COPYWRITING IS CONFUSING
What even is it? Honestly, my mom has no idea what I do. I think that my dad sort of gets it but last time we spoke the blue collar came out and he was like: "So long as it's not consulting." Lol.
Sorry dad, sometimes it is.
Copywriting is strategy.
I honestly wouldn't call it writing. It's rare that I get to sit there and actually write. 90% of the job is aligning market research, mining for customer insights, packaging up offers, and building funnels. The writing is a byproduct of those things.
I was never an order-taker kind of copywriter. Like if a client asked for a blog, I'd fire back with "Let me see your funnel" or the one everyone loves to hate "when was the last time you spoke to your customers?"
Naturally, people are confused.
Today, I will try to give you a straight answer without muddying the waters too much.
WHEN YOU SHOULD CONSIDER HIRING ONE
There are three instances when hiring a copywriter for your small business makes money sense.
when you are building something from scratch
when you are fixing something broken or niching down hard
when you are missing opportunities due to inaction
Let's go over it.
One
When people start a biz the first thing they run to is usually brand identity and a website. I'm not saying you don't need a website. I am saying you need a funnel more. The problem with most websites is that they are not tied to a mechanism that moves people down a path. They are just alone, out there on the interwebs. Oh so pretty, but alas, collecting dust.
A copywriter can help you build out a mechanism for getting people's eyes on your offer. And once they do get to see it- a copywriter can make sure the right prospects purchase.
Here's an example of my super-simple funnel.
Social---->Lead magnet opt-in---->list
If I map the copy assets onto that you get:
social posts--->lead magnet opt-in page----> lead magnet delivery emails---->welcome/ indoctrination email sequence---->list (weekly newsletter)
As you can see my website is not really front and centre (I am making one soon though)
Two
Some folks already have a funnel built but it's not converting as much as they hoped and they need to make sure there is no leak. Let's take a hypothetical example of a course creator who live-launches their course several times a year. They need a lot of copy assets to click together and ensure no qualified lead is left un-sold.
There are the sales emails, there are the various landing pages, there are usually free webinars and their landing pages, post-webinar sequences, and then once all that is done there are the nurture campaigns. Oh my.
That's a lot of words.
If at any point in the funnel, the messaging is misaligned or the conversion frameworks don't exist your conversion rates will suffer. In English- you will make less cash.
Three
The third most popular reason why a copywriter is a good idea is when you know you should be doing something you are not doing (ahem writing a consistent newsletter for example) but for some reason you avoid it.
The reasons can be:
writing is not your thing and exhausts you
you are too busy in your business to take it on
If you know you are missing revenue-generating opportunities it's time to have a little sit down with you and the woman in the mirror and see what's up.
WHEN YOU SHOULD HOLD OFF
There are times I get on a good-fit call and copywriting is not really going to help. Here are some instances:
you are too early and need to get some clients under your belt first. Without the messy beginning, we have little to work with.
you have a bad offer no one wants and think it's the words. (it isn't) Copywriting cannot fix a bad product-market-fit
You are looking to make a quick buck. I don't help with that. Slow bucks only over here.
WHAT IT'S LIKE WORKING WITH ONE
I can't speak for my colleagues, but here's the inside of my client space in Notion. This is the exact process I take my clients through when writing just about anything.
Although I offer done-for-you services, it's a pretty immersive experience for my clients. The main reason for this is because the training and insights they get as I take them along for the ride are super useful to them as business owners. This is especially true of the client interviews since most of the folks I work with have never done them.