Copywriting for Dummies - How to Start a Copywriting Business Today

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Are you thinking about starting a copywriting business? Or maybe you’re hoping to do copywriting for your existing business to generate more income and acquire more clients.

Either way, copywriters are able to work on their own schedule from anywhere in the world, making money from working with clients on a consistent basis.

Copywriters aren't tied down to an office and have the location independence that many people are looking for.

Experienced copywriters can also charge high rates for their services and have unlimited earning potential. Some copywriters make over $100 per hour writing for clients who need high-quality content for their business.

Some copywriters also act as freelance writers, meaning they work for several different clients typically in a similar niche or industry.

With all the benefits that come with being a professional copywriter, it may not be all it’s cracked up to be.

Continue reading to find out everything you need to know about copywriting for dummies and get all the information you need to start your copywriting business this year.

What is copywriting?

Before you can start a copywriting agency, you need to know what copywriting is and what it isn’t.

Copywriting is a form of writing that intends to persuade an audience to take an action.

This action can be anything from buying a product, signing up for an email newsletter, buying an online course, and many other actions. 

The ultimate goal of a copywriter is to write content that is engaging and persuasive.

Experienced copywriters are valuable because they can dramatically increase revenue for their clients and help grow their businesses.

It’s important to make the distinction between copywriting and copyright law.

While copyright law deals with plagiarism, trademarks, and intellectual property, copywriting is much different, and you need to know the difference if you want to start a copywriting agency and position yourself as an expert copywriter.

Copywriting may also be confused with freelance writing, content writing, and content marketing.

However, those who consider themselves copywriters have the skills needed to sell products or services through their written content.

Most freelance writers and content marketers tend to focus on informational content that doesn’t persuade people to buy a product or service.

A big part of being a successful copywriter is having a good understanding of basic SEO principles and how to rank your content in Google search results.

Without this basic SEO knowledge, you won’t be able to get results for your clients and they will not want to continue paying you for low-quality results.

Do you need to hire a copywriter for your business? Check out this article to learn everything you need to know about hiring a website copywriter to help grow your business.

What is sales copy?

Sales copy (or just “copy”) is the actual words that copywriters use to persuade their audience. This means that writing “good copy” is another way of saying that you are a good writer who produces high-quality content. 

Sales copy can refer to a number of different channels that copywriters produce content for.

For example, sales copy can be the writing used in email newsletters, on the home pages of websites, on social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter, and even the transcripts of YouTube videos.

Sales copy differs from simple copy because there is a purpose of getting more sales and selling your products or services.

Simple copy may refer to content writing or content marketing without the intention of directly selling something to an audience.

What does a copywriter do?

Copywriters primarily create content for their clients or work on producing content for their current company.

There are plenty of copywriters who work “normal” jobs for companies in an office–not everyone writes content from the beach or in exotic locales. 

Below are the main responsibilities of a copywriter:

Writing, writing, and more writing.

Most copywriters tend to write longer pieces of content in the form of articles, blog posts, email newsletters, or website content. Aspiring copywriters should expect long days typing away on their computers each day.

Some copywriters need to produce content for their clients for 10 to 12 hours per day just to make ends meet. New copywriters trying to get experience should prepare for long days writing and marketing themselves to acquire new clients.

Researching new topics and ideas.

When working with clients, they’ll inevitably need content on a number of different topics that you may be unfamiliar with.

You should expect to do plenty of research before writing for clients to ensure you have a comprehensive understanding of the topic before writing about it.

SEO keyword research.

If you want to write content that sells, you’ll need to know what keywords to target with your writing.

SEO keyword research is vital to the success of all copywriters. Without proper on-page SEO, no one will discover the content you create and no one will be paying you for your services.

Prospecting for new clients.

In order to sustain your copywriting business, you’ll need to have at least a few clients who pay you regularly for your services.

You’ll need to do plenty of prospecting if you hope to acquire high-quality clients.

Customer service and maintaining clients.

It’s not enough to acquire a few clients–you need to retain them so they consistently pay you for your services each month.

You’ll need to manage your clients and communicate with them about things like pay rates and content schedules.

This means there is potential for disputes between you and your clients. If your client isn’t happy with the content you produced, you should be prepared to do additional revisions to ensure the client is satisfied.

Benefits of being a copywriter

Being a full-time copywriter has a lot of benefits. You can set your own schedule and work with the clients you want to work with. Below are some additional benefits that copywriters enjoy:

High earning potential.

Established copywriters tend to work with the biggest brands in the world to produce content for their websites and social media accounts. Big companies with large marketing budgets can afford to pay copywriters at astronomical rates.

The top copywriters in the United States routinely charge over $200 per hour and make over $300,000 per year. Alex Fasulo is one of the most well-known copywriters and was featured on CNBC when she made over $350,000 in one year as a copywriter.

High demand for copywriters.

Not everyone is a good writer and can produce high-quality written content. Not to mention that most entrepreneurs are too busy running their businesses to invest their own time into creating content that generates more sales.

This means that copywriting is a skill in very high demand, and good copywriters who can prove their skills can charge high rates for their services.

Location independence.

Whether your goal is to pack up and do “van life” for a year or work from the beach, copywriters have the location independence where they can work from anywhere and continue to make money.

Most “normal” jobs require workers to be present in an office at least a few times per week (although remote work is becoming more popular among employers).

Flexibility.

Copywriters have lots of flexibility with their daily schedule and can work whenever they want. Some people are more productive at different times of the day, and copywriters can do things that most typical jobs don’t allow them to do.

Want to go golfing on a Monday morning? You can as a copywriter. Or maybe you want to take that vacation with your family.

Copywriters don’t have to worry about requesting PTO or vacation from a boss.

Creativity.

As a copywriter, you have the creative ability to come up with new ideas and present them in a way that shows your creative spirit.

It’s one of the most rewarding parts of being a copywriter that normal jobs typically don’t allow for.

Drawbacks of being a copywriter

While copywriters enjoy plenty of benefits, there are some downsides that you should be aware of if you want to be a copywriter.

Fierce competition.

There is lots of competition among copywriters due to the low barriers to entry and the fact that there are more copywriters looking for work than there are people hiring copywriters.

This means that getting started as a new copywriter can be extremely difficult without any prior experience or track record proving your skills.

Long hours and low pay.

Some beginner copywriters may find themselves working long hours at cheap rates while trying to get their copywriting business off the ground.

You’ll most likely need to charge well under what you’re worth to acquire your first few clients as a copywriter to build your portfolio and gain valuable experience.

As you continue to acquire new clients, you’ll start to hone your skills in copywriting and can start to charge higher rates.

Stress.

Most copywriters are required to produce content within deadlines set by the client.

If you take on too much work, you may be forced to extend deadlines or submit late work for your client–which isn’t ideal if you want to retain your clients and make more money as a copywriter.

Time management.

Those that don’t have much experience managing clients and meeting deadlines may struggle as a copywriter.

You’ll need to stay motivated and burn the midnight oil to meet the expectations of your clients.

Messy disputes.

Working with clients can be difficult if you aren’t able to meet their expectations on a regular basis.

This could lead to messy disputes that end in burning bridges and dissatisfaction. Not to mention that having a bad reputation in this industry could be a career killer.

Tools needed to be a copywriter

One thing that separates professional copywriters from average ones is that the pros use tools that make their job easier.

The following tools are the best ones you should use if you want to make it as a copywriter in 2022 and beyond.

Grammarly

Grammarly is hands-down the best tool to ensure your writing is clear and concise.

The advanced technology that Grammarly uses can drastically improve your writing skills and correct errors in spelling, punctuation, and syntax that you otherwise may not have noticed.

Grammarly is such a great tool since you can copy and paste your text into their indexes from a Google Doc, Microsoft Word file, or PDF document.

Grammarly indexes your content in seconds and provides suggestions on how you can improve your writing.

Click here to learn more about Grammarly and how you can get started creating better written content for free.

Try Grammarly for Free

Moz

Moz is an SEO tool that all copywriters should use before producing content for clients.

With Moz, you can do keyword research to find out which search terms people are searching for the most in your niche and how difficult it is to rank on the first page of Google for those terms. 

Moz also has the ability to track websites to see their domain authority and how many backlinks they’ve generated to their site.

You can run SEO campaigns with Moz and generate reports that show clients you’re getting them results with your copywriting efforts.

Moz offers an incredible 30-day free trial that you can sign up for by clicking here. The free trial is a great way to get your feet wet with the basics of SEO and ranking your content on Google search.

Try Moz 30-day Free Trial

Google Workspace

Google Workspace is comprised of Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides and it’s the best way for copywriters to share their work with clients. 

It allows for incredible collaboration and communication that make your life much easier as a copywriter.

Clients are able to make comments and request revisions more efficiently than using Microsoft’s suite of products.

The best part about Google Workspace is that it’s totally free to use. You’ll want to sign up for a free Gmail account where you can then start using its products with your copywriting business.

Google Workspace also comes with Google Calendar which makes it easy to set meetings and video calls with your clients.

Try Google Workspace for Free

Final thoughts

Being a copywriter is not meant for everyone. For those who value location independence and the freedom to make their own schedule, copywriting may be a viable path.

However, most beginner copywriters find themselves working long hours for little pay and tend to quit before they see any real success as a copywriter.

If you want to make it as a copywriter in today’s world, you’ll need to find a way to differentiate yourself from others. Why should someone hire you over other people with a proven track record and dozens of client testimonials?

While being a full-time copywriter is a long and stressful road, plenty of people are able to support themselves by writing content for clients around the world on their own schedule.

Click here to find out how Interphase Marketing can help you reach your goals as a business owner and aspiring copywriter.

Interested in learning more about partnering with us to grow your business? Contact us today to find out how to advertise with us and grow your business organically with the power of SEO.