How long does copywriting take

So I figured it might be useful to post some thoughts on copywriting, how I do it, what to expect, and so on. To begin, there really is no hard and fast rule. The intent of the writing matters a LOT. But it goes even deeper than the piece itself. It very different than just throwaway articles for SEO.

This is why there is such disparity in copywriting prices. That might take a few hours hint: those are the kind I do. Just the other day I spent 4 hours writing a word landing page. Letters — Depending on the topic, a one-page letter will take me anywhere from one to three hours.

Anything in depth will take longer for example, I spend a half day each week ghostwriting a Huffington Post article for a somewhat famous client. As you can imagine, the second draft can take a bit of time to coordinate, but again you should keep sensible time limits.

Ideally, depending on the scale of the project :. At this stage, there should be no major surprises from either side. If the scope of a brief changes significantly then the timeline will have to be revised accordingly. At this stage, it should be a case of mid to low-level feedback.

A good way to approach clients or stakeholders who are repeatedly late with their feedback is to say you will be progressing to the next stage by a certain date, and if you have not heard from them, you will assume that they are happy. This is important in terms of a paper trail and accountability.

Copywriters live by their deadlines and flag slipping dates as soon as there is an issue. Now you have factored in all the feedback. Your stakeholders are on board and everyone is in agreement. You may have a few tweaks here and there but basically, your copy is fairly solid. Happy Days. Now it may surprise non-writers just how long editing and proofing can take. You have to read each and every word — each and every line. There is so much more to editing and proofing than first meets the eye, which is why it is important to factor in enough time to do it properly.

For example, your first read through may be to check phone numbers. This may involve calling them to check that they actually work. Do you have all the metadata? Keywords in the copy and headlines? Are you using gender-neutral language throughout? Are you using British or American English throughout?

Is it appropriate for your audience? Have you checked all the page numbers? And so on …. You may move some paragraphs around if you are doing a structural edit, but you are not changing content — just making it tight.

Sometimes when a designer moves the copy into the layout things get lost or misunderstood. If there are simple mistakes in the copy this is going to reflect badly. If you have the luxury of working in an organisation that has a copywriting team, then there should be 2 rounds of proofreading before the final document is produced.

So now you and your client have a much clearer understand of how a copywriter gets from A-C. Your email address will not be published. Made with by Graphene Themes. Toggle search form Search for:. Toggle navigation McRae Communications Consultancy. Bringing Editorial into the Marketing Environment Every business has an ebook inside of them … ebooks: Could it be time to add another string to your bow?

How do I Market my Book? And I certainly did my fair share — filling up yellow note pad after yellow note pad. One of the best ways in the absence of job offers is writing for yourself and showcasing it to the world. Many successful copywriters started out humbly writing their own blog — and there are good reasons to do it. And if you already have the foundations of good copywriting skills, you can source freelance copywriting jobs online to build your portfolio and expertise with sites such as Copify.

Stephen King once said budding writers should write every day. Whether you use that time to write a blog post, practise writing samples, pitching ideas to businesses, volunteering your writing skills, posting on social media, writing guest posts or even writing creatively — every little helps.

There are plenty of tutorials and ebooks available online, such as those at Copyblogger , while copywriting books and copywriting courses both online and in person can help teach you the ropes.

Participating in forums, attending workshops and webinars and local networking groups for marketers via sites like MeetUp will help too. Copywriting involves taking everyday topics and products and making them exciting and relatable to your audience.

To truly engage your reader, you need a healthy dose of creative flair. As with any journey, many find there are three paths you can take, all of which have their own pros and cons…. You may be fancying a career change and want to capitalise on your transferable skills while adding some new strings to your bow.

If you put in the effort you can capitalise on your former experience to gain some ground. There is no right or wrong journey, and your life circumstances will determine what is the most suitable route for you. However, for the best chance of success, try a few different suggestions from above to give yourself a richer starting point from which to develop your copywriting skills.

Even more recent copywriters such as Gary Halbert could never have predicted the dominance of social media and email newsletters when starting out.

There might not be a set path or timeframe but it all depends on the confidence you have in your abilities and the dedication you have to succeed.