Imagine this:
You're sitting at your desk, fired up and ready to tackle a new career in copywriting.
Buttttt… there's just one little problem.
You have no copywriting experience.
No worries, amigo. I’m going to show you a shortcut around this common copywriter’s catch 22 – need experience to gain clients, but have no experience yet because you’re just starting out.
In this guide, I'm going to walk you through how to start copywriting with no experience, breaking down the process into five digestible steps.
Whether you're looking to freelance or snag a full-time gig, this post is your roadmap to getting started FAST in 2024.
By the end, you'll see that breaking into copywriting isn’t about where you’re starting from; it’s about how you move forward. So, let’s get your copywriting journey started!
What is Copywriting?
At its core, copywriting is salesmanship in print.
Think of it as the art of persuasive writing with one ultimate goal: getting results.
Whether it’s convincing someone to buy a product, sign up for a newsletter, or simply click on a link, copywriting uses the power of words to drive action.
Think about the last time you bought something online. What convinced you to make that purchase? Was it the description that painted a vivid picture of your life with the product? Or maybe it was those snappy bullet points that listed the desirable benefits? That’s copywriting—salesmanship without the face-to-face interaction, leveraging words to spark decision-making.
In today’s digital world, copywriting finds its place across various platforms—from websites and email campaigns to social media and blogs.
While each platform has its own quirks, the fundamental aim remains consistent: capture attention, build interest, and prompt action.
By mastering these copywriting basics, you equip yourself to navigate any medium, enhancing your marketability in the lucrative realm of marketing.
What Does a Copywriter ACTUALLY Do?
A lot of folks think copywriting is all about crafting fancy prose but let me set the record straight — it’s much more than that.
A copywriter’s job is to understand deeply what makes potential customers tick and then tailor messages that speak directly to their needs, desires, and problems.
Here’s a typical breakdown of what a day might look like for a copywriter:
Research
This is foundational. A copywriter spends a considerable amount of time gathering insights about their target audience, competitors, and product benefits. Understanding what your audience cares about is crucial to crafting messages that resonate.
Writing
At its heart, yes, copywriting is about writing. This could involve creating persuasive email campaigns, designing catchy headlines, scripting informative blog posts, or drafting juicy product descriptions. Each piece of content has a specific purpose and is designed to move the reader to action.
Editing and Proofreading
Once the writing is done, the refining process begins. Editing and proofreading are critical to ensure clarity, coherence, and error-free content. This step is vital in maintaining professionalism and enhancing the effectiveness of the copy.
Collaboration
Copywriters often work closely with designers, marketers, and other creatives to ensure that the text aligns with visual elements and marketing goals. This teamwork helps in creating a cohesive and effective message.
Testing and Optimizing
After writing, the real game of refinement begins. Copywriters analyze the performance of their content—be it open rates of emails or conversion rates of ad copy. Based on the data, they refine their approach, tweak the content, and test different versions to optimize the outcomes.
What are the Main Copywriting Skills for Beginners?
Embarking on your copywriting journey requires a toolkit of essential skills that go beyond just good grammar and spelling. These skills are the bedrock of successful, persuasive copy that converts readers into customers. Let's dive into the main copywriting skills for beginners that you should start building:
1. Research Proficiency
The ability to dig deep and gather relevant information about your audience, competitors, and industry trends is crucial. It’s about understanding not just what to say, but how to say it in a way that resonates.
2. Writing Clarity and Conciseness
Clear and concise writing is non-negotiable. This means being able to communicate ideas effectively without unnecessary fluff. It's about making every word count and ensuring your message isn't lost in translation.
3. Persuasive Writing Techniques
Knowing how to craft a compelling argument using elements like the AIDA model (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) can make the difference between content that’s read and content that leads to action.
4. SEO Knowledge
In today’s digital age, understanding the basics of SEO and how to integrate keywords naturally into your copy is essential. This ensures that your content is not only persuasive but also visible in search engine results.
5. Adaptability and Flexibility
The ability to switch writing styles to suit different brands, tones, and mediums is invaluable. Whether it's a serious business-to-business email or a light-hearted social media post, being versatile is key.
6. Attention to Detail
This includes not just proofreading for grammatical mistakes but also paying attention to the nuances of language that could affect the tone and effectiveness of your copy.
7. Salesmanship
At its heart, copywriting is salesmanship in print. The ability to persuade people through writing is fundamental. This skill involves understanding what motivates people, how to create a compelling narrative around a product or service, and how to call readers to action in a way that feels natural and compelling.
8. Marketing Knowledge
Understanding marketing principles is crucial for creating copy that aligns with broader business goals. This includes knowledge of the marketing mix—product, price, place, promotion—as well as understanding different marketing channels and how copywriting fits into each. A strong grasp of marketing helps you write copy that not only sounds good but also works effectively within a marketing strategy to attract and convert customers.
9. Time Management
As a copywriter, you’ll often juggle multiple projects simultaneously, each with its own deadline. Effective time management skills are essential to deliver quality content on schedule. This includes planning your tasks efficiently, prioritizing projects based on urgency and importance, and being adept at switching between tasks without losing focus.
10. Creativity
While copywriting is grounded in persuasion and marketing principles, creativity is what makes your copy stand out. This can mean thinking of unique angles for a product, coming up with innovative ways to express common ideas, or simply writing in a way that captures and holds attention.
Your 5-Step Gameplan for Becoming a Successful Freelance Copywriter in 2024
Here are my 5 steps for how to start copywriting the RIGHT way and quickly become a successful freelance copywriter. This is what I personally did and recommend you do too.
Use these 5 steps as a roadmap to breaking into freelance copywriting and growing a successful freelance copywriting business in 2024 & beyond.
Step 1: Build a solid foundation
The first step to becoming a kickass freelance copywriter is learn how to write copy.
In order to make money as a copywriter, you need to provide your clients extreme value.
Here’s how to learn copywriting extremely fast…
1. Read the Top Books
Start by devouring the classic copywriting books from the top copywriters in the game. This post has 10 of the best books to get started. These texts provide not only techniques but also showcase examples of persuasive writing that has stood the test of time. Strive to read 20-50 pages, each day.
2. Practice with Exercises
Applying what you learn from these books through practical exercises is vital. This practice helps you apply theoretical knowledge in practical scenarios. See this blog post for the top 5 ways to practice your copywriting skills. I recommend you complete all 5 exercises, each day, during this first phase. It will take you no longer than 30 minutes per day.
3. Write Daily
Finally, the key to mastery in any skill is consistent practice. Make it a habit to write daily. Whether it’s rewriting existing ads to improve them or crafting new copy from scratch, daily writing will refine your skills, build your confidence, and enhance your natural writing ability.
If you read, practice and write daily, you will become a copywriting pro in a few short months (this can be done in weeks if you don’t work full-time).
After, you’ll be ready to provide REAL VALUE to potential clients when writing for them.
Step 2: Gain Real Copywriting Clients
After you’ve gained a decent knowledge of the basics and feel somewhat confident in your copywriting abilities, you’ll be ready to start writing for real clients and earn real $$$$.
I’ve created a detailed blog post covering my 10 favorite methods for getting freelance copywriting clients called...
How to Get Copywriting Clients in 2023 With No Experience (Get New Clients TODAY)
IMPORTANT:
When starting out, the goal is to gain rapid-fire experience.
You want to write for a wide variety of clients (in different industries) and, also, write for the most popular types of copy (emails, landing pages, blog posts, ads, etc).
Limiting yourself to a specific niche or a specific type of copy (when just starting out), will handicap you from getting clients fast and breaking into this field.
Beginners should strive to write a LOT of copy for paying clients, for a VARIETY of different industries & mediums.
AFTER you’ve gotten a lot of experience writing for different industries and types of copy, you should niche down.
Why?
Because you will never earn much money by staying a generalist.
Step 3: Choose a Copywriting Niche
Once you’ve gotten experience and can demonstrate your expertise to potential clients, you’ll be ready to choose a copywriting niche.
I’ve written over 3,000 words on how to choose a copywriting niche, with step-by-step instructions, in this ultimate guide – The 10 Highest-Paying Copywriting Niches in 2023 (How to Pick the Best One for YOU).
I STRONGLY RECOMMEND reading this ENTIRE post BEFORE choosing a niche (or even if you already have a niche)… Because I reveal the must-haves and secrets for maximizing your success as a freelance copywriter via the niche you choose.
After you choose your niche, you MUST do something first before getting clients within your new niche.
Step 4: Create a Copywriting Portfolio
After you gotten a bunch of samples and testimonials, you’ll want to create a copywriting portfolio.
Believe it or not…
There’s a way to create a copywriting portfolio that impresses clients – 100% FREE – in 10 minutes or less.
This is what I did to create my copywriting portfolio (I still use this exact same portfolio - 4 years later).
This method is perfect for beginner copywriters because you don’t need to pay a dime, it takes 10 minutes to create and you don’t have to have any tech or design skills.
Once you’re ready to create a freelance copywriting portfolio, follow this step-by-step crash course here.
Step 5: How to Get Freelance Copywriting Clients
After you’ve picked a copywriting niche and have created your copywriting portfolio, now the real fun begins…
GROWTH.
When you’re ready for this stage, see this ultimate guide.
You’ll uncover my top 3 ways to quickly scale your freelance biz to 6 figures & beyond.
Conclusion
Feel more confident on how to start copywriting?
I hope so. Because I’ve just given you a proven roadmap for success in copywriting.
If you follow the simple steps I’ve outlined, you’ll quickly break into copywriting, gain a horde of clients and indulge in a new life of fun, profits and freedom.
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