Author: claire

You’ll read a lot of stuff online about what a good copywriter can do for you and your business.  About why it pays to invest in good copy.  And you can call me biased, but it’s all true – hiring a professional copywriter will save you time and money in the long run, not to mention win you lots of new business!

But it’s not enough to just hire a copywriter.

It’s an understandable mistake; busy CEO finds kick-ass writer with proven track record, briefs said professional about the requirements and boom, job done.  That’s the way outsourcing in the business world usually works.  But approach your copywriting project in this way, and you’ll be missing a trick.

To get the most from your copywriter you have to be prepared to build a relationship with them.  The sharing of information, ideas and feedback is crucial.  A good copywriter won’t take up any more of your precious time than is absolutely necessary, but failing to provide them with that input from your side is a bit like buying a Jaguar and putting cheap tyres on it – you’ll get from A to B, but you’ll miss out on the optimal performance you’ve paid for.

If you’ve never worked with a copywriter before, here’s a little overview of what to expect…

Expect them to ask questions
Anybody can regurgitate old information in a new way.  But a really fresh approach begins with a thorough understanding of the story – who you are, what you do, and why.  Clear, effective communications happen when your copywriter really knows what they are talking about, and the only way they can find that out is if they ask questions.  So expect to spend a little bit of time talking with your copywriter.  In an ideal world, I’d like to meet all of my clients face to face.  There is so much to be gained by meeting people, hearing the way they talk about their business, understanding their passions and frustrations, and of course seeing for myself how the business works.  The more your copywriter understands, the better they can help you to communicate with your customer.

Don’t expect perfection first time
Of course, every copywriter would want their first draft to be perfect.  But since we live in the real world, we know that this isn’t always the case.  The success of a first draft depends on two things; how thoroughly you brief the copywriter, and their professional skill.  For the best chance of success, you need to be really clear about what you want and make sure your writer has all the information they need.  But even then, it’s important to be realistic.  Often it takes a bit of time (and a couple of drafts) for copywriter and client to find their mutual groove, but when they do, it’s a beautiful thing.  So be patient, offer constructive feedback, and you’ll reap the rewards in the long run.  By the same token if you feel your copywriter is not listening or failing to interpret your brief accurately, or even if you just don’t ‘click’ professionally, it’s important to know when enough is enough.  The key is to be honest and keep the lines of communication open so nobody ends up feeling short-changed.

Expect to pay a fair price 
As a freelance, I know that people often approach me because they have a small project and a small budget to match.  Hey, I get it – I’m a small business too.  It’s tough out there and when you’re trying to make a big impact on a shoestring you need to watch the pennies.  Freelancers can often offer more flexibility for those who don’t have a huge marketing budget to work with.  But please, don’t approach a freelance copywriter expecting to get something for nothing.

Regardless of whether your writer works for a big agency that pays big bucks, or they’re a freelancer like me, producing good copy takes time and that’s worth paying for.  (Also, we need to eat.)  I charge an hourly rate because that works best for me and reflects not only the quality and quantity of copy produced, but also the time it takes to research, plan, formulate and edit that copy.  Sometimes you literally are paying me to sit and stare into space – that’s when I do some of my best thinking.  (Sometimes I wake up at 3am with a great idea, though I won’t bill you for that!)  But I am invested in your project and I want the work I do to bring you real success.  Freelance rates vary quite a lot depending on the job and the experience of the freelancer and it’s fine to ask about rates up front.  If it’s more than you wanted to pay, that’s OK too – but please don’t try to tell me I should be charging less because it’s “only a couple of hundred words”.

If you’d like to discuss a writing project you need help with, I’d love to hear from you!  Get in touch here.

When we talk about creating copy for a business or organisation, one of the first questions that comes up is what the ‘tone of voice’ should be.  Oddly enough, in this context the phrase tone of voice actually refers to written, rather than spoken words.

Every organisation projects a tone of voice, and the aim is to develop a language for your brand that is easily recognisable and consistent in every aspect of your communications.  You could be running the largest, most successful business in the world, but when your customer picks up that brochure or logs onto your website, they are effectively talking directly to you, the company, on a one-to-one basis.  The information you put out delivers the facts your potential customer needs in order to hire you, but your tone of voice tells them whether or not you’re a good fit for the kind of working relationship they prefer.  Therefore, it’s not only what you say that counts, but how you say it.

For example, for this website, I decided I wanted the copy to sound just like me – as if I was talking to you face to face, or on the phone.  I really am just one ordinary little person with a passion for what I do and a desire to get to know my clients on a personal as well as a professional level – but this informal, personal tone is a popular choice these days even for huge corporations, because it gives the impression of a much smaller and more intimate relationship for their clients.  Probably one of the most famous examples is Apple, which uses uncomplicated, conversational copywriting as a cornerstone of its entire brand.

In a world where online has largely replaced face-to-face, at least for initial connections, tone of voice transforms your company into an entity that your customer can bond with and identify with – so you need to really think about how your written communications come across, and what that says about your organisation.

So, how do you figure out what your tone of voice should be?  It might be tempting to go with the trend – after all, if it’s good enough for Apple, it’s good enough for anybody, right?  Well, not exactly.  Finding your voice means finding that sweet spot where the way you want to sound collides with what your customers expect to hear.  Get it wrong and your communications will sound hollow or unprofessional  – but get it right, and you’ll not only communicate essential information, you’ll also inspire confidence and lay the foundations for a relationship that both you and your client can feel good about.

Finding your voice means going right back to basics and making sure you have a really clear understanding of your business or brand, and what its aims are.  As you examine what you are trying to achieve and the ways in which your business differs from its competitors, so too you will start to see a recurring theme in the words and the language you use to define your brand.  An understanding of your market and your customer – his likes and dislikes, the things that influence him – will further inform and develop the tone of all your communications.

It’s helpful sometimes to imagine that you have your ‘dream’ customer sitting right in front of you.  If you can imagine the words you’d use to pitch your business, what you’d wear, where you’d meet – you can imagine the overall tone of the exchange.  And that will help you to develop the tone of your communications too.  Take fashion outlet ASOS for example; they choose language that suits the average demographic of their customer so it’s often littered with modern slang, like this headline advertising gym attire: “Squat goals. Shop everything you need to be the best you at ASOS.”  Head over to luxury brand Ted Baker, however, which shares a large proportion of the same demographic, and you’ll find a totally different tone – no slang, and much more ‘aspirational’ vocabulary: “From spacious suitcases to handsome holdalls, pack like a professional jet-setter with Ted’s luxury luggage.”  When it comes to establishing your tone of voice, the right option is as unique as your business (and your customer) itself.

This is the part of the blog post when I remind you that a professional copywriter can work with you on all these things to help you establish the tone of voice you want to project, and then produce the written words accordingly.  If this sounds like something you need help with, get in touch!

When people ask me what I do, if I say ‘freelance copywriter’, they almost always respond with ‘huh?’  Many people have no idea what a copywriter does, but in fact, almost every time they browse a website, flick through a catalogue or read a company newsletter they’re reading words that have been put together by somebody like me.

In in today’s image-driven world, we still need content in the form of written words to get the important messages across.  But why do people need copywriters?  Surely it can’t be that hard to churn out a few paragraphs for your company website or brochure?  Anyway, doesn’t your web developer or graphic designer provide that?

Well, the answer is usually no.  Web developers are web developers (ditto graphic designers) and while many of them can do a good job of writing some copy in a pinch, most of them would much rather get on with the job they’re actually trained to do.  And all of them will tell you about the power of good copy to drive engagement, reach and results for your business.

We’ve all encountered bad copy.  Reams and reams of waffle that takes too long to read?  We move on to the next website or drop the leaflet in the bin.  Bad grammar or dodgy spelling?  If the company can’t spell (or can’t be bothered to spell check) what other corners do they cut?  Wrong tone of voice?  We feel uneasy about trusting that company to do a good job.

On the other hand, good content will deliver all the information your customer needs in an easy-to-digest format.  It will flow naturally without syntactical errors.  It will have a voice – your voice, on brand and on message.  It will contain the key words and phrases necessary for your website to rank well in search engines ahead of your competitors.  It’s the conversation you’d want to have with your customer if they were standing right in front of you.

Many companies spend big bucks on marketing material – whether that’s a fancy-pants website or a load of printed media – without thinking too much about the actual words they contain.  But a website or brochure that’s all style and no substance – great design, without great content – is unlikely to engage your client.  Creating quality content is a skill and well-crafted content is always a good investment.

If that sounds like something you need, then let’s talk!  Get in touch to chat about what you need and how some great writing could benefit your business.