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How to Rewrite Website and Sales Copy So It Sounds Like an Expert

Your website or sales deck reads like every competitor's, or it hedges so much that a buyer cannot tell what you actually do better.

By Adnan GourijaHead of Search Marketing at Webtec · Reviewed 2026-10-17

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Decision · 14 min read

The route: 5 moves, in this order

  1. 1Mine your proof and your customers' own words
  2. 2Write the one-sentence claim
  3. 3Rewrite the headline and the first 100 words
  4. 4Swap adjectives for numbers and specifics
  5. 5Cut by a third and test with five strangers

The short answer

Rewrite generic copy in five moves, in this order. Mine proof and customer language, write one sentence that states your claim, rewrite the headline and first 100 words, swap adjectives for numbers, then cut and test. The order matters because each move needs material the one before it produces. Expert copy is specific, provable and aimed at a named audience. It is not louder.

The rule

Claim, Proof, Audience

Every sentence must state a claim you can prove, name who it is for, or support a sentence that does. Anything else is filler. If you cannot attach proof to a claim, shrink the claim to what you can prove instead of padding it with adjectives.

The order

5 moves. Do them in this order.

  1. 1

    Move 1 of 5

    Mine your proof and your customers' own words

    You are here when: You are about to open a blank page, or you are about to edit copy that was written from the inside of the company.

    Why now

    Expert copy is built from material, not from talent. If you write first and look for evidence later, you will write adjectives, because adjectives are what is left when you have no facts. Gathering proof first also settles the argument about what is true, so the rewrite stops being a debate about taste. Customer language comes in the same step because buyers describe the problem in words you would never choose. Google's own guidance asks whether content shows first-hand experience and original information, not only polish.[6]

    Do this

    • List every claim your current page makes, then write the evidence next to each one: a number, a named process, a dated result, a guarantee, a certification, or nothing.
    • Pull 10 verbatim phrases from reviews, sales call recordings, support tickets and email replies. Copy them exactly, including the clumsy ones.
    • Collect your countable facts: years in business, projects shipped, turnaround time, prices, team size, coverage area. Only keep facts you can verify today.
    • Mark each existing claim as proven, provable with work, or unprovable. Unprovable claims go on a cut list.
    Done whenYou have a one-page evidence sheet with at least 5 provable facts and 10 customer phrases, and every claim on your current page is tagged proven, provable or unprovable.
  2. 2

    Move 2 of 5

    Write the one-sentence claim

    You are here when: You have the evidence sheet and you still cannot say, in one breath, what you do better and for whom.

    Why now

    The claim is the spine of every later edit. Without it, rewriting the headline, the About page and the sales deck produces three different companies. It comes second, not first, because a claim written before the evidence is a wish. It comes before the headline because the headline is just the claim at its shortest.

    Do this

    • Use this frame: We [do a specific thing] for [named audience] so they get [measurable outcome], proven by [one fact].
    • Fill every bracket with a noun, a number or a name. If a bracket holds an adjective, replace it.
    • Read it aloud to someone outside your company. If they ask a clarifying question, the claim is not specific enough yet.
    • Write three versions with different proof points and pick the one a skeptical buyer would find hardest to dismiss.
    Done whenOne sentence under 30 words that names the service, the audience and a provable outcome, and a stranger can repeat it back correctly.
  3. 3

    Move 3 of 5

    Rewrite the headline and the first 100 words

    You are here when: You have the claim and your page still opens with a greeting, a mission statement or a category label.

    Why now

    This is where the attention is. Nielsen Norman Group found that users often leave a page within 10 to 20 seconds, and that they read only about a quarter of the text on pages they visit.[3] Eyetracking on 232 users showed that scanning favors the first words of lines and the first two paragraphs.[5] NN/G's homepage guidance adds that a tagline should explicitly convey what the company does.[8] So the headline and opening 100 words carry the claim, or the claim is never read. Everything below them is support for the reader who stayed.

    Do this

    • Make the headline the claim: service, audience, outcome. Move cleverness out of the H1 and into nothing.
    • Write the opening paragraph so its first sentence is the strongest provable claim, and the next two give the proof and the next step.
    • Put one specific proof element within view of the headline: a number, a client type, a certification, a dated result.
    • Check message match: if an ad or search result promised something, the headline must repeat it. See message match.
    Done whenA stranger can state what you sell, who it is for and one reason to believe you after reading only the headline and the first paragraph.
  4. 4

    Move 4 of 5

    Swap adjectives for numbers and specifics

    You are here when: The headline works but the body is still full of words like quality, tailored, comprehensive and trusted.

    Why now

    Adjectives are claims without evidence, and readers know it. Research from 1997 on a travel website found that objective text scored 27 percent better on overall usability than promotional text. Concise text scored 58 percent better.[2] The sample was 51 users and the site is old, so treat the percentages as direction, not a law. The direction has held up: a later NN/G study of highly educated readers found they also want brief, scannable, plain content.[4] Plain language guidance says the same thing for a different audience: write for the reader, use short words and active voice.[7]

    Do this

    • Highlight every adjective and adverb in the body. For each one, ask: what number, noun or example would prove this?
    • Replace with the number, the name of the process, the deliverable, or a short verbatim customer phrase.
    • Convert every sentence in passive voice to active voice, and replace nominalizations (we provide delivery of) with verbs (we deliver).
    • Delete any sentence that still has no claim after the swap. Do not rescue it with a stronger adjective.
    Done whenFewer than one unproven adjective per 100 words, every paragraph opens with a sentence that makes a claim, and active voice is at least 80 percent of sentences.
  5. 5

    Move 5 of 5

    Cut by a third and test with five strangers

    You are here when: The draft is accurate and specific, and you have not yet shown it to anyone who does not work for you.

    Why now

    Cutting comes last because you can only judge what is filler once the specific parts are in place. NN/G has long recommended cutting word count by half or more compared with conventional writing. It found the combination of concise, scannable and objective text produced the largest gain, 124 percent in that study.[1] Testing comes with it because you are too close to your own copy. Five readers will find the confusing sentences faster than another round of your own editing.

    Do this

    • Cut every paragraph by one sentence and see what is lost. Restore only what the reader needs to act or believe.
    • Show the page for five seconds to five people outside your company, then hide it and ask: what does this company do, for whom, and what would you do next?
    • Count correct answers. Fix the headline until at least four of five can answer the first two questions.
    • Ship one primary action per page and remove competing buttons from the first screen.
    Done whenFour of five strangers state your service and audience correctly after a five-second look, and the page has one primary action.

Decision finder

Which move to start on, by what you see

Situation

New site or rewrite

What you see

Blank page, mission statement drafts

First move

Mine proof and customer language (move 1)

Skip for now

Tone of voice workshops, taglines

Evidence

Why specific copy outperforms polished copy

Readers do not read most of what you write. NN/G has found since the 1990s that most users scan. In its original study, 79 percent of test users always scanned new pages and only 16 percent read word by word.[1] A later large analysis of dwell times found that users often leave in 10 to 20 seconds and read only about a quarter of the text on visited pages.[3] That makes every sentence a bet on a reader's attention.

Specific claims win those bets because they are checkable and therefore believable. Marketese, the promotional register full of superlatives, lost to plain objective text in the Morkes and Nielsen experiment on a 51-person sample.[2] The experiment is almost thirty years old and tested one site, so we do not rely on its exact percentages. We rely on the repeated finding since then that scannable, plain, front-loaded writing is easier to use.[4][5]

Expertise itself is a trust question. Google's guidance says trust is the most important part of E-E-A-T, and it asks whether content shows first-hand experience and original information beyond the obvious.[6] E-E-A-T is not a ranking switch you flip with copy. But the questions it poses are the same ones a buyer asks silently: has this company actually done this, and can it show me?

Evidence

The sentence-level rules, made repeatable

Our rules are the working method behind every page we write. They are the author's judgment, informed by the sources above, not a study. Each is testable by someone who did not write the page.

Lead with the claim you can prove. Replace qualifiers with evidence. Name the audience. Use the customer's own words. Cut filler phrases. Make the first sentence of every paragraph carry a claim. Give each page one action. The first rule matters most because the others only work on a page that has a spine.

The first-sentence rule has direct support. NN/G's eyetracking research found readers notice the first two words of a line far more than the third, and that the first paragraphs get more attention than the second.[5] If your first sentence is a warm-up, the claim lives where fewer people read it. A paragraph whose first sentence makes a claim can be skipped safely by someone who agrees, and read by someone who needs the proof.

  • Lead with the specific claim you can prove: the first screen states what you do, for whom, with proof.
  • Replace qualifiers with evidence: delete "we believe", "we aim to", "can help" and show the fact.
  • Name the audience: the buyer should see their situation in the first line.
  • Use the customer's words: describe the problem the way reviews and sales calls do.
  • Cut filler phrases: if a phrase can be removed without losing a fact, remove it.
  • First sentence carries a claim: a skimmer who reads only first sentences still gets your argument.
  • One action per page: one primary button, repeated, with no competing offers above the fold.

Evidence

Ten before and after rewrites

Every business below is invented for illustration. None is a real brand or client, and the numbers are placeholders showing the shape of a good claim, not results. When you use the pattern, put your own verified facts in the brackets.

The pattern repeats. The before names a quality. The after names a service, an audience and a checkable specific. Notice that none of the after versions is longer than the before by much. Specificity is not length.

  • Illustrative accounting firm. Before: "We provide comprehensive accounting solutions tailored to your needs." After: "Bookkeeping and tax for restaurants with 5 to 40 staff. Books closed by the 10th of every month, or the next month is free."
  • Illustrative roofer. Before: "Quality roofing you can trust." After: "Re-roofs for homes in one county. Fixed written quote in 48 hours and a 25-year workmanship warranty in writing."
  • Illustrative physiotherapy clinic. Before: "Helping you move better." After: "Physiotherapy for runners with knee pain. Your first visit includes a gait video review and a written 6-week plan."
  • Illustrative CRM software. Before: "A powerful, flexible platform to transform your sales process." After: "CRM for agencies of 5 to 25 people. Import your pipeline from a spreadsheet in 20 minutes, no consultant needed."
  • Illustrative employment law practice. Before: "We are committed to delivering exceptional results." After: "Employment law for founders. Severance agreements reviewed in 2 business days for a flat $950."
  • Illustrative furniture maker. Before: "Beautifully crafted, high quality furniture." After: "Solid oak tables built to order in Ohio. 14 weeks from order to doorstep, and we publish every build date."
  • Illustrative dental practice. Before: "We strive to make every visit comfortable." After: "A dentist for anxious patients. Sedation options, no lectures, and you can stop at any time by raising a hand."
  • Illustrative marketing consultancy. Before: "We help businesses grow." After: "We cut customer acquisition cost for subscription boxes selling under $60 a month."
  • Illustrative freight company. Before: "Your trusted logistics partner." After: "Less-than-truckload freight from Chicago to the Southeast. Delivery windows quoted to the hour, tracking updates every 2 hours."
  • Illustrative web studio, pricing paragraph. Before: "Pricing can vary depending on a number of factors." After: "Projects start at $4,000. A five-page site with copywriting runs $4,000 to $7,000, and each extra service page adds $400."

Evidence

Weak phrases to cut, and what to write instead

A weak phrase is a phrase that could appear on a competitor's site unchanged. If you could swap in another company's name and the sentence stays true, it carries no claim. Use this list as a find-and-replace pass during move 4. The replacement is always a fact, never a stronger adjective.

Do not treat this as a banned-word filter. A phrase like "tailored" is acceptable when you immediately say what is tailored and how. The test is whether a checkable fact follows within the same sentence.

  • "We strive to" or "we aim to": state what you do, or cut it. Either you do it or you do not claim it.
  • "Tailored solutions": name the deliverable and who gets it.
  • "High quality": give the spec, the material, the standard or the tolerance.
  • "Trusted partner": give years, number of clients of this type, or a named outcome you can show.
  • "Industry-leading": name the ranking and who measured it, or delete.
  • "Passionate about" or "we pride ourselves on": delete and show the behavior instead.
  • "Comprehensive" or "full-service": list the parts in a sentence.
  • "Seamless" or "hassle-free": say how many steps, how many minutes, or what you do for them.
  • "Affordable" or "competitive pricing": show the price or the starting price.
  • "Fast" or "quick turnaround": write hours or days.
  • "Experienced team": write the number of years and the number of people.
  • "Can help" or "may improve": say what it does and under what condition, or admit you are not sure.
  • "Contact us to learn more": name the action, the length and the outcome, for example "Book a 20-minute call".

Evidence

Hard cases: no proof yet, regulated claims and committees

If you have no proof yet, shrink the claim instead of inflating it. A new business cannot claim 200 projects, but it can claim a process, a guarantee or a published standard. "Every quote is a fixed price, in writing, within 48 hours" is a provable promise. A made-up testimonial is not proof, and Google explicitly treats fabricated creator credentials as deception.[6]

In regulated fields, specific does not mean bolder. Legal, health and finance copy must stay within what the regulator allows, so the move is to be specific about process, scope and credentials, not outcomes. Replace "we win cases" with "we handle one type of case and here is how a typical one runs". Specific facts about how you work stay safe and still sound like an expert.

B2B copy has a committee as an audience, and committees contain people who disagree on vocabulary. Plain language helps here too. NN/G's qualitative study with experts in science, technology and medicine found that educated readers prefer brief, scannable text. They disliked unfamiliar branded terms.[4] Write the homepage in plain language, and put technical depth one click down for the specialist who wants it.

Scroll through

5 mistakes that cost the most

  • 01

    Rewriting the headline before you have proof

    A sharp headline with no evidence behind it reads like a bigger promise, and visitors who believe it will be disappointed on the page. It costs you credibility, not just clicks. Fix: finish move 1 first, and only claim what the evidence sheet supports.

  • 02

    Replacing weak adjectives with stronger ones

    Swapping "good" for "exceptional" makes the claim louder and no more believable. It costs you trust with the skeptical readers you most want. Fix: replace every adjective with a number, a name or a customer quote, and delete what cannot be replaced.

  • 03

    Writing for yourself, not the reader's words

    Internal vocabulary such as your product names, acronyms or category labels means nothing to a buyer who has not met you. It costs you recognition in the first seconds. Fix: use the phrases from reviews and call recordings, and test the page on five strangers.

  • 04

    Offering three actions on the first screen

    Call, book, download and subscribe all compete, so most visitors take none. It costs you enquiries and muddies measurement. Fix: choose one primary action per page, repeat it, and move the rest below the proof.

  • 05

    Cutting words but keeping the filler

    Shortening a page by deleting facts leaves a short page that says nothing. It costs you the specifics that made the copy credible. Fix: cut phrases that carry no fact, keep every number, and let the page run as long as the claims need.

Worked example

The rule applied

A fictional bookkeeping firm rewrites its homepage

1. The situation

Illustrative: "Harbor Row Books" is an invented bookkeeping firm for restaurants. Its homepage headline reads "Your trusted financial partner". Its first paragraph begins "At Harbor Row we are passionate about helping businesses succeed." It has 9 years in business and 60 restaurant clients. The page says neither. The numbers here are invented to show the method.

2. The decision

The owner starts with move 1 and finds three facts: 60 clients, books closed by the 10th of each month, and a review phrase, "I finally know my food cost". She writes the claim: "Bookkeeping for restaurants with 5 to 40 staff, with books closed by the 10th of every month." That becomes the headline. The first paragraph leads with the 60 clients and the food-cost phrase, and "passionate" is deleted.

3. What it shows

The page now answers service, audience and proof in the first screen. The logic of the outcome is that a restaurant owner can self-select in seconds, and a skeptical owner has two checkable facts. Whether enquiries rise is something the firm should measure for 60 days against the old page, not assume.

Questions people ask

  1. 01

    How long should website copy be?

    As long as the claims need and no longer. NN/G's research found that concise text improved overall usability by 58 percent over a promotional version in a 51-person study. NN/G has also recommended cutting word count by half or more versus conventional writing.[1][2] Our rule: if a sentence carries no fact, claim or instruction, remove it. Keep the page long if it holds proof a buyer needs, but make sure the first screen works alone.

  2. 02

    What if I cannot prove my claims yet?

    Shrink the claim to what you can prove. A new business can promise a process, a response time or a guarantee in writing even without a client list. Do not invent testimonials, numbers or credentials, because Google's guidance calls fabricated creator information a form of deception.[6] Replace "proven results" with the thing you can show today, and update the page as real proof arrives.

  3. 03

    Does plain language make me sound less expert?

    No. NN/G's study with experts in science, technology and medicine found that highly educated readers want succinct, easy-to-scan information.[4] Plain language says the same thing with fewer words, which is what an expert can do and a generalist often cannot. Keep technical vocabulary where the reader needs it, and define it where they might not. Our rule: if a term would need a footnote for your buyer, put the plain version first.

  4. 04

    Where do I find the customer's own words?

    Start with Google reviews, testimonial emails, support tickets, sales call recordings and the first message a new enquiry sends. Copy phrases verbatim, including slang. Our voice of customer concept covers how to collect them. Choose phrases that name a problem or a result, and avoid phrases that merely praise you. Record who said each phrase and when, so you can show where the wording came from if anyone asks.

  5. 05

    Should every paragraph start with a claim?

    Yes, on pages written for scanning. NN/G's eyetracking research with 232 users found readers attend most to the first words of lines and to the first paragraphs.[5] If every paragraph opens with its main point, a skimmer who reads only first sentences still gets your argument. Save the evidence, the examples and the exceptions for the sentences that follow. Our rule: if a paragraph's first sentence could be deleted without changing its meaning, rewrite the paragraph.

  6. 06

    How do I know the rewrite worked?

    Run the five-second test with five outsiders before launch, then compare your primary action rate for 60 days against the old page. Headlines also need to match the ad or search result that sent the visitor, which is covered in message match. Copy is one variable among several, so do not credit a change to it without a clean before and after comparison.

The evidence behind this page

Sources

Evidence freshness

8 sources, 2 dated in the last 3 years

Each bar counts sources by the date the source itself shows. 1 show no date.

979901030507091113151719212325

Cite or share this page

Quote the rule or the order with credit and a link. Suggested citation:

Adnan Gourija (2026). How to Rewrite Website and Sales Copy So It Sounds Like an Expert. The Marketing Field Manual, Webtec. https://www.trywebtec.com/resources/field-manual/messaging-that-sounds-like-an-expert/

  1. 1Nielsen Norman Group: How Users Read on the WebSeptember 30, 1997
  2. 2Nielsen Norman Group: Concise, SCANNABLE, and Objective: How to Write for the Web (Morkes and Nielsen study)January 1, 1997
  3. 3Nielsen Norman Group: How Long Do Users Stay on Web Pages?September 11, 2011
  4. 4Nielsen Norman Group: Plain Language Is for Everyone, Even ExpertsOctober 8, 2017
  5. 5Nielsen Norman Group: F-Shaped Pattern of Reading on the WebApril 16, 2006
  6. 6Google Search Central: Creating helpful, reliable, people-first contentLast updated 2026-10-05 UTC
  7. 7Digital.gov: Plain language guide (writing for understanding)No date shown
  8. 8Nielsen Norman Group: Homepage Design PrinciplesMarch 15, 2024

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