novel. They scan. And if the top section doesn’t hook them with relevance, they’re gone.

You don’t have to spell out every benefit. Even if it’s a fancy Tesla shovel, you don’t need to explain “why digging holes is important.”

But if you’re selling a service, course, or product with less obvious benefits, you can’t assume your prospects will guess its benefits. Make sure that the right people will recognize themselves in your offer by stating the benefits explicitly.

~ From Chapter #75 “One thing bad book openings and your sales pages have in common”

#4 Is your About page oversharing?

Most people treat their About page like a personality parade: hobbies, pets, caffeine preferences, star sign. But unless those facts make someone more likely to hire you, they don’t belong there.

How to decide what to share with your prospects? The key is relevance.

Share details that build trust or show you understand your clients’ world. If you’re a designer who works with small businesses and runs a small business yourself? Or a dog trainer who has 5 dogs themselves? This makes you look more experienced in your field, so it’s worth mentioning on your website.

But if you being into oat milk lattes and long walks doesn’t make you more qualified to help your prospects, save it for your newsletter.

So, keep it human, yes. But also useful.

~ From Chapter #71 “One crucial detail you keep forgetting when you write your About page”

#5 Why you shouldn’t call your one-person business “we”

Using “we” on your website when it’s just you might sound more “professional.” But here’s the problem: clients aren’t hiring a vibe. They’re hiring a person or a team. And they want to know which one they’re getting.

If they’re looking for a freelancer and see “we,” they’ll assume you’re not the right fit. If they’re looking for a full agency and discover it’s just you? Awkward.

Even if you try to explain it later (“Don’t mind my website!”), the trust damage is done. If your copy doesn’t match reality, why should they believe the rest?

So skip the smoke and mirrors. If it’s just you, own it. “I” works just fine, and it’s a whole lot more trustworthy than a non-existent “we.”

~ From Chapter #72 “Don’t use “we”/”our company” on your website to talk about yourself if it’s just one person you”

#6 Are you trying to dress up a swamp monster?

If your message doesn’t make sense in plain language, no amount of clever copy will fix it. It’s like trying to dress a swamp creature in a tux.

#doesntHelp #stillAMonster

Before you write anything, strip your message down to its bare bones. What are you offering? Who is it for? What’s the benefit?

If the simplified version is confusing or disjointed, you’ve got a structural problem, not a wording problem.

Fix the skeleton first. Then—and only then—start adding the words.

~ From Chapter #40 “A failproof way to give your message a solid structure”

There’s more where that came from!