Anybody can write copy.
But writing copy that has a chance at showing up on Google, engaging with a target audience, and converting into sales?
That kind of copy takes time. It takes practise. And it takes experience.
One or more of those three reasons is why many of our clients seek out our services. But as small business owners ourselves, we understand that not all businesses have the budget for copywriting – especially when they’re just starting out.
If you, too, are attempting to complete copywriting for your business, some tried and true methods can help you along the way. Below, we discuss four of our top tips for producing your best copywriting on your own.
Tip #1: Brainstorming Content Ideas
Usually, the hardest part about copywriting is coming up with your initial idea.
Whether for a blog article, website page, or email marketing campaign, producing a topic that will attract and engage your target audience can be tough.
Whatever you do, don’t rush through this step. Otherwise, you risk producing copy that may not get noticed or read and is unlikely to produce any sales conversions. And when that’s the case, you may as well have not written anything at all.
When we’re finding topic generation difficult, we put ourselves in our target audience’s shoes. Think about what would be most important to know about a business like yours. What benefits do your products and services offer? Why should someone buy from you rather than your competitor?
Your analytics can help you out a lot. Take a look at your social media posts, past blog articles, and web pages that have the most traffic. Use this information to develop an understanding of what your potential customers value most about your business. What interests them to click on a page, comment on a blog post, or share a Facebook link?
You can also see what’s trending in your industry by using Buzz Sumo, AnswerThePublic, or online forums like Reddit and Quora.
Tip #2: Do Keyword Research
Now that you have an idea about what to discuss in your copy, it’s time to find relevant search terms. These are the words or phrases that are getting searched on Google by your potential customers.
Keyword research can be as simple as pulling up Google and typing in a query. What auto-populates in the search box is what’s already being searched and is a good indication for keywords to pursue.
While you’re at it, why not see what keywords your website is already ranking for? Using Google Console or Google Analytics will help you discover this useful information.
When you have an idea for a topic, but no idea what relevant keywords pertain to it, a search engine optimization (SEO) tool can help. We’re big fans of UberSuggest – so much so that we have the paid version – but there’s a free version, too, that will likely meet your needs.
There are plenty of other SEO tools out there, too. This article from PC mag outlines the top ten SEO tools, including their pros, cons, pricing, and plans.
Tip #3: Take Your Time
“Take time for all things: great haste makes great waste.”
Benjamin Franklin wasn’t wrong. When you don’t take the time to write great copy, you risk creating content that doesn’t have a chance to rank or reach your target audience. Rushing can also produce copy that’s full of spelling and grammatical errors, which can place your brand’s reputation on the line.
If you’re in a rush to write your copy, it’s best to schedule the task for another time.
When you finally do have ample time to create your best work, do it with zero distractions. Turn your phone notifications off, tell your staff or family that you don’t want to be interrupted unless it’s an emergency, and minimize the number of tabs and windows you have open on your computer.
In short, make it as easy as possible for you to sit down and get the task done – and done well.
And when you finally do put that last period in place at the end of your blog article, website page, or email marketing campaign? Do. Not. Publish. (At least for the moment.)
Instead, save your work as a draft – then walk away.
Tip #4: Edit, Edit, and Edit Again
Before you send your work out into the world, you need to do everything possible to ensure it’s error-free. Luckily, there’s plenty of proofreading software that makes this step easy.
When you’re ready to edit, make sure you use a fresh pair of eyes. Proofreading on a different day from when you created your content is always a good idea.
The spelling and grammar check in your Microsoft Word software is a great start, but you’ll need to do more than run your work through that. We love using Grammarly, but plenty of other great proofreading tools are available.
Once you’ve used your proofreading software, complete another read-through of your content.
Finally, use a human proofreader. This can be a trusted staff member, friend, or professional (like us!). Doing so helps detect errors that slip through editing software and can provide feedback about the overall topic and tone.
The Bottom line
Even if you follow all of our tips above, you may eventually run into a roadblock on your copywriting journey. This article discusses the biggest challenges faced with copywriting and how to fix them to stay on-track to create your best copy.
And if you still need help? Us Toronto copywriters are willing to help!