Copywriting – what is it and what is it for?

You have probably heard the term copywriting many times, but you cannot necessarily explain what exactly it means. From this article you will learn what copywriting is and why it is worth using the services of a professional copywriter.

What does copywriting mean?

It’s hard to find a Polish equivalent of this term. Copywriting can be defined in various ways. Personally, I understand it as the process of creating effective, persuasive and functional texts, most often of a sales nature (at least indirectly). Therefore, copywriting is not journalism, fiction, or the creation of dry technical descriptions (e.g., providing the parameters of a given device).

Copywriting is the creation of texts for marketing and advertising purposes, containing a specific message for the consumer. A copywriter must know how to sell, and for this they must know the product, the target recipient and the communication strategy adopted in the organization.

It’s also beneficial to understand what SEO copywriting entails. It involves crafting content with the goal of improving search engine rankings, for example, on Google.

How to learn effective copywriting yourself?

Do you want to become an advertising content author? There are a lot of trainings, books and online courses on the market, thanks to which you will learn, among others:

• types of advertising texts,
• their characteristics,
• rules for creating this type of content,
• useful tools.

It is worth collecting theoretical knowledge and writing at the same time, working on your own skills. There are many techniques for creating content, but experience is extremely important and reading even 100 books will not guarantee that you will be able to write good sales texts. Also remember that you are learning the language and how to use it all the time. Not only industry literature, but also good novels, reports and even writing on the Internet will help you develop your skills.

However, if you are a copywriter and want to cooperate with us, write to us! Let me know what topics you are best at and attach your portfolio.

Copywriting prices and offers

Copywriting is valued at:

design – e.g. for developing a given advertising slogan (usually as part of a broader campaign),

for 1,000 characters with spaces – in the case of functional texts, for a knowledge base, for a company blog, etc.

Copywriting costs depend on, among others: depending on the subject of the texts and their level of expertise.

If you are looking for a copywriter and asking for offers (e.g. on the Facebook group – Copywriter Wanted), please specify:

• purpose and nature of a given text,
• assumptions about the author (sometimes a copywriter must have more experience in a certain field – e.g. technical copywriter),
• number of texts (or characters).

It is also worth asking to send a portfolio. You can also ask the candidate to prepare a text on a given topic that will allow you to assess the level of his/her abilities. Remember that it is good practice to pay even for the smallest orders, for which you can settle only at the stage of signing the contract.

Facebook is a great place where many copywriters look for jobs, so posting an ad in a popular group will make it easier to find the right person. There are also a lot of small agencies (creative boutiques) there that are happy to share their knowledge and experiences – it never hurts to ask them about their offer.

Orders for copywriters in other languages – how to do it?

Remember: the ability to write texts is not the same as knowledge of languages! Not every Pole can write an advertising text or an article for a website, even though they know and speak Polish fluently. Similarly, a candidate’s knowledge of English alone does not guarantee that he or she will be a good content provider.

A higher level of text manipulation requires great skills, knowledge of contexts and avoiding mistakes, but also a certain cultural background regarding a given country. Therefore, if you need texts in a foreign language, you have the following options to choose from:

• cooperation with a specialist with an extensive portfolio – who will write a text in the target language from scratch,
• ordering texts in Polish and then sending them to professional translators – this way you can also use content that already exists and recycle it. This is often a cheaper solution than finding a good copywriter who speaks and writes, for example, Spanish.
• using the services of a proof reader – in such a situation, you translate the text into a foreign language yourself or commission it to be written by a less experienced copywriter, and the proof reader checks it for linguistic correctness.

When making a decision, pay attention not only to the costs, but also consider which solution will bring you the best results. Marketing texts will not always sound good when translated into a foreign language. They often require adaptation not only linguistically, but also culturally. It is not without reason that in the Polish version of Shrek, the land Fiona comes from was called Zasiedmiogórogrod (Beyond-seven- hills-town) (in the original Farfaraway).

What characterizes a good copywriter?

A good copywriter must, first of all, be able to use the language in which he or she writes texts fluently. You may laugh at the fact that this is a truism, but very often even people with specialized education, e.g. journalism, make not only minor typos, but gross linguistic errors. It happens that a slogan with typos end up on billboards, on a website or in social media. The image scandal is ready.

First of all, in addition to knowing the rules of proper writing, a copywriter must simply be well-read and have the so-called “writing flow“. However, this does not mean exceptional prose or poetic skills. A copywriter’s texts must be easily digestible. Otherwise, they will scare the reader away instead of encouraging them to take a specific action.

In addition, copywriter must know the basics of sales psychology. He or she must learn the nature, needs and behavior of the target group of their texts. A different language is used when creating content for housewives, another for children, and another for high-level managers. An everyday product is sold differently than a holiday trip for the whole family.

A good copywriter must be able to use proven solutions. There are a number of rules for creating attention-grabbing titles, headings, and text composition techniques. One of them is the language of benefits.

A small example. When writing a text advertising insurance, you first suggest potential threats to the recipient, and then point to the remedy for all evil – the insurance product being sold. See how many advertisements are based on this simple pattern. To make the recipient, i.e. the potential customer, feel really threatened, it is not enough to write:

Accidents are dangerous. Buy our policy.

That is, it is possible, but it will not be effective because we will not arouse the appropriate emotional state in them that will encourage them to buy the policy. The truth is that we make very few decisions, especially as consumers, purely rationally. That’s why reaching out to the customer’s feelings, needs and emotions is so crucial.

To sum up, the features of a good copywriter are:

• linguistic correctness,
• a writing flow and knowledge of techniques for creating persuasive texts,
• the ability to understand the client and reach their subconscious needs.

Copywriting and content marketing – what are the differences?

For several years now, there has been more and more talk about content marketing instead of copywriting. See how many blogs and websites companies currently run. Are their authors copywriters or maybe a group of people who have access to information about the company? It is now accepted that articles, blog entries, newsletters, sponsored texts, product descriptions and many, many others are the domain of content creators. Copywriters, on the other hand, create content and scripts for advertisements, both online, television, radio and press. Most often, these are shorter but more creative content.

Where is copywriting used and is it worth using?

Small companies often assume that writing text for a website is not a challenge, that anyone can write content for mailings, and materials for a trade fair catalogue will be prepared by a secretary. Of course, it can be done this way, but by creating promotional materials without the help of a copywriter, we waste time and money as well as the opportunity to more effectively acquire customers and partners for the company.

Websites filled with professionally prepared text content are able to achieve sales effectiveness several times higher than websites written by amateurs. The ability to properly target the message, influence website traffic, and use, in addition to language techniques, appropriate tools (such as buttons, well-thought-out linking, CTA phrases, or techniques influencing SEO) allows to achieve much better business results. It is worth remembering this already at the stage of commissioning the creation of a company website and ordering content from professionals.

Cooperation with an external subcontractor does not always have to be a guarantee of the highest quality, but it is a better solution than entrusting such activities to an inexperienced employee without the appropriate competences. Following my tips, you will certainly approach the topic of selecting a copywriter more consciously. And if you manage to find a talented specialist, you can effectively achieve your goals.