Copywriting Samples from the start of 2014, by Lora O'Brien, our lead writer. If your freelance project type is not featured here, please just ask!
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Marketing Land studies show that 25% of US companies currently hire a copywriter to write professional content, but all trends suggest this number is on the rise. Content Marketing is where it's at. And who has time to run a professional blog for their own business these days? Do you?! 1. Figure Out What Type of Content You Want
Answering these questions is the ESSENTIAL first step to any content marketing for your business. Any successful content marketing strategy, at least. 2. Be Prepared to Pay for Quality ContentSeriously folks, you won't get quality content - marketing focused writing that will make a real difference to your business profits - for €5 or even €10 per post. Or from a writer who's native language isn't the same as yours. Effective, game changing, quality business development copywriting costs money. It comes from your marketing budget, the same as the print or radio adverts you run in traditional media. The good news is it usually costs less than your traditional media ad campaigns, and is much more effective. People switch off from ads - if you run 10 adverts, you're lucky these days if your brand name sinks in by the 9th or 10th repetition. When you run a Professional Blog, people are ACTIVELY LOOKING for your content to help them solve their problems, and are grateful to your brand name for doing that, rather than irritated by the intrusion on their media enjoyment. Here is a guide to Typical Professional Copywriting Fees by Project, and here's another article on How Much Does Professional Web Content Writing Cost. For quality blogging, expect to pay from €50 per piece for short, regular blogs - right up to €1,500 for SEO article full length in-depth blog posts. If it was quick or easy to achieve, why aren't you doing it yourself? If it didn't work well, why would Coca-Cola or Apple be moving in this direction with their marketing? 3. Invest Some Time in Your Freelance EmployeeYour Professional Blogger knows how to write, but doesn't necessarily know you or your business at first. Taking a little time to communicate regularly (if it's a medium to long term arrangement) will pay dividends. Providing in full any relevant materials your copywriter requests is very important. Being available to chat or brainstorm, or ensuring your employees are, is essential for your copywriter to learn your business brand 'voice', and remain true to your business goals and ethics. 4. Review Blog Posts EfficientlyYou're looking for correct use of industry specific terms, or any similar mistakes. Unless the posts are truly badly written (it's a good idea to check with a trusted friend or colleague, if you think this is the case), there is no need for you to re-write or edit. Trust that your copywriter knows what she is doing, even if you don't understand why things are a certain way, or even why they are necessary on the blog. She is an experienced professional and this is why you hired her. DON'T NIT-PICK! 5. Establish a Regular Blog ScheduleWhether your copywriter will be writing for you long term, or simply establishing a pattern for your regular employees to take up at a later stage, be sure there is a regular schedule for your blog, and STICK TO IT. Take your copywriter's advice on frequency, length, and timing. She has done this before and knows what's best for blog scheduling. Do not deviate from it once it is established, or you will lose your following - and the business profits you are building towards will not come to fruition. 6. Ensure that Engagement is Accounted ForA big part of the usefulness of Content Marketing is tied up in customer/audience engagement - building relationships and trust for your brand. You will want to be certain that somebody is directly responsible for answering comments and checking feedback on your blog, keeping an eye on post traffic, and reporting regularly on what's working and what's not for your audience or industry. This is not a standard part of the copywriting contract, so if you want your professional blogger to take care of this, it will have to be negotiated and paid for separately. If you feel confident doing it yourself though, or delegating to a staff member, the data collected will be useful to provide to your copywriter on an on-going basis, to ensure she stays in touch with your developing business needs. 7. Promote Your Blog in Every Way You CanUnless you have negotiated (and paid for) public relations and social media management as part of her contract, it is your job, not your blogger's, to promote your blog through all available channels.
The more enthusiastically you spread the word about your fabulous new blog, the more value you get for your clever content marketing investment. If you want some help with your business blog - Talk To Me Today for your Free Consult & QuoteMost of us will have thought about a Marketing budget for our business, however big or small it may be, because we know we need to advertise to get customers and clients for our business. But, where do we start? Newspapers are considered the primary advertising medium by 99.4% of all US retailers. Newspapers have been there in every step of the typical shop owner's life from the very beginning. Newspapers covered his birth, his marriage, the death of his parents and everything else. There's a big number circulation to go with the big number price tag, so you're sure your advert will be seen by many new customers. Sounds good right? HOWEVER... there's a few problems. Newspaper ads are great, and an effective part of a larger marketing strategy. But less than half of readers will read an entire paper. Most are skimmers. How many times looking through the paper does it take for you to find your own ad? Over half of every newspaper is advertising. Almost as bad as TV where commercial breaks now last longer and longer, unless you have Sky Plus and can forward through the ads. More than two-thirds of the huge and heavy Sunday brick is advertising. Newspaper rates are climbing faster than any other advertising media. The smallest of ads in the smallest papers can cost over €100. One time, one shot and BAM!, it's at the bottom of the bird cage or spread out for your doggy's toilet training. Now, what would a quarter page advert in your local newspaper cost you? (Hint: it's currently €9,440 for a colour quarter in the Irish Times). Newspapers have a wide circulation, certainly. But... how many people will even see your advert, or notice and remember and ACT ON IT if they do see it? How many of those people are your existing customers, who already like and trust your business? Do You Want to Get More Customers & Grow... Without Spending A Fortune On Advertising?53% of marketing professionals agree, email is the most effective Marketing tactic. (source: Asend2 Industry Research, 2013) A well written, reliably delivered, target market focused email newsletter will:
Need some Advice on Newsletters? We all have those days. Those days when we seem to have lost all our passion, our drive for business. Those days when it seems more effort than we have inside us just to get up and go face the business day. Inspirational and Motivational Quotes can really help kick start your drive to do business better. Even on those days. Here's 33 of the Best Motivational Quotes
If you know someone who is having one of
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CopywritersLora O'Brien is a business journalist, our lead copywriter, and a Tourism and Heritage Expert based in Ireland. Categories
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