First things first: SEO, or search engine optimization is a specialized skill. Companies looking for an SEO copywriter often are conflating two roles into one. Dig into the job description, and you may have a bit more clarity on what they want. But, often, you may be asking clarifying questions to the hiring manager as to what, specifically, they want this role to tackle.

There’s a lot of debate about if copywriting and content writing are two separate things. And, the answer is very much yes. (You can read more about the differences here >>)

Here’s the thing: there are some people who will continue to conflate the two—to their own detriment. This could be business owners who don’t understand the goals of copy vs. content. Or this could be content writers who apply for copywriting jobs and are surprised why they’re not getting calls back.

Copywriters are writing to persuade. To get people to take action. These are your billboards, emails, banner ads, sales pages, and more.

Content writers are writing to inform, entertain, or inspire. Sure, there can be calls to action within content. But it’s supporting the purchase process; it’s not a direct link to a purchase. These are your blog posts and ebooks.

With that foundation, let’s dig into what people are really asking for when they’re wanting an “SEO copywriter.”

What is SEO Copywriting?

SEO copywriting is taking all the principles of copywriting (features versus benefits; clear call to action; writing to a brand’s voice; speaking to the target audience) and adding a layer of SEO keyword research.

But, if you read our intro, you know it’s a bit of a misnomer.

Think of SEO as the alternative to paid ads. If you can rank in the top 3 results for a given search term on Google, then people are going to click that page. It will build trust and authority in your brand because you’re ranking high on Google, so more people are clicking on it. And more people consuming it makes the algorithm think it’s more valuable than less-clicked content. (There are, of course, a lot of other factors that go into the algorithm. Google isn’t sharing how it algorithm works!)

Keywords are just one piece of SEO (more on that to come). Keywords are one small piece of a blog post or specific web page ranking higher than others that feature similar keywords.

So, for example, let’s say you’re writing a blog post about glow in the dark dog collars. Your keyword may be “glow in the dark dog collars.” You’re naturally, going to work that language into the post; you can’t talk about glow in the dark dog collars without saying “glow in the dark dog collars!”

Outdated tactics like keyword stuffing (again, more on that to come), don’t work anymore. Search engines are much savvier at detecting what is helpful content versus what content is trying to game the algorithm by packing in a ton of the keyword. For example, if you have a 400-word post, and you use “glow in the dark dog collar” 20 times, it’s going to sound unnatural.

As a copywriter, you’re going to be using your creative brief to guide your word choices and the information you’re including in a given project. If you’re writing a homepage for a plumber in Boston, for example, you’re naturally going to be including the words “plumber” and “Boston” throughout in a compelling way that doesn’t feel forced.

Read more about the truth behind SEO “copywriting” or watch more below!

5 Things to Know About SEO Copywriting

As noted earlier, many clients may know know what their expectations are when it comes to an SEO copywriter. They know they need to “do SEO,” but don’t actually know about SEO beyond keywords. And, again, keywords are just one small part of SEO. You may be educating your clients.

Here are some key things to know.

1. Many Elements of SEO Have Nothing to Do With Writing

Too many people—many copywriters and even some of your clients!—make the mistake of thinking SEO is 100% about keywords and words on the page in general.

But savvy marketers know that this is just one piece of the SEO puzzle. Think of SEO in two parts: on-page SEO (sometimes called content SEO) and technical SEO.

The elements of technical SEO include:

Ensuring the sitemap for your client’s website is submitted to Google

This is how Google understands your website and all the pages that make it up. If you don’t submit a sitemap, Google may not find all the pages of the site and may only return some of them in search results some of the time—if at all.

Improving a website’s speed

Google doesn’t like website that load slowly! There’s a lot that goes into the speed of a site. For example, are images super high resolution or set to condense? Is the page set to lazy load? Is there extra code on the website that doesn’t need to be there? These are all elements that can impact SEO, but that will be handled by a developer versus a copywriter.

Creating an SEO-friendly site structure

How pages on a website relate is important to how Google crawls them and ranks them in search results. Websites should be, first and foremost, easy for a user to navigate. Users need to be able to find the information they’re looking for. So, if you have a blog post about glow in the dark dog collars, you may link off to a post about the safest dog collars for your pet. The topics are related and users may be curious about other collars to keep their dog safe.

Building a mobile-friendly website

Many websites are “responsive,” which simply means they adjust based on the user’s screen. So, if they’re using a large desktop monitor, a laptop, a tablet, or a mobile phone, the content adjusts accordingly.

However, sometimes websites are built for desktop first and mobile gets left behind. Search engines penalize sites that are not mobile friendly. As the majority of Internet users are accessing content from mobile phones, more emphasis has been placed on making sure the user experience is just as good on mobile as it is on desktop.

Avoiding duplicate content issues

If a website has the same content on multiple different URLs, it’s going to prevent both of them from ranking. An SEO expert needs to determine if the pages should be consolidated and one redirected or decide if one page should be marked as canonical.

Depending on your client, these elements can have a much bigger impact on the page ranking than any on-page SEO.

Think of it like an old sports car. You can paint the sports car and make it look shiny and new, but if the engine is broken, the paint isn’t going to make that car run any faster (or run at all!). That’s what technical vs. on-page SEO is like. You can add subheadings and pick a keyword that you

2. SEO is More Content than Copywriting

The goal of copywriting, at least for the web, is typically to turn traffic to a website into leads and sales. But where does that traffic come in the first place? Content.

Search engine optimization is really about attracting more organic traffic to a business’s website.

And, when it comes to copywriting, you’re going to naturally be incorporating keywords into a webpage anyway! If you’re writing for a plumber in Boston, it’s likely “plumber in Boston” is going to work it’s way into some of your headings and subheads naturally.

Here are a few SEO writing tips to get you started >>

3. SEO is a Long Game

If you or your client are looking for fast results, SEO is not it. That doesn’t mean it’s not valuable; it certainly is!

But it can take months for you to see a page rank on Google. Of course, the algorithms are not transparent. And they’re changing. All. The. Time. So, even once you rank for something, it could change next week or even the next day. Rankings fluctuate often.

Blog posts are something you can continue to update over time and has a long lifespan—years! In fact, sometimes refreshing content can have a bigger impact on SEO than creating new content (though, ideally, businesses will be doing both).

4. You Need Some Technical Know-How If You Want to Track Results

If you’re not tracking results, it’s hard to know whether what you’re doing is effective. That goes for copywriting and content. The difference withe SEO is the timeline. Unlike an email where you can see the open and click through rates after you send it, you’re going to need to monitor your metrics over time.

Google Search Console is free to set up and your client should be able to grant you access that will allow you to see what pages and keywords they’re ranking for. This can help you pinpoint holes or gaps in content.

And you can compare rankings for pages and keywords over various periods. This allows you to see if your SEO efforts are having an impact.

Tools like Semrush give you even more insights, but are paid. If you’re offering content services for clients (and you’re earning money!), these tools are a worthwhile consideration. You can roll the cost of the tool into your rates and/or use it as a tax write off.

But if you’re not yet earning (and even if you are), these tools aren’t necessary. In fact, your client may already use one and be able to give you access to it.

5. Beware of Outdated Tactics

You’ll see a lot of things like “You must write between 2,500-3,000 words.” Or “you have to use your keyword 5 times (more on keyword stuffing below).”

The truth is, everyone wants an easy-button formula. But it doesn’t exist.

They key is to answer your audience’s question. If that takes 400 words, great. If that takes 1,500, great. you can always (and should!) update content as you gain more information or hear back from your audience on what would be helpful to answering their query.

A Note on Local and Off-Page SEO

There is also local SEO and off-page SEO. Local SEO is aimed at improving SEO results locally. So, back to that plumber in Boston. They’d want to focus on local SEO since finding an audience in California isn’t necessarily going to help them.

Off-page SEO are actions that someone takes offline. For example, a phone call. Or your client does an interview with a media outlet. The media outlet quotes your client and then links back to your clients’ site when they publish the piece.

You can also reach out to sites where you think it would be helpful for them to link back to your site.

How to Become an SEO Copywriter

The process of becoming an SEO copywriter looks the same as it does for any career change.

1. Get training
2. Get experience
3. Get a job

Here’s the dirty secret: companies looking for an “SEO copywriter” often don’t know what they’re looking for.

They know SEO is important. And they want to “do SEO.” It’s a buzzword.

Maybe they think a writer can solve all the issues. Or maybe they know they need someone who can write and understands the principles of SEO that a writer does have some control over.

You want to look at the job description very carefully.

Key SEO Copywriting Tactics

As with any project, start with a creative brief!

Keyword Research

You’ll want to incorporate a relevant keyword into any piece of content. The good news is, you will likely do this automatically if you’re following best practices of summing up what your piece of content is all about.

There are tools to help you with keyword research, such as Ubersuggest (free option available) Google’s Keyword Planner (you’ll need a Google Ads account, though you don’t have to run ads). But you can also use related searches in Google or “people also ask.”

These tools can help you get a sense of keywords and related keywords, as well as how competitive they are. For example, while “glow in the dark dog collars” may have a ton of competition, something like “LED dog collar” or “lighted dog collar” may have more or less competition.

This is the difference between short and long-tail keywords. Short keywords are the most searched—which makes it harder (though not impossible) to rank for them. Long-tail keywords are typically between 3 and 5 words and let you hone in on a specific audience or niche.

Now, some teams you work with may have someone doing keyword research and suggesting a target keyword, and potentially even secondary and tertiary keywords, to consider including in your writing. Other teams looking for an “SEO copywriter” may expect you to do the keyword research.

Where to Use Keywords

As mentioned above, there’s no perfect number of times to use your keyword. You’ll naturally incorporate it as you’re writing based on the

You’ll also want to incorporate it in the meta description, page titles, and page URLs when possible. You can provide this in the copy doc, or, your client may give you access to their content management system (CMS) for you to input this information

(Pro tip: never write directly in an CMS. Technology fails all the time and there’s nothing worse than writing a piece of content … and having it go “poof.” Keep a Word or Google Doc and then copy/paste into the CMS.)

A Note on Keyword Stuffing

There are a lot of outdated SEO tactics, but you will still see people talking about getting a certain number of keywords into a post. Why? They haven’t kept up with the ever-changing marketing landscape.

This is going to hurt you significantly. Google even has rules about it .

Internal Links

As a copywriter, you’re likely already doing this. If you’re writing a homepage and you have a section that introduces the team and has a CTA to learn more that drives to the “About Us” page, then that’s your internal linking.

For content writers, there’s an opportunity to keep an eye out for what text you can link to other posts on the company’s website. This helps Google understand how pages are related on a website and it helps the user more easily find information they’re looking for.

You’ll want to keep an eye on the anchor text. Overusing keywords in the anchor text of the links you build can also hurt you.

SEO tool Yoast has helpful recommendations on anchor text >>

Valuable

Google’s “EEAT” guidelines are meant to help you create content that is most valuable for readers. EEAT stands for expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness.

Together, these guidelines are intended to make sure that the content that ranks higher in search is going to answer reader’s queries from a source that knows what its talking about. Think about it: you wouldn’t want to take medical advice from a fifteen-year-old who hasn’t gone to medical school, right?

Original

In the age of AI, this is crucial. Businesses that get left behind will be the ones that use ChatGPT to regurgitate what already exists online. AI can’t create new content. It can only cobble together content from what already exists, fundamentally making it unoriginal (not to mention, many businesses have found it creates content that is just flat out wrong).

Depending on the topic, you want to interview subject matter experts for quotes that only they could provide from their specific experiences. You could even add your own insight from your expertise, depending on the topic and your experience with it.

Essentially: what value can you add that no one else can add? What can you add to or build on the conversation that is happening on the Internet?

Your Turn! What other questions do you have about SEO? Let us know in the comments!

The post SEO Copywriting & Strategy 101: How to Write SEO appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

There are two types of clients you’ll work with as a copywriter whether you’re a full-time employee at an ad agency or internal agency, or a part-time freelancer: B2B (business-to-business) and B2C (business-to-consumer). Both offer many opportunities for copywriters and both involve different types of work.

When you’re looking for a copywriter job or pitching new clients, you’ll want to understand these terms and how the writing differs.

In short, B2B is a business that sells to other organizations or professional entities to help them generate business. B2C is a business that sells to the general public. 

In both kinds of writing, as always, audience is very important.

Here we dive into the differences between B2B vs. B2C copywriting and what you need to know as a copywriter.

B2B Copywriting

B2B copywriting focuses on creating content for businesses that sell products or services to other businesses. The goal of B2B copywriting is to generate leads and sales for the business. 

The tone is usually more formal while the content can be very detailed and technical. B2C appeals to the rational decision-makers of a business. You’re writing to a group of people making purchasing decisions rather than just one person deciding for themselves.

The key to writing successful copy for B2B clients is to know their terminology and lingo. If you can create content using their own language that resonates with their audience, your copy will be most effective.

B2B copywriters are often called “subject matter experts” because they have a deep knowledge of a particular subject and it often involves more complicated materials.

B2B Copywriting Examples

Some common types of material that you will write for B2B clients are website content, sales materials (brochures, pamphlets, etc.), or email marketing campaigns. 

You might have the task of writing an email campaign about the different features of a service. And you may even get asked to write content, such as a blog post about the benefits of using the company’s product.

The key is to provide information that will help potential customers make an informed decision about whether or not to do business with the company. 

B2C Copywriting

B2C Copywriting Examples

Is Writing for B2C “Better” Than B2B?

There is a common misconception among copywriters that writing for B2C is “better” than writing for B2B. Sure, it can be fun writing about that cute pair of shoes and how it will look great with that special  New Year’s Eve dress. Writing copy for an eye-catching billboard that your friends have all seen is a thrill.

But the truth is that writing for the consumer is more straightforward, but it can be boring. Writing for B2B is more strategic as you get to dig in a little deeper to understand the target audience. B2B copywriting can be fascinating and help you grow as a copywriter.

Don’t make assumptions about businesses until you work with them! Just about every client can be interesting when you dig into their products and target audience. You’ll likely be pleasantly surprised. 

Watch More

Want more? Watch Nicki’s video discussing B2B vs. B2C copywriting and hear about her experiences with both.

Your Turn!

What are your pros and cons working with B2B vs. B2C copywriting clients? Tell us in the comments below!

The post B2B vs. B2C Copywriting: What to Know appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

If paying taxes is what’s holding you back from freelancing, there’s some good news: All the “what if’s” and worst-case scenarios you’re thinking are all solvable (and probably not as bad as you think). 

When you’re working on-staff, your company takes out money from your taxes from your paycheck. But when you’re freelancing and often when you’re contracting, your client is not taking out money for taxes. You get the full amount, meaning that setting aside money for taxes is up to you. 

Whenever you’re making money outside of the standard “working for a company on-staff” model, you must pay income tax to the federal government and often the state government (depending on where you live) and you also have to pay self-employment tax. 

And if you’ve been freelancing for a while, it’s always good to make sure you’re correctly handling your finances. Even if you work with a tax professional, it’s good to know where money is going and why.

Now, first, let me preface all of this by saying that I am not a tax or financial professional. I can tell you what I do, but I strongly recommend you consult with a licensed tax preparation professional.

So, take a deep breath, put on your CEO hat, and let’s make sure you’re not making guesses with anything related to your bottom line. The crux of all of this is that if you’re making any kind of freelance income, you need to be saving some of it for taxes.

Reporting Income as a Freelancer

There’s a common myth among freelancers that if you make under $600 with a client you don’t have to pay taxes. This is 100% false.

If you make under $600 with a client, they are not obligated to send you a 1099-MISC form. And even the clients that should send you a 1099 may not send one. It’s your responsibility to track your freelance income.

If you make $400 (net earnings) you have to file taxes for self-employment income. Even if Client A paid you $300 for a project and Client B paid you $500, you need to report all that just as you would your clients who send you 1099s. Essentially: you need to include all income earned from your freelance business, including payments under $600.

That way if you get audited, the deposits from Client A and Client B aren’t questioned—and you don’t end up having to pay interest and penalties.

Calculating Quarterly Tax Payments

As a freelancer, you should start making quarterly estimated tax payments if you expect to owe more than $1,000 in a year. 

If you make a lot of freelance income, you may have to switch over to paying quarterly taxes. In total and complete honesty, I’m not at all sure what that threshold is; my accountant switches me over as needed. (Consult a tax professional!)

Again, as a freelancer, no taxes are withheld from our payments as they are with an employer. When you work in an office, your employer is already taking out money for Social Security and Medicare (you may see it on paychecks as FICA, for the Federal Insurance Contributions Act). 

As freelancers making $400 or more, we owe self-employment tax, which is essentially that money that is normally withheld automatically for employees. 

Since we are the employer and the employee, we are paying both our half and the half the employer normally pays.

Before you think, “Wait! Doesn’t that mean I pay more?” we have more opportunities to reduce our taxable income (see below). For the most part, we’re simply paying money a different way (quarterly). 

As the IRS says, we could pay all our estimate payments upfront at the beginning of the year, but they give us the option to pay it quarterly to make it easier. Besides, who wants to pay thousands of dollars to kick off the year?

Use Form 1040-ES to calculate what you should be paying. (Again, a tax professional can also help.)

As long as you’re making payments, paying quarterly taxes as a freelancer will be much better than the surprise of suddenly paying an entire year’s worth of taxes (and any penalties for not paying throughout the year).

Making Quarterly Tax Payments

The dates for payments, oddly, don’t follow a true quarterly schedule. For example, Q2 payment period is April 1–May 31 with the payment due June 15. Click here for the IRS’s handy chart of payment due dates (and bookmark it!).

We strongly recommend adding them to your calendar with a reminder a couple of weeks before to make sure you’re ready to pay. 

Setting Aside Money for Quarterly Tax Payments

We recommend setting aside money in a separate account specifically for paying taxes. There’s nothing worse than being super excited about earning $5,000 from a client project, spending it all, and then having to scramble to pay taxes.

How much you put aside is up to you; we recommend you set aside at least 25% (and even up to 40%!) in a separate savings account. Don’t put this money in your checking account or your regular savings account; you’ll spend it and then you’ll be in deep trouble come April 15th.

You can pay by check. Once the IRS recognizes you need to make quarterly payments, you’ll start receiving pay slips and envelopes for each quarter in the mail. You can also pay from your bank account or debit or credit card, but there is a small fee for the latter.

While there are penalties for underpaying, the IRS notes taxpayers can avoid this if:

• You owe less than $1,000 in tax after subtracting your withholding and refundable credits
• Or if you “paid withholding and estimated tax of at least 90% of the tax for the current year or 100% of the tax shown on the return for the prior year, whichever is smaller.”

So, if you paid taxes on 90% of your income in a year, you should avoid the penalty. If you start earning more than you estimated, you can make up payments. Alternatively, if you overpay in the first quarter, you can adjust during your second quarter, and so on. The key is to never get behind on payments. 

Reducing Your Taxable Income

Just because you’re paying quarterly taxes doesn’t mean you’re exempt from filing annual taxes like everyone else. In addition to paying quarterly taxes, you’ll file your annual income tax return before April 15 (Semi-fun fact: Tax Day is April 17 when April 15 lands on a Sunday and April 18 if April 15 lands on a Friday or Saturday).

If you overpaid on your quarterly taxes, filing your annual tax return will allow you to get that money back.

There are a ton of ways to reduce your taxable income as a freelancer. The IRS also explains expenses you can deduct (note: you’ll want to check deductions based on your business structure).

Remember that employer portion of your self-employment tax? You can deduct that when figuring out your adjusted gross income when filing your annual return.

Saving for retirement, whether via 401(k) or an IRA are other potential ways to reduce your taxable income.

401(K)

When you start making a great income as a freelancer and do not have any employees, another perk is being able to open a solo 401(k) retirement plan. You can contribute as the employer and the employee, allowing you to significantly reduce your taxable income, while boosting your retirement savings.

There are annual limits for employee contributions ($22,500 for 2023, which you file in 2024, or $30,000 if you’re 50 or older). Your employer contribution takes a bit more math to figure out. For self-employed individuals, it is “net earnings from self-employment after deducting both one-half of your self-employment tax and contributions for yourself.”

If you’re copywriting as a side hustle, you can only make contributions based on your freelance income. Any contributions you’re making as an employee of another company [for example, you freelance in addition to working a full-time job where you have a 401(K) count toward your employee contribution total. So, if you contribute $15,000 to your 401(K) as part of your full-time job, then you can’t contribute more than $5,500 as the employee of your freelance business.

IRA

Another option is to contribute to an individual retirement account (IRA). There are two types of IRAs: Traditional and Roth.

Roth IRA: Your contribution to a Roth IRA depends on how much you earn. For 2023 (filing in 2024), you can contribute if your modified adjusted gross income (your income minus certain allowable deductions) is less than $138,000 (or $218,000 if you’re married and filing taxes jointly). 

The perk of contributing to a Roth IRA is that the money is not taxed when you start withdrawing in retirement. You cannot deduct contributions to a Roth IRA, but you can put money iinto your Roth IRA as long as you live. A Roth IRA is an IRA that is subject to the rules that apply to a traditional IRA. 

Traditional IRA: Anyone can contribute to a traditional IRA regardless earnings. A traditional IRA is a way to save for retirement that gives you tax advantages.

Contributions to a traditional IRA may be partially or fully deductible. In general, earnings and gains are not taxed until you take a withdrawal. Traditional IRAs assume you’re making more money now than you will be in retirement, so you’ll likely be taxed at a lower rate when you begin withdrawing money in retirement.

This may all sound complicated so keep these two resources in mind: Finding a certified tax professional who works with freelancers is invaluable. You can also find useful information from the IRS.

Your Turn!

What are your best tips and tricks for surviving tax season? Let us know in the comments below!

Note: We are not legal experts or tax preparation professionals, so always consult an accountant, tax prep professional, or attorney if you have concerns. This information is aimed at freelancers in the United States. Freelancers in other locations may find this information useful for determining what questions they need to ask and answer based on their city, country, or region.

The post Paying Freelance Writer Taxes in 2024 appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

Here’s the short answer: It is possible to have a copywriting side hustle…but not the way most people treat side hustles.

What Is a Side Hustle?

What is a side hustle? Well, it’s basically a small business that you run in your free time to help you bring in extra cash. Some people may also refer to side hustles as “side job” or “side gig.” It’s typically work that you can do outside of 9-to-5 hours.

People may start a side hustle to supplement their income indefinitely or they may start them with the goal of eventually moving from a full-time job to doing the side hustle work full-time.

Side hustles are started by all kinds of people: people with full-time jobs, students, homemakers, and people with part-time jobs. (In fact, the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy has numerous students who are teachers or former teachers who turned their copywriting side hustle into full-time work!) There are also people who take on multiple side hustles to create a full-time income. But there are some important considerations to keep in mind before starting a copywriting side hustle.

You Need to Treat Your Side Hustle Like a Business

One major trap that side hustlers of all kinds fall into is treating their side hustle like a “bonus.” Sure, you may not work on your side hustle from 9 to 5 like you may do with your full-time job. Or you may not even work consistently. Some people use their side hustles to pay for an upcoming vacation or around the holidays to create more income for gift giving.

But that doesn’t mean you can treat your side hustle like a hobby.

When you’re working on your side hustle business, you need to treat it like the business that it is.

Doing this not only ensures you deliver the best work to your clients, but it’s also a subtle mindset shift that can have a major impact on your your income.

How to Start a Copywriting Side Hustle

Copywriting is an ideal side hustle. You can pick up clients anywhere and work with them from anywhere, on your own schedule. It’s flexible, it’s creative, and it’s fun.

But it also isn’t a side hustle…the way that some people try to do side hustles.

Some people opt to start side businesses in things that they’re interested in, but they’re not necessarily “pros” at. And that’s perfectly fine when it comes to dog walking, kids’ party planning, or house cleaning—people can provide a relatively high level of service at each of those without being full-on professionals.

But other types of side hustles require more skill and experience and copywriting falls into that category.

For example, if someone is going to offer tax preparation services as a side hustle, they’d better know what they’re doing, right? Same thing with bookkeeping services, legal help, graphic design, copywriting, and other careers in which people have to amass and hone a set of skills.

But instead of discouraging you, this should definitely encourage you. After all, the skills and experience you build allow you to use your copywriting skills whenever and wherever you want to. It also quickly differentiates you from “competition” that’s just pretending to know what they’re doing.

Remember, too, that the training you get isn’t a purchase—it’s an investment that will pay for itself many times over. In fact, it’s very likely it could pay for itself within a month or less. (And, if you’re pursuing a copywriting business, check with your tax pro as to whether you can write off the cost of any copywriting training you purchase!)

It’ll take just a little bit of time to get it up and going, but a copywriting side hustle can be a great option for someone with a love for words.

Hear One Copywriter’s Side Hustle Story

Comprehensive Copywriting Academy student Alicia Castro has built a six-figure part-time copywriting business alongside her full-time job. She joined the Build Your Copywriting Business podcast to share her top tips for those trying to balance their copywriting career with life outside of it. Listen in!

Watch More

On episode 189 of the Build Your Copywriting Business podcast, Nicki and Kate are digging into some of the things you need to consider before taking on a side hustle—copywriting or otherwise.

They talk about treating your side hustle like a business and what that means. If you treat it like a hobby, you may not hit your goals. If you have a full-time job, you’ll get tips for how to balance a side hustle with your 9-to-5 job, as well as a checklist for what you need to do if you want to turn your side hustle into a full-time gig.

Setting boundaries and knowing your numbers are hugely important in any career, but particularly if you’re adding a side hustle into the mix. Listen in for everything you need to know!

Your turn! What would you with an extra $1,000 or $2,000 per month? Let us know in the comments below!

The post Can Copywriting Be a Side Hustle? appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

Many copywriters make the mistake of thinking of emails as single messages, shot out at their target audiences. Email funnels create a fuller conversation, taking the reader on a journey—and, ultimately, guiding them to your end result.

Sometimes, the best copywriting can be simply to explain the benefit of a product and say “Buy Now.” But often, a prospective buyer needs to be guided to come to the “I want to buy this!” conclusion on their own.

This may seem like “soft selling” and in a way it is—but it’s also some of the most effective copy you can write.

What Is an Email Funnel?

An email funnel is a series of emails that gradually guides the reader from one state, (general awareness, for example), to another state (readiness to buy). It is an automated series of emails that leads the recipient from one frame of mind to another.

For whatever reason, many large companies have not yet adopted email funnels; right now, you’ll find them most commonly used among solopreneurs and digital marketers.

Each email in an email funnel is carefully crafted to lead the reader down the desired path.

Instead of immediately asking someone to make a purchase, a funnel lets the company introduce itself to the customer, teach the customer a few things (and increase its authority), bust a few myths, and get the customer primed and excited to make the purchase.

Why Your Clients Need a Funnel Copywriter

One of the best (and easiest) ways for businesses to build relationships with their audiences is by creating an email funnel.

When a funnel is created well, the recipient should be practically clamoring to take the action the funnel leads to. But, of course, it’s not easy to create an effective funnel…which is why companies need copywriters like you.

And which kind of companies or organizations would benefit from funnels? Oh, just pretty much all of them. Small, online companies would benefit, of course, but so would large companies and nonprofit organizations.

What about brick and mortar stores or service providers? Yep, them too. In fact, one of my clients is a business coach for brick and mortar stores and service providers and one of the cornerstones of what she teaches is just how transformational emails can be for their businesses.

And this is a major opportunity, because not only do many of these businesses not have email funnels, they don’t yet even know about the positive impact they could have on their businesses. The education is pretty simple, and the outcome is huge.

Even online solopreneurs who have a much better understanding of the need for funnels don’t tend to know how to structure them, much less how to write them. And because these business’ revenues often rely very heavily on an effective email funnel, they need your help—and they know they need your help.

Learning to write effective email funnels and sales pages (as we teach in the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy) can be fun and rewarding for you and, just as excitingly, incredibly rewarding for your clients.

Already in the CCA? Check out the entire course on writing email funnels in the “Writing for Specific Mediums” section of your course dashboard! Sign in here >>

An Email Funnel Example

Let’s look at an example to help make this clear. Let’s say a business coach’s website offers a free ebook, “10 Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make,” and, once people sign up for it, they go into an email funnel with the end result of getting them to sign up for private coaching.

Here’s an overview of how the funnel might go:

Email 1
Purpose: Deliver ebook; begin to introduce coach and instill trust
Content: Delivery of ebook and welcome with short bio of coach

Email 2
Purpose: Convey coach’s mastery of the topic
Content: Tell coaches personal story from trouble/failure with topic to ultimate success

Email 3
Purpose: Establish that coach’s students can see similar success
Content: Tell student’s story about challenges and success

Email 4
Purpose: Overcome obstacles to purchasing
Content: Tell story/stories that illustrate how coaching pays for itself, how it leads to greater accountability and success, etc.

Email 5
Purpose: Introduce one-on-one coaching option
Content: Explain how coaching works, give benefits, offer limited-time bonus

Email 6
Purpose: Give last-minute warning with extra push to sign up
Content: Convey that chance to get in on coaching is almost up; offer extra, special bonus

Email Funnel Variables

As you can see, there are a lot of variables in an email funnel, from the messages and the methods of conveying the methods to the timing of sending the emails and requesting feedback.

There are also a lot of different ways to continue funnels or send people down new ones! For example, the people who purchase in this funnel should be added to a new funnel to help them make the most of their coaching. The people who don’t purchase might be moved into a different funnel that leads to a different kind of product—maybe a lower-priced group coaching or a an information product.

Most email funnels rely on a combination of stories and educational bonuses (useful ebooks, videos, etc.) to keep people engaged, interested, and willing to open the next email.

And, as you’d expect, it takes a lot of skill and insight to craft an effective email funnel.

But, with that skill and insight, you can help prospects make intelligent purchase they might otherwise overlook, create a steady revenue stream for your client, and earn rave client reviews that lead to plenty of referrals.

Your Turn!

Have you worked as an email funnel copywriter? What did or didn’t make a funnel effective? Let us know in the comments below!

The post How Do You Write an Email Funnel? appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

When a potential client or employer gives you a document to sign, most of us just sign it without a second thought. After all, you want the work, right? But this is an important decision to make.

But here we dig a little more into the implications of one of the most common legal documents you’ll sign and the considerations you should make: the NDA. 

What Is an NDA?

Let’s backtrack a bit before we even talk about signing it and define what an NDA is. NDA stands for “nondisclosure agreement.” The general gist of a nondisclosure agreement is that you agree not to publicly discuss (disclose) projects you work on at a company. Sometimes a company will limit it to a specific project, and sometimes it will cover everything you work on.

Companies use NDAs because they want to prevent the public from finding out about projects before they’re ready to release them. Of course, as part of the public, they also want to avoid competitors finding out about them.

Sometimes, though, companies may use NDAs if the nature of the work they do is sensitive. For example, a law firm may ask you to sign one to ensure you don’t discuss any privileged information.

In either of these cases, you’re being asked to sign this NDA because the company you’re working for doesn’t want you making your work public. Sometimes that nondisclosure may be indefinite or sometimes it may just be until the project is made public by the company first.

What You Need To Know About the NDA

Before you sign the NDA, you need to understand what projects it covers and for how long. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. If they want you to sign something, they need to be able to explain it all clearly to you.

Here’s a good article on LegalZoom about how to understand the wording in an NDA and the different elements you’ll find in one.

It’s also important to understand how it affects your job prospects: sometimes a job is contingent on signing an NDA. That is, if you want the job or the work, you have to sign the NDA.

So, if you need to sign the NDA but still want to share your work on your portfolio, what are you options? Well, first, if there’s a time limit on the NDA, you can wait to post the project until that time limit is up.

If there’s no time limit, talk to your boss and/or the HR department and find out if there’s some middle ground you can find. Perhaps you can’t post all of the project, but you can post some of it. Or perhaps you can post parts of it without revealing your company’s name. If you’re willing to work with your company, often they’ll be willing to help you.

So, in the end, it’s your choice whether or not to sign an NDA; the most important thing is that you fully understand the ramifications of both signing and not signing it.

If you’re still curious about what an NDA looks like, here’s a sample NDA from LegalZoom.

And, in case you’re wondering how to stay out of any NDA trouble, read on >>

Your Turn!

Have you ever had to sign an NDA for a client/job? Were you able to use the work in your portfolio? Let us know in the comments below!

The post Should You Sign a Copywriting NDA? appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

This post gives you a little sneak peek into our Comprehensive Copywriting Academy. This features vs. benefits quiz is early on in the Foundations modules. Understanding the difference between features and benefits is a key concept of copywriting and one brand-new copywriters need to learn first.

Here’s your chance to take our Features vs. Benefits quiz. Let’s dig in!

On the surface, the concept of “features versus benefits” can seem pretty simple. Sure, “five blades” is a feature and “the most comfortable shave ever” is a benefit. But in practice, it can be a little trickier to discern between the two.

Since the benefit to consumer is the number one thing a copywriter has to keep in mind while writing, let’s make sure you’ve really got it down! Grab a piece of paper, read each of the following lines and mark whether it’s a feature or a benefit. Then, check your answers at the bottom of the quiz.

Features vs Benefits Quiz

Protect your family from intruders at all times
Feature or Benefit?

Each insole is designed just for your feet
Feature or Benefit?

Easily compare prices across multiple sites!
Feature or Benefit?

Double your business in 12 months
Feature or Benefit?

Never have a bad hair day
Feature or Benefit?

Get real-time details about stock trades and quotes
Feature or Benefit?

Take years off your skin
Feature or Benefit?

More Vitamin C than any other juice
Feature or Benefit?

Same products. Lower prices.
Feature or Benefit?

Softens clothes while it dries them!
Feature or Benefit?

THE ANSWERS

Protect your family from intruders at all times
Answer: Benefit!
Protecting oneself and one’s family is one of the most basic human desires and promising that outcome is one of the most powerful benefits to consumer.

Each insole is designed just for your feet
Answer: Feature!
The concept of customization can seem like a benefit but, really, insoles that are designed for your feet are just insoles that are shaped a certain way. (Feature! Feature!) A benefit for these might be that they “decrease foot and back pain.”

Easily compare prices across multiple sites!
Answer: Feature!
Statements that have verbs in the first one or two words can sound like a benefit and with the concept of “prices” in there, it’s easy to get tripped up. But when you think about it a bit, you realize that “comparing prices” isn’t the end benefit; the end benefit is finding the lowest price. With a feature statement like this, often just asking yourself “Why?” will yield the true benefit.

Double your business in 12 months
Answer: Benefit!
This is a straightforward promise with clear usefulness to the target audience: They’ll have twice the amount of clients/revenue/jobs in a year.

Never have a bad hair day
Answer: Benefit!
This is a little tricky since it’s worded negatively, but try rephrasing it in the positive: Always have great hair. It may not be an especially deep or noble benefit, but it certainly speaks to everyone’s desire to be attractive.

Get real-time details about stock trades and quotes
Answer: Feature!
“Real-time details” sure sound impressive, but they’re not an end result. Often feature statements lead you to ask, “So, what would that get me?” A possible benefit for this might be “Make better trade decisions and increase the value of your investment accounts.”

Take years off your skin
Answer: Benefit!
Rewording this, the statement is essentially saying “Look younger”—a benefit sought by pretty much everyone over age 26.

More Vitamin C than any other juice
Answer: Feature!
Sure, Vitamin C is beneficial in and of itself, but that doesn’t make this statement a benefit. (If you’re confused, try substituting other words for “Vitamin C” and “juice”: More legroom than any other car! More blades than any other razor!) The end benefit, presumably, is that this juice is healthier than others.

Same products. Lower prices.
Answer:
Benefit!
It’s a simple statement, but that doesn’t make it any less beneficial. They’ll get you the same products for less, meaning that you’ll save money—a very big and very powerful benefit.

Softens clothes while it dries them!
Answer: Feature!
Just because you can infer a benefit right away (Save time! Save effort!) doesn’t mean it’s not still a feature. Rephrasing this slightly, they’re basically saying that this clothes dryer has an added feature that also softens clothes.

THE RESULTS

Distinguishing benefits from features isn’t easy, but it definitely gets simpler with practice. As you’re looking at ads—or even the covers of magazines—ask yourself if the lines you’re seeing are features or benefits and use some of the techniques above to figure it out!

Your turn! How did you do? Let us know in the comments below!

The post Features vs. Benefits Quiz: Test Your Copywriting Knowledge appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

If you’re new to copywriting, you’re probably wondering how to build your portfolio before you actually have things to put in it.

Having an online portfolio site is crucial because it helps “sell” you to prospective employers and clients before they even meet you. The samples in your portfolio prove that you know how to write copy, work with a designer, write to a brand voice, and a dozen other things.

But I understand the confusion with building a portfolio site before you have samples from clients to put in it. That’s where spec ads come in.

What Is a Spec Ad?

Spec ads are ads you create without a company or client paying you to do so. I hate using this word, but they’re like “fake” ads. You create your own creative brief, you find a designer, and you and this designer create ads (or emails or direct mails or any other type of creative) per that brief.

(And don’t forget about the ever-present advertorial. Part ad, part editorial, this kind of ad is one you’ll likely work on as a copywriter. Read more about them here.)

If Audi or Victoria’s Secret or Cheetos or IKEA asked you to do an ad, what would they look like? Okay, now do that. Yes, you don’t have these clients yet, but you can still design ads for what you would do for them and still present them to potential employers as examples of what you can do as a writer.

When you create sample ads, they achieve roughly the same ends that real pieces do. They prove that you know how to write copy and all of the other things I listed earlier.

Note: Creating a spec ad is not the same as writing on spec. For more on writing on spec, click here >>

When to Remove Spec Pieces from Your Portfolio

Are real samples preferable? Of course. A spec ad for McDonald’s is just not going to carry the same weight as a real ad you wrote for McDonald’s, simply because there’s an added layer of implied legitimacy if they hired you to do the work.

But until you are hired by McDonald’s, you need to put something in your portfolio. Spec ads are the smart solution. You need to label these ads as “spec” in your print and digital portfolios. But that won’t take away from their impact: If they’re good, they’ll work in your favor.

When you get real samples, you can start to swap them out for your spec pieces.

But, consider keeping some spec ads in your portfolio even when you have paid samples. Even when you’ve been working as a copywriter for years, there may be industries or mediums you haven’t been paid to write—yet.

Having spec pieces show your ability to write in a range of voices and mediums. For example, if you work with a client and the majority of your work is product descriptions for ecommerce brands selling directly to consumers, you may have spec pieces that show you can write emails for a technology company selling to other businesses.

Watch More: A Word of Caution

One of the biggest spec ad mistakes is designing your own ads. If you work with a designer, you’re going to have a much stronger piece for your portfolio. And you want your portfolio to reflect your best work. You also want clients to know you can collaborate.

Savvy clients are not looking for a copywriter and designer all in one person. They know copy and design are two different skill sets that both take training. And they know very few people are equally skilled at both.

Learn more about designing your own spec ads here and where to find affordable images or watch the video below.

Your Turn

What other questions do you have about spec ads? Let us know in the comments below!

The post Break Into New Copywriting Industries Using Spec Ads appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

Everyone (and I truly mean everyone) needs a back pocket career. If you like copywriting, but aren’t sure you want to do it full-time, that’s totally fine! There are plenty of copywriters (including Comprehensive Copywriting Academy students) who work part-time, or even just when they want to make a little extra cash (whether for a vacation or another reason).

Copywriting is worth learning even if you’re not sure you want to do it full-time. Read on to understand why.

How Most People Approach Work (and Why It’s Dangerous)

The way most people approach their professional lives is that they find an area they like (or can tolerate!), then spend all of their working time doing that. And that’s not really a bad thing, per se.

But what it means is that you’re in a pretty narrow category. Out of all possible careers and jobs, you’re specialized in that one. And that can be great for advancement, but it can also be a problem if you get laid off. To get a new job, you need to find one just like the old one, which is generally a challenge that may take at least a couple of months to overcome.

But how do you live in those months when you’re not working?

Most people think in terms of tapping into savings, relying on a spouse’s income, and collecting unemployment. But there’s another option that, while it needs to be planned ahead of time, can make reliance on any or all of these much less important.

Your Back Pocket Career is a Financial Safety Net

A “back pocket career” is a full career skillset that you don’t utilize on a daily basis. For example, your day job might be working as an accountant, but your back pocket career is computer coding. Your day job might be a middle school math teacher, but your back pocket career is copywriting.

These back pocket careers come in handy when your day job falls through or when you need to make some extra cash.

Now, the key to making back pocket careers work is that you need to treat them with the same level of seriousness and dedication as your standard career. You need to get real training and experience in this line of work, and also practice regularly to keep yourself proficient.

And that makes sense, right? You wouldn’t expect that you could dabble at them and they’d be able to carry you through unemployment.

Back pocket careers are all about hedging your bets; making sure you’re valuable and marketable, no matter what happens with the job market. The key to avoiding a crisis (in as much as is possible) is to be prepared.

Your turn! Does anyone you know have a back pocket career? How has that worked out for them? Let us know in the comments below!

The post What’s a Back Pocket Career? (And Why You Need One) appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.

The short answer to that is a resounding no. But let’s dig into why, what each of these careers entails, and how you can sort through which job listings apply to copywriters and which apply to another profession entirely.

Copywriting vs. Copy Editing

Here’s a little history: It used to be that the word “copy” pretty much applied to the written word across the board.

Nora Ephron told a story about sitting by her mother’s deathbed and her mother offering up the advice that “Everything is copy.” Ephron’s mother wasn’t suggesting that her death was great fodder for advertising messages; she was saying that it could be useful for writing great stories/screenplays/what have you.

Copy editing is one of those holdovers. Copy editing refers to reviewing content (most often, journalistic articles) to review and correct spelling, grammar, and factual accuracy.

Quite simply, copy editing is very detail-oriented. Great copy editors are sticklers on the very finest points of the language and go through every article they review with a fine-tooth comb.

Copywriting, though, is something that is totally different. As you already know, copywriting is writing that is used to sell or persuade. That may mean that copywriting is used to literally sell a product, but it might also be used to “sell” consumers on thinking a different way about something or “sell” them on taking an action.

Copywriting is about connecting people that have a need with the solution to that need by conveying that solution in ways that the audience understands and appreciates.

Do You Have to Offer Both Copywriting and Editing Services?

Could you do both? Absolutely. But you also do not need to offer your clients both copywriting and editing services. Copywriting and copy editing are very different jobs and require two very different sets of skills.

Acquiring copywriting training doesn’t mean you’re qualified to be a copy editor. And acquiring copy editing training doesn’t mean that someone is qualified to be a copywriter.

As a copywriter, you should absolutely read through your own work. Make sure it’s as free of errors as possible. Inevitably, though, that level of editing is not at the same level as someone trained in copy editing.

Copy editing, if you ask me, is both a crucial job and a demanding one. It’s not often that people who deeply enjoy copywriting will also deeply enjoy copy editing (and vice versa).

It’s also important to note that copyeditors and copywriters have different rates. Copyeditors often have a lower project and hourly rate than copywriters. The skills, while crucial, are a bit more black and white than in copywriting. Copyeditors typically adhere to a client’s style guide and/or their preferred style guide (e.g. Chicago Manual of Style or A.P.).

That said, though, thank goodness both groups exist. Copyeditors and copywriters help ensure that what gets read by our audiences are useful, well written, and true.

Watch More

Fun fact: Kate began her career as a copy editor. But, as she shares in this episode, it’s truly an entirely different career. In addition to looking into the differences between the two careers, Nicki and Kate dig into whether it makes sense to offer both services and, if you do offer both, considerations you need to make to ensure you’re delivering the best work for your clients.

Your Turn

Are there any other “copy” terms that you’re unclear about? Let us know in the comments below!

The post The Difference Between Copywriting and Editing appeared first on Filthy Rich Writer.