When you get called in for an interview, you need to make sure your online and print portfolios are up to date and your resume and references are current. But you also need to be prepared to answer all kinds of copywriting interview questions. These are questions that are specific to copywriting—in addition to the "standard" interview questions. No job interview is easy, but … [Read more...]
How Copywriters Can Deal With a Difficult Design Partner
A designer is a copywriter’s partner in creative work. When that relationship is good, the work is golden. (If you haven't, check out our 9 tips for how copywriters can most effectively work with designers.) But when that relationship is not as good, the work can suffer and job satisfaction plummets. Let’s talk about what to do when that relationship is strained. A strained … [Read more...]
Facing Multiple Rounds of Copywriting Revisions? Here’s How to Fix It
Clients are a varied bunch. Some of them are easy, and approve your work with minimal changes. Some of them, though, change their minds constantly, change the project constantly, and make you go through round after round of revisions. Let’s talk about how to deal with that second group, shall we? Picture this scenario: You have a client that you've been working with for … [Read more...]
The Creative Review Myth
Every creative project ends with a creative review … or does it? There’s a lot of confusion around exactly what a creative review accomplishes and what you can expect once it’s done. So let’s clear some things up, shall we? Easily the greatest myth about creatives reviews is that they’re going to be “one and done.” The vast, vast majority of the time, you’ll have multiple … [Read more...]
How To Set Up Customer Surveys
You need to know about your target audience to craft a message that makes sense to them. But what if your client doesn’t know anything about the people to whom they sell? Then it might just be up to you to find out. It’s shocking, but it’s true: There are some companies who have no idea who they’re selling to. Sure, if they’re a cable provider, you can guess that they are … [Read more...]
The Difference Between Copywriting and Editing
The word “copy” gets bandied about quite a bit, but how do you know when it’s referring to the work you do (or want to do)? You may see "copy" referring to writing and editing. But does that mean you should prepared to be both a copywriter and a copy editor? The short answer to that is a resounding no. But let's dig into why, what each of these careers entails, and how you … [Read more...]
5 Things Clients and Product Managers Wish Copywriters Knew
The people who request your copywriting work—clients or product managers—are crucial partners in the project. But just because you’re working on the same thing doesn’t mean you’re speaking the same language. Here are five things you don’t know that they wish you did. Most clients and product managers have absolutely no experience being on the other side of the table—that is, … [Read more...]
How to Fix Bad Copywriting Feedback
A big part of being a copywriter is incorporating the feedback you receive in creative reviews. But what do you do when you get bad feedback? And not feedback that makes you sad but truly useless feedback? Imagine this scenario: You had a creative review with your client and the client is...well, let's say you get the vibe they're not thrilled. Your client keeps suggesting … [Read more...]
How to Keep a Project from Falling Through
It's heartbreaking: You find a potential client, put together the perfect proposal, they say "Yes!" and then...the project just dies. No project...and no paycheck. Let's talk about why that happens and what you can do about it. First, let me just say that this premature project death happens to the best of us, even the very best. Clients that were extra jazzed about moving … [Read more...]
7 Ways to Burn Bridges Like a Champ
We focus a lot on ways to be a better copywriter, but let's turn things around a bit. Here we focus on the not-to-dos: seven things that will make you a worse one and earn you the dislike of your boss/client and coworkers, if not help you lose your job. To begin with, obviously, the best way to keep your job is to work hard, work well, be friendly, and be … [Read more...]