Looking for a professional writer? Stay Tuned!
One of my power partners, Lisa Twining Taylor (Dancing Goat Web Design) is building me a sub domain that allows me to showcase the writing services I provide and post portfolio examples so interested parties can get a closer look and decide if I’m right for their projects. I’ve already chosen a theme (layout template) for it that will make navigation a snap and presentation compelling. Now I just have to come up with the copy for it… Luckily for me, that will be easy enough!
Which reminds me of something that might astound you…
Want a laugh–or a scowl? On freelance websites I visit frequently, I’ve seen wannabe and newbie copywriters seeking professional copywriters to write the copy for their websites…or bogus testimonials for them! Yes, of course, I shook my head and moved on. I’m sure they found someone else to write their copy for them, but that’s beside the point.
The point is that there are greenhorns out there who are trying to pull the wool over people’s eyes. It makes me sick because every time they manage to pull it off, they invariably disappoint their clients, who get a bad taste in their mouths for freelance writers and make it that much harder for the rest of us (the good’uns) to make a living!
I can’t stress enough the need to know what great copy writing looks like and does over time before you start looking for a copywriter. When you realize the long term ROI of great copy, paying respectable prices for it becomes easier–and pretty much a regular part of doing business.
Think about it: How many copywriters worth their salt are going to settle for secretarial wages (or less) after they’ve spent decades honing their writing skills and developing their copy writing chops?
Professional copywriters are as valuable to businesses as any other vaunted profession–attorneys, IT professionals, investment advisers, bank presidents, and more–and we know it! We’re usually just silent about it because it sounds arrogant to self-proclaim in this way.
And hey, we sort of expect clients to recognize our value without having to be told; after all, they’re reaching out to us to help them make money–lots and lots of money!
Alas, it isn’t always the case that clients recognize the full value of hiring a professional writer.
Not that this is anything new. Writers have always had to fight for their professional acclaim and equitable treatment. Actors, directors and producers always support writers’ strikes in Hollywood because they know that “If it ain’t on the page, it ain’t on the stage.” You can set the stage, dress the stage, light the stage, cue the cameras and call “ACTION!” but unless the actors have been given lines to analyze, memorize, rehearse and breathe souls into, you’ll be filming an expensive fiasco.
Words can transform the circumstances you’re in into the circumstances you want. Handing an untried greenhorn the responsibility of creating the results you want is, in a word, irresponsible.
I know that “everybody has to start somewhere”, but do you really want that “somewhere” to include your outreach efforts? You only get one chance to make a good first impression. If your ideal clients are introduced to you in a clunky/ jarring/off-putting/ sub-standard way, they will flee as fast as they arrive–and they probably won’t come back to see if you got any better at reaching out to them.
If you can’t afford a professional copywriter, wait until you can. You’ll be glad you did.
