How not to suck at copywriting

Article Written By: Sam_Cartwrightz

You ve had a good run of writing killer content, your clients and those search engine will adore you. So you start thinking that your writing makes things happen. However, what you may have failed to take into account is the product you wrote about may be just the thing that customers are looking for. The special offer you included in your carefully crafted piece of prose was an offer that was too good to be missed. The truth is that nobody really paid that much attention to your copy.

But you don t know that for sure. So, running on the assumption that it was actually your copy that did the selling, you decide that you ve hit on the copywriting 'motherload and use the same techniques again for another client.

But assumptions are notorious for making people look like fools. You ve used the same techniques, the same style and the same 'tone for another client and the result is a rapid slide down to P-nowhere on the Google search rankings and a veritable drought as far as sales are concerned. What s gone wrong? Why didn t your golden technique and that magic touch work a second time?

It s a massive blow to your ego as a copywriter and can lead to a rapid downward spiral of self-loathing. I m a terrible copywriter! No one will ever hire me again!” You question yourself and your methods. But don t worry. You re not alone.

Most UK copywriters have faced this dilemma at some point in their careers. Actually, everyone has faced this situation no matter what their career – the heady heights of success followed by the dark valleys of failure. Sitting down, day after day and writing the same SEO copywriting, the same types of articles and the same web content can cause a copywriter to easily slip into a 'formulaic routine. A brief comes through and the immediate thought is, Oh, right. Two hundred words with keyword inclusions. Strong call to action, promote the client. Exactly the same as I did for XYZ last week.”

No, it s not exactly the same. Each brief is unique, each client has their own agenda and target audience and each product, no matter how similar to XYZ s, has its own marketing 'sweet spot . A copywriter has to position that content right in the sweet spot if it is to be successful. That s where testing comes in.

The search engines are now placing far more emphasis on unique and fresh content. Websites that stick with the same old, same old slide quickly down the rankings as new kids step in with killer content and more relevant copy. This actually works in the copywriter s favour because it means that if something isn t working, there s plenty of opportunity to test new material to find the sweet spot. That s good advice, not just for copywriters but for business owners too. If something isn t working, don t be shy about ditching it and testing a new approach.

So don t be afraid to:

- Test your market – again and again if necessary

- Revisit killer copy that isn t quite as 'killer as you thought it was

- Ask for specifics on your brief – get an idea of exactly what message the client wants to get across

- Adapt your copywriting for a changing market – what works on a static site may not work for mobile browsers

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Search for Website Copywriterhttp://www.bigstarcontent.co.uk/.

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