A business doesn’t exist to be one, unless it earns profits—and gains a steady following of loyal customers. A telecommuting copywriter, with his strong background in sales and marketing, may be any business owner’s secret weapon to survive in tough financial times.
What career is this and what is its job functions?
A copywriter is very different from the regular writers. You can call them technical writers, though they specialize in marketing and business. The main goal of copywriters is to sell by highlighting the benefits of the products and services for which they are offering. These benefits can be supported by a long list of features.
What are the specific benefits of pursuing this career?
Copywriters are highly paid. Veterans earn thousands of dollars per project, at the very least, and many copywriters—especially with ad agency experience—strike deals with their clients to receive commissions on every sale brought by the sales copy that they had created.
Why is this type of career in demand right now?
Business owners, whether huge or small, want to earn profits, and copywriters are the best writers who can help attain clients’ financial goals. Clients are also banking on the extensive knowledge of copywriters in search engine optimization, business branding, and customer loyalty, especially online. For small-time businesspeople, spending a thousand dollars to hire a copywriter to write ads and brochures may be huge, but it’s actually cheaper than having their own in-house writing team or PR firm.
What type of person would love this career?
Those who love to sell will surely enjoy telecommuting as a copywriter. The thrill of not knowing where your copy will really work and then seeing productive results later on is incomparable. You may also want to venture into this field if you already have some experience in marketing and publishing, such as creating press releases, features, advertorials, and sales letters.
What are some disadvantages/obstacles in this career?
One of the biggest hurdles in freelancing as a copywriter is not getting the results that you want. Even the most hard-core writers experience a moment of doldrums in their career because they are not helping businesspeople earn anything! There’s also the challenge of how to make the product or service totally different from the others.
What skills do you need?
It’s very important you understand at least the basics of selling: why benefits are better than features or what a USP (Unique Selling Point) is. You should also be a thorough researcher, gathering facts to support your claims. You need to determine the needs of your target market and then write copy that meets these needs. Contrary to popular belief, copywriting doesn’t demand that you’ll be witty, though a little humor doesn’t hurt. What it requires is a sense of professionalism and a very strong skill in negotiation and persuasion.
How do you break into this career?
You have a much higher chance of landing a copywriting job if you already have some background in marketing and sales. A few press releases and sales letters can be a good start for your portfolio. You can also dabble into affiliate marketing and create your own sales copies. You can use your level of success as proof of your ability to do the job.
Who usually hires in this field?
You will never run out of businesspeople who want to work with you, as long as you can prove you can do the job.
What is the average pay rate / salary?
A telecommuting online copywriter can earn from $34,000 to $85,000 a year, on average. Experienced copywriters, with 10 + years of experience, easily earn six figures each year.
How and where to find jobs / clients?
Websites such as Online-Writing-Jobs.com, Indeed.com, Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com, and MediaBistro.com have proven themselves as great places to look for copywriting jobs. Not all of them are online, but they are still telecommuting, which means you are not required to report to their office at all times.
