How to Find the Best Copywriter
If you run a small (or small-ish) business, social enterprise or nonprofit, chances are you’ve had times where you need to hire a writer. Whether you’ve got a big campaign that needs extra creative hands on deck, you’re re-doing your website or that annual report isn’t going to write itself, smaller organizations often need to bring in outside experts who can Get. Shit. Done.
But how do you find the best copywriter? Is it just a matter of searching on Upwork or Fivrr and hoping that out of 20 enthusiastic responses to your posting, you stumble across the right person for your organization?
That was clearly a leading question. That is not the best way to find a copywriter.
Why? No disrespect to those websites (well, honestly, a little bit of disrespect because they create a race to the bottom on price that doesn’t value creative skill or experience) – they do create opportunities for new and diverse creators, but what they don’t help you do is find the right copywriter for your organization.
What is copywriting?
Copywriting is more than just arranging words in a pleasing order on a page. Sure, that’s part of it – you need to have an opinion about the oxford comma and know when it’s OK to split an infinitive.
But the role of a copywriter is to prompt your audience to action. They need to know how to establish a connection, to influence and inspire. Whether you’re looking to boost web traffic, sell a product or secure a donation, your copywriter needs to have the experience to help you achieve your goals.
So what skills should you look for when you’re hiring a copywriter? How do you recognize a good copywriter when you see one?
What to Look for in a Copywriter
A good copywriter understands your brand
Nathaniel Hawthorne said, “Easy reading is damn hard writing.” Content that jumps off the page, that makes people think about things in new ways, doesn’t just happen. Your copywriter should work hard to understand your brand. They will ask a lot of questions about your goals, your audience, your tone of voice. They’ll ask what’s worked well in the past and what hasn’t. They want to know what’s important to you, and they want to be your partner in achieving that.
A good copywriter is strategic
Creativity is important in copywriting, no doubt. No diggity. It’s important to look through a potential copywriter’s portfolio and make sure that they know how to wrangle words into something truly exceptional. But the best copywriters know that it’s about much, much more than that.
Ultimately, the purpose of copywriting is to achieve a goal. It might be to increase your brand recognition and get more customers through the door, or it might be to get people to change their minds about a really important topic. A good copywriter will quickly grasp the strategic intent of what they’re writing, and will build a plan to achieve that.
Most importantly, they will work to understand your audience and what motivates them. We humans like to think we’re rational creatures, but science tells us that most of our decisions are made based on emotion. If you want your audience to act, you have to form an authentic personal connection with them first – and that’s the skill of a great copywriter.
A good copywriter is reliable
No room for artistic flakiness here, friends. Your copywriter is a partner in your business, and the best partners are transparent, delivering on time and on budget. A good way to spot a reliable copywriter is looking for someone who will give you a clear and detailed quote that answers questions like how many rounds of edits they’ll do, whether they’ll attend meetings or be available for calls, how long a given piece of copy will be, and so on. You can help your copywriter give you the best value for money by giving them as much information about your project as possible. Don’t be afraid to disclose your budget – a good copywriter won’t max you out, they’ll let you know what’s possible for the price, and work with you to achieve your objectives within your budget.
It’s a good idea to ask for a discovery call to explain your project – it gives the writer opportunities to ask questions, and will give you a good sense of whether you’ll be a good team. Trust your gut – you want to hire someone who can run with a project, is open to feedback and will be fun to work with.
A good copywriter will coach you
The best copywriters aren’t yes-people, because they are confident in their abilities and have your best interests at heart. They will make suggestions, offer new ideas or gently let you know if they think something mightn’t work.
A good copywriter might say no
A good copywriter has a strong sense of their own skillset. If you approach them with a project that’s not a good fit, they will be confident to say no, because they care more about you getting the right outcome than about winning the work.
That’s the copywriter that you want to come back to next time, because they know what they’re good at, and want to use their skills to benefit you. There are lots of great copywriters out there. In the end, the best copywriter is the one that’s best for YOU.
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