All of the opportunities I’ve enjoyed, by the grace of God, have stemmed from this one skill—copywriting. It is the foundation of everything else.
Copywriting is the process of writing content for businesses. In essence, copywriting is the ability to write words that inspire readers to take action.
I got my start in web design. Not because I loved it, just because I knew some HTML code and I had just left a fancy-sounding tech job at the local news station. I had a few skills and a little credibility, so I wrote some words that put my best face forward and sold myself.
Truthfully, I’m not a great graphic designer and I’ve always known that, but I created websites nonetheless that were really effective for my clients. The secret was not in the fanciness of the visual design, but in the impact of the words I would write and place on the page.
We don’t typically make purchasing decisions based on how cool a website is. We purchase because the text content of the page affirms what we’re looking for and answers our most important questions.
My experience in web design led to some opportunities in e-book production (by a bizarre sequence of connections) when that was a brand new thing, which led to more and more opportunities in the publishing world, which is where I dreamed to be.
God deserves all of the credit for opening the right doors, I’m still flabbergasted when I think about the unlikely sequence of events that got me in the door. But it was the skill of copywriting that He used to pull me forward.
It was writing copy (text content) to promote myself. And then writing copy to support others, braided in with some other skills. This pattern repeated itself over and over.
Every author and every entrepreneur should master the skill of copywriting. Even if you only use it for self-promotion, writing effective content will connect you with new people and open doors.
There are also businesses lining up for great copywriters. Granted, there are plenty of scam opportunities to be leery of, but writers who can reliably produce effective copy can make a great living, with a ton of independence and flexibility.
On Saturday, September 7th, I’ll be teaching a seminar on copywriting in Zanesville, Ohio for the Ohio Writers’ Association (OWA). If you’re not in Zanesville, this will be the worth the drive, and you’ll be among good company.
We’ll spend a full day talking about how to write and revise great content and how to interact with clients. The cost is only $50, and it will absolutely be worth the time and money.
Learn more and register here: Retreats.OhioWriters.org.
Whether you want to sell copy to businesses or you just want to promote your own stuff, mastering the nuances of copywriting–crafting words that inspire others to take action–will give you a new foundation on which to stand.
Every program at OWA has to pass a test: does this effectively help writers reach their goals? This retreat gets a resounding yes. Don’t miss it.
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