How to Become a Copywriter Without Experience in 6 Steps

Here’s what most people think about breaking into copywriting: You need experience to get clients and you need clients to get experience.

And that’s a catch-22 that stops a lot of would-be copywriters dead in their tracks. But the truth—and good news—is that that’s only half true.

Today, we’re going to talk about which half is true and how you can land clients without already having had clients. Bonus: you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars going back to school (or, frankly, get “certification” which only proves you paid for a course).

Getting started in copywriting is easier than some people would lead you to believe. (The ones that say copywriting is “hard” to get into are usually the ones that skipped step number one: you need training.)

And it’s also flexible. You can work when and where you want as a freelance copywriter or on staff within a company or agency or bounce between the two! There are as many paths for copywriters as there are copywriters (as Comprehensive Copywriting Academy students can attest to—just listen to a few of their stories!).

If you’re still dipping your toes into copywriting and have questions like:

• What is copywriting?
• How much copywriters can make? (Yes, 6+ figures if you want!)
• Is copywriting right for me? 
• How soon can you can make money as a copywriter by starting a business offering copywriting services?
• And more …

…then you’ll want to check out this page. We’ve compiled a list of some of the most frequently asked questions about copywriting and answered each one.

BUT, if you’re pretty sure copywriting is something you’re interested in and are ready for some concrete action steps, read on!

True: You Need Copywriting Experience to Gain Clients

So, which part is true? Well, the first part: You need experience to get clients. And I know that might be a little discouraging, so bear with me here for a moment.

The truth is that, no, no one is going to hire you if you have no experience writing copy. Read: No one will hire you if you don’t know how to write copy. Which makes sense, right? Would you hire an electrician who’s never touched wiring? Would you choose a brain surgeon who doesn’t know how to operate?

In order to get copywriting work, you need to know how to write copy. And believe me, writing copy is a skill that requires training, development, and mastery. After all, it’s an entire career! You don’t get to just “decide” that you’re an elementary school teacher or a veterinarian, right?

One of the biggest mistakes would-be copywriters make is to just one day “decide” that they’re copywriters, without doing any work to learn, much less master, the techniques.

False: You Need Copywriting Clients to Gain Experience

The good news for you is what isn’t true about the “you need experience to get clients and you need clients to get experience” fallacy. Namely, that you need clients to get experience.

One of the foundational elements of our Comprehensive Copywriting Academy is building your experience by practicing writing copy, creating spec ads, and landing small business clients who generally don’t require that you have a portfolio.

In a nutshell: Yes, you do need experience—that is, you need to know how to write copy and have practiced it—in order to land clients.

But you do not need to already have clients in order to get that experience. Don’t let that faulty piece of logic hold you back from getting started in what just might be your dream career.

6 Steps to Getting Started in Copywriting

1. Get Copywriting Training

The first step to getting started in copywriting begins with training. There’s simply no way around it. You can’t just decide one day that “Now I’m a copywriter.” I mean, people don’t just walk into airports and suddenly declare “Now I’m a pilot,” right?

The would-be copywriters who fail, the ones that say it’s “too hard” to get into, are the ones that skip this step.

You’ll find lots of online threads saying “you don’t need training, there are free resources.” And yes, there are. The Filthy Rich Writer blog and YouTube channel alone are packed with valuable copywriting tips. But learning the principles and actually practicing and getting feedback on your work are two different things.

If you’re thinking, “Hmm… this copywriting thing sounds interesting, I’d like to try it out” or “I think I’d make a good copywriter” (or both!), it’s time to get the training you need to become a copywriter!

Some of the foundational principles of copywriting include:

• Features versus benefits
• Tone of voice
• Call to action

Of course, other writing best-practices apply like writing in active versus passive voice, telling stories, and keeping sentences concise so they’re easy for people to read.

Where to Get Copywriting Training

Copywriting is not like other kinds of writing (it’s why we get paid so well to do it). Of course, if you’re naturally good at writing, the go-to resume and cover letter editor of all your friends, then that’s a bonus!

When you write copy, you’re connecting an audience with the right solution to their challenge or problem. You’re offering a solution to a need they have (whether they know it or not).

That means you need to have a deep understanding of the audience and the type of language and messaging they’ll respond to, in addition to knowing how to write in the brand’s voice. You also need to know the difference between features and benefits (in copywriting, you always lead with the benefit!).

Unfortunately, you can’t get training in school because 99.9% of the colleges and universities in this country don’t offer copywriting majors. If they offer copywriting at all, it’s a single class as part of a broader marketing major. It’s absolutely insane. Copywriting is the ONE way for a writer to make a good living. And they don’t teach it in universities. I mean, seriously?

But you can get still training—and it doesn’t have to be via a $30-40K per year portfolio school. (You also don’t need a copywriting certificate.)

The best copywriting courses will not just teach you the principles of copywriting, but also how to stand out from other copywriters, how to create your portfolio, how to consistently find and land clients, and more.

What to Look Out for in Copywriting Courses

First, you probably already figured this out, but no one can guarantee you’ll earn a certain income or that you’ll earn it in three months, six months, a year.

Can you hit six figures and beyond? Absolutely. Can you do it in a few months? Absolutely. (We had one student land her first client in one week!) But ultimately it’s on you to take action on the steps you’re given.

Each person has a different amount of time to devote to their training. Your path will look different than someone else’s. And that’s OK! Your goals are likely different, too.

Another red flag is course creators who don’t know the difference between copy and content. Blog posts (like this one!) are content. Content is designed to educate, inspire, and entertain. Copywriting is designed to connect people who have a need with the best solution for that need. It’s writing that’s designed to sell or persuade.

Another major red flag: recommending you hand copy ads to learn copywriting. Hand copying ads you see in the world is great if you want to memorize the copy. But, if you want to learn how to analyze it (and even take a stab at rewriting to improve it!), then you want to learn the principles of copywriting. By learning features versus benefits, understanding the intended audience, and knowing what makes an effective call to action, you can to assess the effectiveness of the ad. (Watch more about that process here >>)

The third major red flag? Too many courses will focus on one way of doing things—the course founder’s way. And often these course creators, while well meaning, don’t have a lot of experience in copywriting.

That’s why we designed the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy to cover all the ways you can build a copywriting career: on staff, at an agency, full-time freelance, part-time side hustle, part-time while working at a full-time job…you get the idea! Whether you want to work from your kitchen table, a slick office, or a beach in Bora Bora (please invite us!), we’ll help you get where you want to go.

Our team has decades experience in all those areas, and with clients of all kinds: Fortune 500 to solopreneurs and everyone in between. And we’ve helped 12,000+ students learn copywriting and build businesses, land jobs, and use copywriting in the way that works for their goals and lifestyles.

Take the first step to get started in copywriting today. Sign up to get access to our free, on-demand video training.

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2. Practice Copywriting

And no, we do not mean by hand copying ads. So many so-called copywriting “gurus” tout the benefits of hand copying ads. We’re not in second grade detention writing “I will not run in class” 50 times in our best cursive. Instead, once you have training and you understand key concepts like features versus benefits, look for copy in the world and then analyze it. What’s working? What’s not working?

Then, try your hand at rewriting the ad. How can you lead with the benefit? Are there word choices you would change to better match the brand voice? Does the copy make sense for the medium? The target audience?

Analyzing and rewriting ads is how you’ll build and strengthen your copywriting skills.

Be sure, too, to start looking at ads very strategically. What are they trying to say? Who are they trying to say it to? And what do they want those people to do? Do you think they were successful? Start looking at the ads you see every day with a critical eye.

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3. Build Your Online Portfolio

Every copywriter needs an online portfolio. This is how clients can see you know how to write copy.

There are plenty of websites that make it super easy to create your online portfolio. (And in the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy, we walk you step by step through how to build, and write, your online portfolio.)

As you build your portfolio, you’ll want to consider how to set yourself apart from other copywriters. One way to do this is by writing your Unique Selling Perspective (or Unique Selling Point).

You do not need to choose a niche. You’ll see less experienced copywriters recommend this because they think clients are looking for a specialist. You are a specialist. Your specialty is copywriting (versus graphic design or web development or any number of other careers). Your clients are the experts in their industry. It’s your job to partner with them to translate that to effective copy.

You’ll often see job descriptions that say “experience in tech a bonus” or “preferred healthcare experience.” But savvy copywriters know that they can still get hired for these jobs because they know the fundamentals of copywriting and can apply them to any industry. Plus, having an outsider perspective brings

After 20+ years as a copywriter, Nicki still hasn’t chosen to niche. And, as she consistently earns over six figures each year from copywriting, it certainly hasn’t slowed her progress. If anything, it’s fueled it. Similarly, our marketing manager and head copywriting coach, Kate, also hasn’t niched. She’s worked for major tech companies (Microsoft), higher education institutions, healthcare, fashion (if you count Sperry shoes as “fashionable”), manufacturing, and more.

And, if you decide to niche once you have a ton of work coming in and figure out what you do and don’t like, great! But too often copywriters make the mistake of niching and then wonder why they can’t get enough work. You also may love some clients within an industry and loathe others. Why limit yourself or make assumptions when just starting?

That said, at this point, you need to be calling yourself a copywriter (if you haven’t started already!). Start getting used to the idea that you are a copywriter. You are becoming someone who writes copy for a living. Live it, own it, be it.

You’ll also create spec ads. Spec ads, if you’re unfamiliar with the term, are essentially “practice” copywriting samples.

You very clearly label these pieces as “spec” in your portfolio (you always want to be above board, after all) and they’re a fantastic way to demonstrate your copywriting prowess before you get paying clients. And, if you hadn’t yet connected the dots, they’re a great way to help you get paying clients.

Learn more about creating your portfolio >>

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4. Land Copywriting Clients

Here’s the catch-22 of every copywriter’s career: You know how to write copy and are ready to land clients, but how can you land clients if you’ve never had previous copywriting jobs?

That’s why you create spec ads. You demonstrate to prospective clients that you can, in fact, write copy. You know how to write in a company’s brand voice. And you can think strategically about solving a creative brief.

Then, you can put together your pitch list and start pitching clients. The way we teach pitching in the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy is very different from the way most people teach it! It’s not about being pushy or salesy or tacky. It’s about adding value. These are the types of pitches that potential clients want to receive in their inbox because you’re providing a solution to a challenge or opportunity they have.

You’ll also want to find out what kind of advertising and marketing groups meet in your city and join them. Attend their events and just get to know people. Feel free to let them know that you’re just getting started in the industry and you’re looking to learn as much as you can—you’ll be surprised at how many people will be willing to offer advice or may even need your help on a project.

Note: if you’re thinking of using job bidding sites like Upwork or Fiverr to land clients, you’ll want to reconsider. While these sites make it seem “easy” to land work, they’re really a race to low rates. See the math behind job bidding sites here >>

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5. Know That Resistance Is Going to Come Up—And You’re Going to Keep Going Anyway

When you get started in anything new, whether it’s copywriting, another career, a hobby, a new skill, whatever, you may not be an expert right away. If you think about it, it makes sense. We wouldn’t expect a pilot who takes a flying lesson or two to captain a commercial flight full of passengers from Miami to Dubai, right?

As brand-new copywriters (or anything else), we have to remember that we’re learning something new. And when we learn something new, it can kick up feelings of resistance.

For most of us, it’s been awhile since we’ve truly dug into learning something entirely new! It’s hard to remember what learning something new is like.

But knowing that resistance will crop up is half the battle.

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6. Surround Yourself With Support

Whatever it is you pursue in life, take advice from people who had the same or similar goal and achieved it. Too often, the loudest people are those who haven’t succeeded at what it is we want to do.

The Comprehensive Copywriting Academy’s student-only Facebook group is one of the most supportive corners of the Internet (just check out some of their wins from the group here)

Watch More About How to Become a Copywriter

Learn more about landing your first copywriting clients and how you can use spec ads as proof of your training and experience.

Getting Started as a Copywriter Has Never Been Easier!

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Last Updated on July 24, 2024