Does $500/month for a Copywriter Makes Any Sense?

[Valentine]

Hello Copywarriors!

I'm preparing my next WSO launch, and in need of a good salescopy.
Well, I'm not the best writer out there, neither I'm a native English speaker .. to be honest I truly suck in writing copys, but I'm a kick-ass graphic designer.

So here's my situation:

I offer minisite and eCover design for fellow marketers. Right now I can take up to 3 orders per week myself and also can give some to my partner in case I will be overloaded.

If I'll be able to sell atleast 2 minisites a week with the help of a new salescopy, I then can pay $500 a month (untill the whole price for a salescopy will be covered) for a copywriter who is willing to help me.

What do you guys think? Have you been in a familiar situation? Will I have any "luck" with this kind of offer and does it actually make any sense?

To Your Success,
Valentin Spitsyn

[David Raybould]

Hey Valentine,

It's a sound idea in principle...

But (sorry there's always a but isn't there?)

Most copywriters I know, including me, are wary
of deals like this because they usually go wrong,
due to one thing or another.

And when it does go wrong it's usually the writer
that's the one left out of pocket.

Having said that, I'll bet you still get a ton of PMs
from guys offering to do this for you.

Good luck.

-David Raybould

[Valentine]

Originally Posted by David Raybould

Hey Valentine,

It's a sound idea in principle...

But (sorry there's always a but isn't there?)

Most copywriters I know, including me, are wary
of deals like this because they usually go wrong,
due to one thing or another.

And when it does go wrong it's usually the writer
that's the one left out of pocket.

Having said that, I'll bet you still get a ton of PMs
from guys offering to do this for you.

Good luck.

-David Raybould

Hello David,

You are right, there are no guarantees. I can't promice that I will actually generate any sales (I wonder if a copywriter can guarantee the same, but isn't it his job? Or am I missing the point here?).
The only thing I guarantee is that I can take the workload when it comes my way and be able to serve up to 6 customers a week and leave them happy (and that amount I consider a BLAST).

But (here it comes again).. If I can't make 2 sales per week at minimum, then "someone" is definitelly out of pocket, or will be down to $200-$300 a month. So, just as you said there's definitelly a risk for a copywriter.


Also, for those who're also reading this post:
Guys, I have a tendency to explain myself badly enough and I want to state that it's not $500 a month for a lifetime .. it's a monthly payment untill the initial cost of a salesletter is covered. So if your salescopy cost $1000, then I will pay $500 just for 2 months.

- Valentine

[David Raybould]

Valentine-

I see your point, and in an ideal world
it would work.

But in the real world, it mostly doesn't.

Any decent copywriter is going to be
pre-booked with clients that have
already paid at least half their total
fee upfront.

What incentive is there for a writer to
take 2 weeks out of their schedule
to write your letter, when there's a
very real chance they won't make
a dime?

Why would someone do that when
they can just continue getting paid
up front by regular clients?

Sure, a copywriter's job is to get
sales, but there's too much that's
out of their control. What if you
start your WSO at midnight on
Sunday? What if an unhappy
customer leaves a bad review
and you get zero sales?

What if some new designer
posts the same offer as you
just below, and charges a
tenth of the price?

Suddenly your copywriter just
worked 2 weeks for nothing.

I don't mean to trash your idea
here, but the copywriter is the
one taking all the risk.

When people DO go for deals like
this, it's usually for a percentage
of ongoing profits, or a percentage
until a certain figure is reached.

There's more of an incentive if the
writer knows he's in with a chance
of making much more than his
regular fee...

But to expect them to do it and
MAYBE get paid their normal fee
in monthly payments, that's just
a bad deal for the writer.

Sorry buddy.

-David Raybould

[MontelloMarketing]

David's right on this...

Making a "will come" deal is not always a bad deal when a few things are in play.

1. A known entity. Someone with a reputation and a history of paying in such situations. (If David was contacted by Mike Filsaime, I'm sure he'd consider a "will come" deal)

2. A truly unique product that couldn't easily be duplicated. This is insurance against someone coming along and selling the same thing cheaper.

3. At least a small up front amount followed by a percentage of sales or profits up to a set amount agreed upon (or for life, as some deals are).

4. This would require open book keeping so the copywriter knew he wasn't being screwed.

[GuerrillaIM]

Valentine - If you don't ask, you don't get. Keep looking and I am sure you will find an above average copywriter who is having a slow period and willing to help you. One thing though - make the offer sound more enticing. Let's say you do not make sales, offer your services in barter to pay off the bill. I'm sure there are copywriters out there with clients who need graphics, or sites that need jazzing up.

[Raydal]

If you are a good graphics designer then you don't need a copywriter.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

-Ray Edwards

[Daniel Scott]

To expand on Ray's point...

I've seen thousands of design WSO's with awful, atrocious copy. They still sell like hotcakes.

No one expects you to write good copy. Everyone browsing the WSO already knows what designers do. What they want is for you to do a good job at a cheap price... in a nutshell, it's all about the offer (more so than usual).

If your offer is competitive and you are a good designer, you should be able to get a lot of clients. Just post your offer with the price in the topic, and then explain how it all works in the post. You should do fine.

-Dan

[briancassingena]

Originally Posted by Raydal

If you are a good graphics designer then you don't need a copywriter.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

-Ray Edwards

Whoa! Graphics over copy? Am I missing something here Ray? Please explain...

[Janus]

Valentine,

A negotiation tip.

Follow this sequence: Obtain firm bids, Select, then Pitch & Negotiate terms, Repeat until you get a deal made.

This way you get the true cost but be prepared to pay some meaningful percent upfront. Who you're dealing with then knows that the job is theirs if they want to take the risk.

A friend of mine was a paving contractor who did a lot of restaurant parking lots and went years without having to pay for meals/drinks. The restaurant guys always wanted deals, but my friend knew that, so he would start with a higher price and then negotiate down to his standard price but now with added perks.

Good Luck,

Pat

[Raydal]

Originally Posted by briancassingena

Whoa! Graphics over copy? Am I missing something here Ray? Please explain...

This is not a statement of ranking. Graphics is one market
where you don't have to explain a lot about what people
can see for themselves. The product is in plain sight.

So if you are getting traffic to your website and sales are low,
I doubt copy is your biggest problem.

-Ray Edwards