If you love writing, you’re going to relate to Maile’s story.
Maile went to school with the goal to write for television, but as life happens, she found herself in content writing roles.
Unlike most Comprehensive Copywriting Academy students, Maile discovered the CCA when she was already writing for some clients. But these clients were looking to her to write things like email, webpages, and more.
On today’s episode of the Build Your Copywriting Business podcast, Maile is sharing secrets to successful pitching, plus offering her take on AI and what she’s seeing with her clients.
Whether you’re already a writer or looking to (finally!) get paid for your writing, I know Maile’s story is going to leave you feeling inspired.
(Bonus: she shared some *spot-on* tips for setting boundaries to ensure she has time for what matters most: her family.)
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Looking for closed captioning or a transcript? Watch the episode on YouTube!
A Sneak Peek at the Episode
[02:16] I’ve always been in writing in some way, shape, or form. Long story short, I actually went to school for television production and so I initially wanted to write for TV. I discovered the CCA when I was already working in a content strategist role where I was writing for websites for a B2B technology company.
[03:35] I just jumped into CCA, started doing the spec exercises. I actually started pitching before I even touched a spec exercise and was like, what’s in this? I got hired pretty much right away, which was very cool and got to jump in, get some more experience and couple that with what I was already doing full time.
[04:45] I am a very inspiration driven person. If I get an idea, I immediately run with it. I was already subscribing to all these email newsletters of brands that I like. It was a sunglasses brand that I follow and their CEO responded and said, we don’t need anybody but I forwarded this for a sister company.
[05:16] They need a copywriter and then they hired me as their email copywriter. I actually had worked for them in a different capacity because my background also is in SEO. I’ve just kept that strategy because I like reading copy and coming up with other ideas or things like that. So that’s just what I’ve been doing.
[09:23] I was part consultative where I was an SEO account manager and I would work with clients and help them with their strategy. And then a role opened up to jump on their content team where I was editing and writing and managing freelance writers. So I do like to be able to do both.
[10:14] One of the biggest things that copywriting taught me right away was the features versus benefits thing. Who is this benefiting? What are their pain points? Why the heck do they care? at the end of the day.
[13:41] A lot of writers can say there are definitely some absolutely wonderful uses for AI tools. Research or coming up with ideas. But I think with the features versus the benefits and understanding customers, AI can’t do that.
[18:00] I’ll usually work on like freelance stuff at night or on the weekends. So I’m going to make sure I have enough time and give myself enough lead time. So during the day I’m working on something specific and at night, maybe I’ll work on freelance work with some more B2C.
[18:40] It is definitely a balance because there’s only so many hours in the day and you don’t really need to write and copy when you’re really tired and your brain hurts. Trying to figure out when is the best flow and sometimes I’ll wake up early and get things done because sometimes I can be more productive in the morning.
[20:43] I won’t accept a project that’s under X amount, just because I’ve been doing it for a long time and I know what people are paying and what people can make. And then, an hourly rate, like I don’t work below a certain hourly rate just because it might not be the best use of my time.
[21:12] You all ask if they have a scope of work, how many projects, what’s the cadence, is that something I can realistically do? Cause if it’s not, then I’m doing a disservice to them.
[24:29] There’s so much imposter syndrome. We’re so good at talking ourselves out of things. If you’re thinking about it, just start. With pitching, you have nothing to lose. You never know if someone’s looking for something new or a new idea or a new angle or a new perspective, so just do it.
[28:13] Even now I’m like, well, there’s seven other things I want to do, but I can’t do them all at once. But as far as like content and copywriting and SEO, I guess don’t put yourself in a box.
[29:10] Copywriting is different. A lot of it is shorter, and it’s a lot harder in a way. It’s a puzzle piece. It’s like, you only have so much room to say what you need to say. So, you really have to be strategic about moving things around.
Must-Hear Takeaways
As with every episode, we highly encourage you to listen to the entire conversation! But here are a few of the highlights:
“My goal ultimately is I’ve got two young kids and I want to be able to set my own hours and be there when they’re off school and things like that.” – Maile
“One of the cool things about the way that the tech industry develops. I always say that the best time to become a copywriter is right now. Their understanding of how much it actually affects their business, it just keeps increasing and we become more and more valuable.” -Nicki
“Am I delivering the best work possible? Am I delivering the work that this client deserves to receive from me? And if we know that we can’t do that, then it’s our responsibility to say no.” – Nicki
“If we want to keep working with that client, we don’t want to deliver subpar work and damage our reputation in that process.” – Kate
“Just study your craft, it’s fun, and you’ll start to notice things and learn things. You never know where inspiration is going to come from, so just become really immersed in it.” – Maile
“You never know if all past experiences are going to benefit you in the future. So if you have an opportunity and it’s something you’re interested in and it’s not taking time or money away that you don’t have, why not go after it?” – Maile
“If you’re on the fence about starting, about pitching, just go for it. You never know what can happen.” – Maile
Mentioned in the Episode
Related Links
- What is Content Strategy? And How Is It Different from Copywriting?
- SEO Copywriting Guide for Search Result Ranking Success
- SEO Copywriting & Strategy 101: How to Write SEO
- Ep 166: How Copywriters Can Add Content Strategy as a Service – with Amanda Hand
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About the Build Your Business Podcast
Ready to turn your love of writing into a successful copywriting career?
Join professional copywriters Nicki Krawczyk and Kate Sitarz to get the tips, tools, and training to help you become a copywriter and build a thriving business of your own. Nicki and Kate have 20+ and 10+ years of experience, respectively, writing copy for multi-billion-dollar companies, solopreneurs, and every size business in between.
Whether you want to land an on-staff job, freelance full-time and work from wherever you want, or make extra money with a side hustle, the best place to start learning is right here.
