Did you know only 22% of businesses are pleased with their conversion rates? Are you part of the 22% or the 78%?

Are you unsure whether your copy or content marketing is actually working? Or even worse, do you know for a fact that it’s not, because none of the leads coming to you are converting?

A professional copywriter can help

Hiring freelance copywriters isn’t a luxury reserved for big businesses. Any business can profit from using a professional copywriter. And any business who’s interested can find one. All it takes is an internet connection and a smartphone or laptop.

You’ll find that rates vary from copywriter to copywriter, and even with the same person, rates vary by project. And you’ll find that there are copywriters who specialize in writing for entrepreneurs, startups, and small businesses, as well as ones who specialize in writing for large corporate offices or Fortune 500 companies. (There are plenty of places to find the copywriter that’s right for you— something I’ll discuss in a later post.)

Another misconception is that you have to wait until you have an enormous project to hire a copywriter. But the truth us that if you wait until then, (A) your search will be rushed, and you may have to choose a sub-par candidate to meet a deadline or (B) you’ll have to delay your project until you find a suitable copywriter you’re confident in.

A much, much better solution for everyone involved is to find your copywriter beforehand. Once you choose, ask the writer if it’s ok for you to contact her whenever you need any copywriting done. But keep in mind that she has other clients too and needs to fill her pipeline with actionable work. She can’t always make room for out-of-the-blue projects immediately.

To make sure she’ll have time to devote to you when you need her, put the copywriter on retainer. Pay her a set amount per month to either (A) be available to work for you up to a certain number of hours, (B) do specific, agreed-upon copywriting tasks each month, or (C) do a blend of both, working on regular projects while also reserving a set number of hours for other miscellaneous needs.

What’s a copywriter?

Before we go any further, let me address exactly what a copywriter does, so we’re all on the same page.

In case you’re wondering—no, copywriters don’t have anything to do with giving legal rights for artistic materials. (Don’t worry; that’s a common misconception.)

As another copywriter put it, “copywriting is the art of strategically communicating words (either written or spoken) that influence people to take some sort of action.”

Copy is every word that’s mean to persuade your audience to do something—no matter whether it’s to buy your cookbook, follow your Facebook page, or sign up for your email list.

Copywriters often help with websites, branding materials (taglines, mission statements, company brochures, etc.), advertisements, and other various marketing needs. This form of writing involves a great deal of research, experimentation, strategy, psychology, and, yes, creativity.

While copywriting and content writing are different (something else I’ll discuss in a later post), the terms copywriter and content writer are often used interchangeably. This is partly because many marketing writers do both. In this article, I’ll use the phrase copywriter but will include in my examples some common content writing services that most copywriters also offer. (When choosing a copywriter, it’s smart to always ask candidates if they do the specific kinds of projects you’re needing help with.)

Here’s several valuable services copywriters can do for businesses:

• Write conversion-focused copy for your website
• Create a new lead magnet and promote it
• Blog regularly
• Create copy for new sales materials – flyers, ads, etc.
• Write webinar and slideshow presentations
• Create specific, goal-oriented email campaigns
• Write new versions of your sales pages

You can hire a writer for one-time projects, recurring work on a weekly or monthly basis, long-term, daily work, and just about everything in between.

In addition, copywriters don’t have to be incredibly expensive. Some charge more than others, but if you do your research, you can find professional copywriters within a reasonable budget. Remember, you get what you pay for. Pro copywriters know they will provide you with true value that could last you for years, and that’s what they’re charging you for. If you go for dirt cheap copywriters, you may get dirt cheap quality.

Benefits of freelance copywriting

Your copy is an important investment that should bring you significant ROI. If you hire a quality writer and trust them to do quality work and allow them to make changes down the road when needed, you won’t be throwing money away. Instead, you’ll be attracting that money (plus plenty more) back to you in spades. It may not all come right away or at the same time, but it should come.

Hiring one freelancer is usually less expensive than hiring an agency or marketing firm to do the same work. And you’ll be gaining a colleague who knows you and your business well and is committed to making your business succeed. Because for freelance copywriters, this work is our livelihood. We don’t have the luxury of wasting time or messing around. We want our work to be successful, so you’ll hire us again. We succeed when you succeed.

As I said earlier, any size business can profit from having a freelance copywriter in their corner. The exact advantages a freelance writer would bring you may depend on the size of your company though. I’ve separated these benefits out below, according to business size. Feel free to skip to the one most relevant to you.

Entrepreneur/Solopreneur:

As an entrepreneur or solopreneur, you have to wear a lot of hats. You have to oversee every part of your business endeavor, and as a result, some of its needs are occasionally neglected in favor of a more urgent need. Often, this neglected need is marketing or lead generation.

But in the grand scheme of things, marketing and lead generation is one of the most important aspects of your business. It keeps work coming your way. Without new leads, how will your business stay afloat? This is where a freelancer can help.

As an entrepreneur or solopreneur, hire a freelance copywriter if:

• You don’t have the time to do your marketing/lead generation yourself
• Writing isn’t one of your strongest gifts
• You aren’t satisfied with your conversion rates
• You don’t know how to optimize your copy for SEO

Remember, one of the benefits of hiring a freelancer is that you can decide exactly how many hours you want to pay for or what fixed price you’re willing to pay. Then the freelancer can tell you what work they can do in that amount of time or for that price.

Depending on what service or product you offer, you could even propose a deal where you trade goods. For instance, you could pay a minimal monthly amount and also let them use your product or service for free in exchange for a set number of hours each month.

Advantages a freelance copywriter could bring you:

• The ability to continue generating leads and new & repeat customers without having to take time away from your young business to do it yourself
• Experience to help you decide what kind of marketing you need to do at this stage
• Personal branding advice and content to build your credibility and lead generation right out of the gate
• The ability to get all your marketing materials done right the first time, so you can use them confidently and know they’ll do their job well

Startup – Small Business:

As a startup or small business, you’re either gearing up for a launch or trying to attract new clients. Copywriters are invaluable assets for both of these.

It may be tempting to do all the writing yourself to save money, but whose writing do you think will make more money – yours or someone who’s been specifically trained to write conversion-focused, lead-generating content?

You didn’t start a business to write. Hire someone whose entire job and passion is to write, so you can do what you actually you started your business to do.

As a startup or small business, hire a freelance copywriter if:

• You’re not pleased with your conversion rates
• You want a fresh perspective and professional eyes on your business before you create a website, radio ad, email campaign, etc.
• You don’t have anyone in your company devoted entirely to marketing or SEO
• No one in your company has writing expertise
• No one in the company has the time to devote to content marketing

Rather than hiring another employee to keep year-round and pay benefits for, hire freelancers to work only as much as you need them too. Once the project is done, so are they. And then you have the contact info for a dependable person you know you can trust in case you ever need help again. (Trust me; once you see an exceptional copywriter do their thing, you’ll want to bring them in for more work.)

Try to find a copywriter that can provide marketing strategy advice as well. (A writer with a broader background/experience in advertising or marketing, not just writing, should be able to offer this advice.) A writer like this will keep the big picture in mind and can offer valuable ideas and strategies that will serve your business as a whole. You could even hire this writer as a consultant at times.

Advantages a freelance copywriter could bring you:

• Cohesive, clear, and attractive branding for your new business or personal brand
• Style/voice guides to keep all your marketing consistent and on-brand
• The ability to continue generating leads and new & repeat customers without having to take time away from your young business to do it yourself
• Experience to help you decide what kind of marketing you need to do at this stage
• The ability to do the marketing you need to do without hiring someone full-time or even part-time

Medium – Large Business:

Bigger businesses have more to gain by hiring a freelancer. Your content will be seen by many eyes, and you want it to look professional. Any major slip-up in your copy, and a prospect just might head to your competitor.

A slip-up could range from a flagrant spelling or grammar error, copy that sounds too stiff and formal, copy that’s vague and pretentious, or copy that doesn’t anticipate a reader’s questions and answer them right away. Copywriters think of all these things (and many, many more) as they create copy.

As a medium to large business, hire a freelance copywriter if:

• Your old marketing materials, website, or brand have grown outdated or stale
• You want to reach a new market
• You aren’t satisfied with your conversion rates
• You need to reconnect with your “why”
• Your marketing director is on vacation, out on sick leave, or quit suddenly
• Your marketing needs are greater during a certain time of the year
• Your marketing or sales department has more projects than they can handle at the moment
• You need help with a marketing project but have a very strict budget

As a larger company, you may actually have your own marketing director or department. And that’s great! But the time may still come when you need a freelancer’s help.

Many of these scenarios require only temporary help, so hiring another employee wouldn’t make sense. Once you find a copywriter you can work well with, you’ll never have to search for another one again.

Hiring a freelancer would likely be less expensive than hiring a marketing firm or ad agency. In addition, you’ll be able to communicate directly with the writer and receive more personalized attention than you would from a firm or agency. And you will probably experience a faster turn-around time with a freelancer, because they typically only work with a few clients at a time to ensure they can handle the workload.

Advantages a freelance copywriter could bring you:

• A fresh perspective (and possibly an actual customer’s view) on your business and marketing
• A writer who isn’t bound by a normal employee’s day-to-day schedule or tasks and who can devote the entirety of her time to solving your one major problem.
• Someone who can come and go as your copywriting needs do
• The ability to craft new strategies, try new ideas, and finish all the peripheral projects that keep getting tabled
• The security and freedom of having a reliable copywriter to call on when emergencies pop up

Still have questions about hiring a freelance copywriter?

No problem! Check out these other helpful articles to find more answers.

What Does a Copywriter Actually Do?

How Much Does it Cost To Hire a Copywriter?

Why Should You Hire a Freelancer?

5 Reasons Hiring Freelance Writers is Worth the Money

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Thanks for reading! By the way – if you enjoyed this post, you may also like SEO Copywriting: Why Your Readers Should Come First.

This article was originally published in June 2017 and last updated August 2, 2018.