Sending the appropriate message will enhance conversions, whether you’re crafting landing page copy or fine-tuning button text. That’s why investing in a great copywriter is such a wise decision.
You can think about every word on the internet as a barrier between the message and the readers – more precisely, a barrier between the readers and a desired action. The goal of copywriting is to lower that barrier. It’s all about making it as easy as possible for your reader to absorb your message.
Part of this involves making the text flow more smoothly. Another aspect is to use descriptive language that accurately expresses the message.
Learning to write better copy isn’t as hard as you think. You only need to follow a few easy principles and a dash of self-confidence. After all, being a great copywriter starts with knowing what you’re doing.
Content marketing is quickly becoming a key skill for marketers. Copywriting skills are definitely useful because producing compelling content is difficult and not something everyone can do. Even if you believe you aren’t very good at writing, there is always potential for improvement. Writing does not have to be grueling, and there are various hacks you can use to improve your abilities. All you need is a little discipline and a desire to learn.
Why Copywriting?
The explosion of online content over the last decade has resulted in the demand for copywriters skyrocketing to new heights. An important driving force behind this is the demand for search engine optimization (SEO). For businesses, well-written content on their websites not only encourages customers to buy their products and services but also ensures that their websites rank higher in Google search results.
SEO, social media, and other kinds of digital marketing are constantly evolving, and writers who keep up with these developments will have an advantage.
A copywriter is hired to write “copy” — words that compel action. This means that copywriting is, by definition, a form of marketing because it is always associated with promoting or selling a product or service.
Copywriting can take many different forms, such as advertisements, websites, headlines, brochures, and blog posts, to name just a few. What makes it “copy” is that it was created to elicit an action. Sometimes the copy is designed for immediate action, which is referred to as direct response copywriting.
But immediate action isn’t always the goal. Imagine if every blog article on the internet would try to get you to buy something right away. The reader may not even be in a position to take immediate action, so sometimes, copy is designed to promote a brand in order to reap the benefits later on. Both these strategies play an essential role in the marketing process.
Do Your Research
Most of the articles you find on the internet these days are plagiarized. They’re simply rephrased. Sometimes the sources are credited, sometimes not. This way of taking shortcuts won’t help you build a successful career as a copywriter.
Try doing your own research, include statistics in your copy, and check that all details are properly sourced or attributed. Even if you’re a newcomer, this will make you appear more knowledgeable and experienced.
You don’t have to spend weeks double-checking every statistic, but common sense should triumph here. Avoid relying exclusively on Wikipedia and instead use recent, original sources whenever available. Having said that, it’s quite easy to lose track of your research, especially the sources. If you want to keep things organized and manageable, you can take advantage of free software such as PDFChef, which lets you split and merge PDF files.
What’s Your Target Audience?
One of the most common mistakes newbie copywriters make is failing to consider their target audience. When a client hires you to create copy for them, they will most likely provide you a brief that specifies the word count, tone of voice, subject matter, keywords to include, goals, and audience.
It’s important to take this brief seriously and respect the client’s preferences. Approach, vocabulary, and tone are drastically different when writing for retirees as opposed to writing directly to another company to promote a product or service. If you know who you’re writing for, you can tailor your copy to better suit your target audience and the copy’s objectives.
Imagine You’re Writing for Just One Person
You should approach copywriting as though you were writing to a single person and trying to spark his interest. Copywriting is all about effectively sharing your knowledge in order to maximize the effectiveness of your marketing efforts, and if you capture the interest of just one person, the others will follow.
Instead of writing with a whole category of people in mind, put their defining traits into an ideal persona and imagine you’re writing them an email. Personalize it, use humor, and include as many details as possible. You’ll notice that it makes the process easier, and your copy will sound much more approachable and engaging.
Ask Questions
Sometimes you’ll receive briefs that aren’t helpful at all. They’re basically giving you a topic and telling you to write something about it. You certainly could take advantage of the freedom this provides you and choose whatever angle and approach you think would work best, but you don’t have a crystal ball that tells you what your client is actually looking for and what their feedback will be.
The only way you can find out is by asking them. You’ll save time by not having to edit and rewrite as much, and the client will get exactly what they want the first time.
The following are some good questions to ask your copywriting client:
- What do you hope to accomplish with this piece?
- What kind of call-to-action would you like to include?
- Who is the target audience?
- What tone do you want me to use?
- Are you aiming for specific keywords, and if so, what are they?
Keep Your Expectations in Check
This isn’t Mad Men. If you’re just starting out in your career, you’ll be expected to produce large amounts of content quickly, and you won’t be paid that much for it.
Starting your own blog can be a great way to show potential clients your writing skills. You can also get more experience through content mills and recruitment sites.
