New to copywriting - Should my I hire or become my own copywriter?

[Marco90]

Hi all,

Quick question. I have just set up my own business and budget is tight at the moment and I am new to marketing etc but if the results and the price is right then I will hire a copywriter. I am looking to generate business on my website and through direct mail (snail mail) marketing campaigns. I want to ask whether hiring a copywriter is worth it? What effect did hiring a good copywriter have on your business and on sales? Or can I do it myself if I learn some basics? How much are the going rates for a decent copywriter and/or a top of the range copywriter? I am looking for some decent copy for my website and for sales letters/brochures that I send out to businesses in the mail.

Thanks for any advice,
Marco

[OutOfThisWord]

Marco if your business start-up seed capital does not have enough room to hire a copy writer/ direct mail expert...

...then I can promise you, you don't have enough money to do direct mail.

Internet Marketing has produced tons of 'experts' because they do not have the expense of postage and printing.

You may want to start in Internet Marketing where barriers to entry are less, because getting something going does not take as much money as even a simple 5,000 piece direct mail test effort.

[methomas]

Originally Posted by Marco90

Hi all,

Quick question. I have just set up my own business and budget is tight at the moment and I am new to marketing etc but if the results and the price is right then I will hire a copywriter. I am looking to generate business on my website and through direct mail (snail mail) marketing campaigns. I want to ask whether hiring a copywriter is worth it? What effect did hiring a good copywriter have on your business and on sales? Or can I do it myself if I learn some basics? How much are the going rates for a decent copywriter and/or a top of the range copywriter? I am looking for some decent copy for my website and for sales letters/brochures that I send out to businesses in the mail.

Thanks for any advice,
Marco

Hi Marco,

The answer depends on several things.

Check out my website below and email me and I will give some marketing advice that can help you make a decision.

I am known for helping out beginners.

M E

[Alex Cohen]

Originally Posted by Marco90

Hi all,

Quick question. I have just set up my own business and budget is tight at the moment and I am new to marketing etc but if the results and the price is right then I will hire a copywriter. I am looking to generate business on my website and through direct mail (snail mail) marketing campaigns. I want to ask whether hiring a copywriter is worth it? What effect did hiring a good copywriter have on your business and on sales? Or can I do it myself if I learn some basics? How much are the going rates for a decent copywriter and/or a top of the range copywriter? I am looking for some decent copy for my website and for sales letters/brochures that I send out to businesses in the mail.

Thanks for any advice,
Marco

Being your own copywriter significantly lengthens the learning curve but is well worth it in the end.

Alex

[AdwordsMogul]

Originally Posted by OutOfThisWord

...
You may want to start in Internet Marketing where barriers to entry are less, because getting something going does not take as much money as even a simple 5,000 piece direct mail test effort.

How are the barriers to entry less when doing internet marketing?

Marco, before you make a move, you have to be clear about why you want to use direct mail. Possibly, there are other media suitable for your business that could be more effective.

You can learn copywriting. Buy Dan Kennedy's book "The Ultimate Sales Letter." That will get you started.

Then go out there and sell your product face to face to a few potential prospects.

Note down all their questions, objections etc. Always do your best to determine what makes someone not want to buy. They won't always tell you, but after some time you'll see a pattern.


After you've done this, combine the techniques from Dan Kennedy's book to write your sales copy.

Come back here, start a new thread and ask for a critique!

[Rezbi]

Even if you hire, learn the basics so you know if the copy you get from your writer is good or not.

Grab a book and read that just to learn the fundamentals.

Knowing whether or not the copy you get from your copywriter is good or not can save you money in the long run.

[MarkJones]

Hey Marco,

Copywriting is a great skill to have, but not the easiest one to learn.

It sounds corny I know, but really you are either born with the skill or not. You need to have a creative brain to be able to produce quality copy that gets people to do what you want.

Apart from reading and learning about how to write copy, you should also learn about hypnosis as your copy needs to be able to put people into a semi trance to get them to take the required action.

So to answer your question, you want to be able to write your own copy, that way you have more control over your business, but it's not an easy ride...

Mark

[BlairBarnes]

I think you should invest some time learning copywriting yourself...it will benefit your business over and over. You can do some test adwords campaigns to get traffic to your site and test your copy. It is a good idea to split test what you write so you can see what converts better.

[MarkJones]

Originally Posted by BlairBarnes

I think you should invest some time learning copywriting yourself...it will benefit your business over and over. You can do some test adwords campaigns to get traffic to your site and test your copy. It is a good idea to split test what you write so you can see what converts better.

Whilst I agree you should test your copy with some paid traffic I wouldn't be suggesting using adwords, it could be an expensive test if the copy isn't great..

Find a second tier search engine and run a PPC campaign with them first, once you got it converting on the second tier search engine, transfer it across to adwords..

If you make a mistake, you wont bleed cash as much on a second tier network as you would on adwords or the like..

Mark

[Marco90]

Thanks for the replies guys very helpful and informative. I have decided to learn copywriting and have just ordered Dan Kennedy's book from Amazon (I will also look at some of the books advertised on the main sticky in this forum), that way I will know what good copy is if I do decide to get a professional to do it or go it alone.

It also seems that you are advising me away from direct mail for now and towards pay-per-click marketing such as adwords (or some other lower tier ppc). I will look into this and try to weigh up the different costs. I have always been a little scared however of pay per click marketing for some reason whereas in direct mail I know who is receiving the mail (I can research this myself and target appropriate small business that I think will benefit from my service in my local area) and then do follow up phone calls after the letter has been sent. With pay-per-click your website basically has to be spot on scientifically perfect to start even converting at 1% (not that direct mail doesnt have to be very good as well.)

Thanks again,

Marco

[AdwordsMogul]

Originally Posted by Marco90

....

It also seems that you are advising me away from direct mail for now and towards pay-per-click marketing such as adwords (or some other lower tier ppc). I will look into this and try to weigh up the different costs. I have always been a little scared however of pay per click marketing for some reason whereas in direct mail I know who is receiving the mail (I can research this myself and target appropriate small business that I think will benefit from my service in my local area) and then do follow up phone calls after the letter has been sent. With pay-per-click your website basically has to be spot on scientifically perfect to start even converting at 1% (not that direct mail doesnt have to be very good as well.)

Thanks again,

Marco

No, you are getting this part wrong.

The question is "Who is going to pay me? Who has the most money they can give me? Who is most likely to become a happy customer?"

Once you have that answer then you ask yourself "How can I reach this person in a way that will bring a return on my investment?"

It's only then that you can decide about the media - it could be any one mentioned earlier, none of them, all of them, or other media we haven't talked about.

There isn't a "cookie-cutter" answer to this. However, if you spend some time on this, you will definitely find a profitable solution.

[Izzy9]

I would learn the basics myself before hiring someone else so that you won't have to rely too much on copywriters to do the job for you. By doing so, you will also develop your own standards, which is essential in any business.

[davehayes]

As Mark Says, Copywriting is a Neccessary Skill, but not the easiest one to learn, it takes time and practice.

I think you said you were going to try Amazon, which is a good source for getting books by the experts thats for sure. I have been doing this for 11 years & still Learning New Tips & Tricks everyday, which is why I have come back in here, as its one of the best & most active forums to learn CW on the Net, far as I know!

[Dietriffic]

Depending on the length of your direct mail, you might be able to get a lot of ideas from:

"Killer Techniques to Succeed with Newspaper, Magazine and Yellow Pages Advertising"

I was told it's good, although I've never read it.

[billythekid]

i think this is probably a very common thread on here. I remember last time i saw this, some copywriters taking offence to the attitude what I can do to make money online - oh I got an A in English, or I took some creating writing classes at Uni therefore I must be a good writer. Lolz. I think writing is something you've really got to have a passion for and for copywriting really be self-critical and a perfectionist. Often the payoff for invested time is not worth it for many, so many people abandon ship after a few months.

[sethczerepak]

Originally Posted by Marco90

Hi all,

Quick question. I have just set up my own business and budget is tight at the moment and I am new to marketing etc but if the results and the price is right then I will hire a copywriter. I am looking to generate business on my website and through direct mail (snail mail) marketing campaigns. I want to ask whether hiring a copywriter is worth it? What effect did hiring a good copywriter have on your business and on sales? Or can I do it myself if I learn some basics? How much are the going rates for a decent copywriter and/or a top of the range copywriter? I am looking for some decent copy for my website and for sales letters/brochures that I send out to businesses in the mail.

Thanks for any advice,
Marco

It depends on who you ask. Ask an insecure copywriter, and they'll riddle you with insults and destroy your confidence in your own ability to ever excel at copywriting.

Ask an enthusiastic and well meaning, yet ignorant, marketer and they'll tell you anyone can learn copywriting...

But in reality, it depends on three things:

1) How hard you're willing to work at it.
2) Whether you're willing to let got of your ego and become teachable.
3) Who you learn from.

When I first started, I never listened to any one but the dudes who I knew were making good money Writing: Dan Kennedy, Robert Collier, Claude Hopkins, Gary Halbert, Stephen King and Jack Hart.

After over ten years studying and applying their stuff, I took what worked and created my own book. You can get it for free here if you're interested...

Free Copywriting Mini-Course | Cashflow Copywriter

Good luck