We hear a this a lot: Should I put prices on my website? After all, when you go to buy anything else online, there’s a clear price. But it’s a little different with copywriting. As a copywriter, you’re always going to customize the service you’re providing to meet your client’s specific needs. A website for one client may require a lot more work than a website for … [Read more...]
What Should Your Content Rates Be As a Copywriter?
First, let's define the difference between content writing and copywriting so we're on the same page: Copywriting is advertising and marketing writing; words that are designed to sell or persuade. Websites, emails, banner ads, brochures, magazine ads, billboards, etc. Content is writing that’s designed to educate, entertain, or inspire. Think: blog posts and … [Read more...]
Why Most Advice About How to Price Your Services is Dead Wrong for You
I was watching an online training about freelancing a few weeks ago, and something the trainer said threw up a big red flag. (By the way, I’m always taking new trainings and watching webinars to pick up whatever new tactics are out there. I strongly encourage you to do the same. You may know a ton already, but there's always a new insight to gain.) Anyway, this trainer … [Read more...]
Copywriting Is Only 1/3 Writing—Here’s Why That Affects How You Charge
“How much should I charge per word?” is one of the scariest, most misguided questions a copywriter can ask. And I don’t really blame new copywriters who ask that question, since there are plenty of “work farming” companies that happily advertise their “copywriters’” price per word. So, let me make one thing very, very clear: Professional copywriters do not charge by the … [Read more...]
What Is a Copywriting Retainer?
Retainers seem like an ideal solution for copywriters: You set aside a certain number of hours and get paid whether or not you work! What's not to like? Well, let's start with the fact that it rarely runs that smoothly. Here we discuss what a copywriting retainer is and how it affects your copywriting rates. What Is a Retainer? First, let's make sure we're on the same … [Read more...]
Why Do Some Copywriters Work for Content Mills (and for Peanuts)?
Start a Google search for copywriting jobs, and it won’t be long before you uncover copywriters willing to work for bargain basement rates. Many of them are writing for content mills (more on the difference between copy and content here) and some well... just don't know what they're doing. But instead of letting that discourage you, it should encourage you—and help you realize … [Read more...]
Why Copywriting Discounts Don’t Work
There are certain times of year (Black Friday, in particular!) where it can feel like every business is running discounts. But does that mean you should be discounting your copywriting services? Let’s dig into exactly what discounting copywriting services means for building your business. It’s true that many (if not most) businesses run some kind of sale on Black Friday, … [Read more...]
Copywriting Job Sites Will Cost You BIG Time
We’ve talked before about how copywriting job sites—sites where you post a profile and bid for work—are trouble. But today I want to show you just how much you could be losing. Our team receives a lot of questions about copywriting job sites or freelance job listing sites in general. They seem like a great deal: You create a profile, then people who are looking for … [Read more...]
The 5 Things New Copywriters Should NEVER Do
It's hard enough to get started in copywriting without making one of these huge mistakes. And when I say huge, I mean huge: Any one of these is enough to delay your success, if not bring your career to a grinding halt. And what's worse, the vast majority of copywriters will make at least one of these mistakes, if not more. So read on to find out what these mistakes are, … [Read more...]
How I Lost a Ton of Money (and You Can, Too!)
Step right up and learn from the master! When I was first starting out, I made a ton of mistakes and lost out on an awful lot of money. Want to know how? There’s nothing that I necessarily regret. It was all valuable learning for me, and it lets me pass on that learning to you so you can avoid making the same mistakes. But did I do stupid stuff? Absolutely! Did I miss … [Read more...]