You may know what copywriting is, but perhaps you don’t know how important it is. Sure, you need a website or product to exist in order to write the content for it, but that’s not what copywriting is about. According to HubSpot Blogs,
“Content copywriting is often confused with marketing copy. While the two are related, they serve different purposes. Content copywriting is the process of creating compelling copy for internal and external audiences to engage with.”
“Content writers are responsible for crafting engaging content for web pages, emails, social media, and more. They may also collaborate with marketers and designers on SEO-optimized web copy used to attract potential customers.”
Basically, copywriting is the process of creating content for websites, social media, emails, and other online platforms. While you may not need a formal education in copywriting to become an effective content copywriter, having some knowledge of grammar, spelling, and language will help you along the way.
Copywriting Vs. Marketing Copy
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Marketing or sales copy is the language that industry professionals use when promoting a product. In other words, your Aunt Sally may be using marketing copy to convince you to purchase her homemade cinnamon rolls, but those rolls are not the same as the ones that the brand name Cinnabon promotes.
When creating content for a product’s website, social media accounts, or email campaigns, you will often come across marketing or sales copy. This type of copy usually contains the brand name or logo, often in bold text, and may also include product or website details.
By contrast, content copywriting does not need to include a lot of brand references or corporate statements. In general, content copy should be concise, easy to understand, and most importantly, useful. In fact, you may find that many successful copywriters do not work directly for a brand or company. Instead, they may provide freelance copywriting services to brands and businesses worldwide, specializing in content for websites, emails, and social media.
While content copywriting may include some marketing or sales jargon, it is absolutely not required. In some cases, such as websites, blog posts, and product descriptions, you may find that the copy is quite technical and may even contain some scientific language. However, in others, like social media posts and emails, you will need to keep things more simple, jargon-free, and easy to understand.
The Importance Of Content Copy
Marketing and sales professionals often speak of the importance of content. After all, they know that you can’t just launch a product and have it take off like wildfire. Instead, you need to provide consumers with content that they find useful, engaging, and most importantly, helps them make a decision.
According to HubSpot Blogs,
“The content marketing strategy is extremely important because it helps to establish your brand’s voice and provides you with the content that you need to promote your brand.”
“Your content strategy should include both paid and organic content – both of which can work together to create buzz, gain credibility, and establish your expertise within your industry.”
In other words, you can’t just put out a bunch of blogs without any thought about whether or not those blogs are going to be useful to your audience. Unless you want your blog content to go unnoticed, you need to make sure that each blog post is both interesting and provides your target audience with something valuable.
As a content copywriter, you will often find yourself creating content for websites, emails, and social media. In many cases, the content will be promoting a brand or product, but it can also simply be engaging news or information about the subject matter.
When creating content for websites or blogs, you will need to make sure that the content is formatted in a way that it displays properly on each individual device. You also need to make sure that the content is clear and concise without being too simplistic or boring.
Effective Content Copy
The type of content that you will create as a copywriter will depend on your expertise and area of specialization. For example, if you are a physician, you might be creating medical content, such as an explainer video about different medical conditions or an article on the subject matter. If you are an attorney, you may be creating legal content, like an explainer video about different legal issues or an article on the topic.
Regardless of the subject matter or industry, you are always free to choose a niche, develop your expertise, and create content for your clients. In most cases, you will be expected to create content on a regular basis, so make sure that you develop a habit of regularly pumping out top-notch content that is both interesting and educational.
How To Become A Copywriter
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To become a successful content copywriter, you will need to master a few important things. First, you will need to learn how to write compelling, engaging content for both internal and external audiences. You can do this by simply going through some of the content that you have already written and identifying sentences or paragraphs that you deem as being exceptionally good.
“It is extremely important to learn from the best. For this reason, one of the best ways to develop as a copywriter is to seek out professional advice and get feedback.”
Once you have identified these exceptional sentences or paragraphs, re-read them out loud. In most cases, there will be something about the story or language that makes the content special, and ultimately, useful. You may also find that there are certain patterns or structures within the content that you can use to create more effective copy.
As a first step, you should probably take a few hours and re-read one of your best pieces of content. Identify the structures, patterns, and language that you used to create the piece and see if you can incorporate this into your own freelance copywriting work. If you are looking for a more formal education, there are several reputable copywriting schools or certificate programs that you can join. Alternatively, you can also find online tutorials and free educational materials that you can use to gain in-demand skills and gain the credentials that you need to become a successful professional copywriter.