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What are copywriting rates in Uk ?

by BucksLeafletDistribution
17 replies
Hi
I create sales letters for my company and I`m thinking about doing it for other people .
What would be the best rate as the beginner in UK ?
#copywriting #rates
  • Profile picture of the author BucksLeafletDistribution
    I`m thinking about anything between 30 - 40 GBP per hour or 200 -250 per day

    or maybe a bit lower flat fee + success fee if customers campaign cause increased sales..
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  • Profile picture of the author markfb
    I use 2 UK based copywriters, both very good but their average rate is a minimum of £250.00 per day. Their work is always completed within agreed time scales and worth every penny.
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    • Profile picture of the author Stephen Root
      Originally Posted by markfb

      I use 2 UK based copywriters, both very good but their average rate is a minimum of £250.00 per day. Their work is always completed within agreed time scales and worth every penny.
      Can you PM me the contact info for those guys?
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  • Profile picture of the author EvanDnl
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    • Profile picture of the author jimbo13
      Ugh?

      I employ you to write me a letter. We agree on a price and realistic time frame.

      How long you take is down to you. 1 hour because you already have a very, very similar success letter in your files that needs minor adjustment or right up to the deadline.

      What do I care? I am not paying you for that reason.

      There is no day rate or hourly rate.

      That is it.

      Dan

      PS: Just off to see if England can beat Italy so don't expect any response from me until tomorrow if you ask me something. Have fun.
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  • Profile picture of the author staceythewriter
    I am not certain, but I recently had a guest post something on my blog, and he is a supporter of Yellowcatrecruitment.co.uk which may be able to shed some light on the subject.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mark Andrews
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      For a seasoned pro £45 - £75+ per hour depending on where you live. London & SE rates obviously are much higher than other parts of the country.

      However, you're a beginner, so I guess it comes back to how much you value your time.

      Obviously the higher you pitch you better have the cahoonas to back it up.

      You'll need to justify your price point and with zero credibility / teeth in the game, you'll be hard pushed to go in too high unless you know something we don't.


      Mark Andrews
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  • Profile picture of the author allmyposts
    No idea at all ..
    Unless you are a professional who can write very well, forget free-lancing!!
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  • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
    it doesn't matter if you're in the UK, US, or anywhere else... you can almost charge what you want... and get it, if you "frame it" the right way.

    and by framing it, i mean showing value and return on investment.

    Like John Carlton said, true salesmanship has no regard for price.

    How many sales pages have you seen that wouldn't get you to buy a $20 product, but
    I'm sure we've all seen sales pages selling a high price product that we wanted.

    the difference is the end result value and benefit of it.

    if the return on investment is going to be greater, we're willing to spend more up front.

    so, as a copywriter, the way to increase your fees and charge almost anything you want is to frame it as an investment.

    what i do is, i find other letters i've done in the market and i try to find out how much in sales that letter has made.

    then, when i speak with a prospect, i say " this letter was $5,000 for my client and he has made $245,000 with it so far and it's still bringing in sale"

    see how you frame it with the money made, so the up front investment seems small.

    for me, pricing is never set in stone, i don't list prices anywhere because all clients have different needs.

    but if you can show the prospect that your fee of $______ made other people $______ in return, they will pay a lot. its the difference between elance copywriters making $10 an hour and Gary Bencivenga making $25,000 per letter plus royalties.

    it's all in the perception about end results and the money made on the investment.
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  • Profile picture of the author ThomasOMalley
    Look for a schedule of fees for various copywriting assignments.

    Research UK copywriting sites etc.

    I highly recommend that you charge a flat fee from the start....successful copywriters don't charge by the hour.
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  • Profile picture of the author ZahraBrown
    I read that new copywriters start at £150-£200 per day. Since you're freelance, I'd go to AT LEAST £200 to cover your expenses. Also, you've got experience, so you've more than shown your 'worth'.

    Work out how much you want/need to earn a year and work backwards to get the hourly rate. Multiply your hourly rate by the time it takes to write the sales letters and charge that.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mark Andrews
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      Originally Posted by ZahraBrown View Post

      I read that new copywriters start at £150-£200 per day.
      £200 x 5 days a week = £1,000 per week x 52 weeks = £52,000 p/a.

      Show me one newspaper ad in the UK where they're paying £52,000 per annum for copywriters new to the game.

      Fact is beginners usually start at £13,000 - £15,000 per annum not £52,000 which is only paid at the senior copywriting level.

      £15,000 is £300 per week or £60 per day.


      Mark Andrews
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  • Profile picture of the author Mark Pescetti
    What are you worth?

    Can you craft converting copy?

    Can you make me money?

    If so, put a number on your worth.

    If you can't produce... why should I pay you anything?

    Mark
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    Do you want a 9 figure copywriter and biz owner to Write With You? I'll work with you, on zoom, to help write your copy or client copy... while you learn from one of the few copywriters to legit hit 9 figures in gross sales! Discover More

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    • Profile picture of the author arfasaira
      This might prove helpful for anyone wondering how much to charge...

      How Much to Charge for Web Copy Projects

      and also:

      Set Your Fees With Confidence – and Get Paid What You're Worth

      PS - Mark and Shawn have it spot on - framing and setting fees based on VALUE rather than an hourly rate is the ONLY way you should charge.
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      • Profile picture of the author copyassassin
        Originally Posted by arfasaira View Post


        PS - Mark and Shawn have it spot on - framing and setting fees based on VALUE rather than an hourly rate is the ONLY way you should charge.
        arfasaira,

        Are you suggesting a copywriter base their fees on the results they produce?

        Because, as a business owner, I really don't care about "value". I care about ROI. I care about lifetime customer value. I care about acquisition cost per lead/sale. I also care about the professionalism aspect; its way important too. I care about responsiveness.

        But mostly, I care about acquiring new clients for a fraction of the LCV.

        And I ask because, and this has been covered so many times, most copywriters think the idea of performance based pay is "bad".

        Could you explain what you mean by "fees based on VALUE"?
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        • Profile picture of the author arfasaira
          Originally Posted by copyassassin View Post

          arfasaira,

          Are you suggesting a copywriter base their fees on the results they produce?

          Because, as a business owner, I really don't care about "value". I care about ROI. I care about lifetime customer value. I care about acquisition cost per lead/sale. I also care about the professionalism aspect; its way important too. I care about responsiveness.

          But mostly, I care about acquiring new clients for a fraction of the LCV.

          And I ask because, and this has been covered so many times, most copywriters think the idea of performance based pay is "bad".

          Could you explain what you mean by "fees based on VALUE"?
          If a client hires you for $2000 to write a sales letter which pulls in $50,000, the real value of the letter is $50,000 - and if the same client hired you again and you asked for $10,000 to write a letter, do you think the client would say it was too much knowing what massive value they could get in return?

          How else do you think A-list copywriters are charging £25,000 plus for a letter and getting it?

          Of course, it also depends on whether or not the client is a shrewd marketer, has an ace product, a genuinely hungry (and targeted) market of buyers and a responsive, red-hot list.

          Let me tell you something, I've worked with agencies who've SACKED their copywriters for the poor quality of work they've produced...they've given no value to the client and ended up being a liability.

          One such agency fired THREE copywriters in quick succession before hiring me TWICE for a highly prestigious investment portfolio...and the second time they hired me, they paid me three times what they originally paid me for the first project

          And you have to remember that those copywriters who charge a lot of money also consult with their clients and are key players in the positioning of a product and the marketing. They don't just write to sell, but they give their wonderful expertise to create powerful marketing campaigns which get results.

          I recently went to a take away in London near Heathrow. It was a small, quiet and unassuming place - nothing special at first glance...however, their attention to detail and level of service astounded me!

          Complimentary snacks as starters, tropical fruit platter at the end of the very delicious meal, superb service with a smile and when we left, they packed a box of sweet pastries as a thank you for coming! Was the meal expensive?

          No, but the value they delivered was exceptional. Would I go again and pay double or triple for the same meal? Absolutely.

          The way I look at it is this, if you get way more than you expected and paid for, that's where the real value is.
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          • Profile picture of the author copyassassin
            arfasaira,

            Not only are we geographically far from each other, but philosphically as well.

            If a client hires you for $2000 to write a sales letter which pulls in $50,000, the real value of the letter is $50,000
            I disagree.

            Without knowing cost/lead, cost/sale, LCV, sales price, cost to fulfill order, opportunity cost,... this quote is meaningless to me.

            Profit=Sales-Cost. If a letter brings in $50,000, costs $100,000 fulfill, you just lost $50,000.

            Also, value is about relationship. Comparing one thing to another. Without this comparison, it is impossible to establish value.

            How else do you think A-list copywriters are charging £25,000 plus for a letter and getting it?
            Because they convert better by a couple standard divesations. Because they are professional. Because they are in demand (opportunity cost). Because they increase ROI at an acceptable rate comparable to other copywriters.


            Of course, it also depends on whether or not the client is a shrewd marketer, has an ace product, a genuinely hungry (and targeted) market of buyers and a responsive, red-hot list.
            Agreed.

            One such agency fired THREE copywriters in quick succession before hiring me TWICE for a highly prestigious investment portfolio...and the second time they hired me, they paid me three times what they originally paid me for the first project
            Without knowing what you charged vs what they charged; without knowing your conversion rate vs their conversion rate... no real statement of value can be discerned.

            And you have to remember that those copywriters who charge a lot of money also consult with their clients and are key players in the positioning of a product and the marketing. They don't just write to sell, but they give their wonderful expertise to create powerful marketing campaigns which get results.
            And what is that worth?

            What dollar amount this that worth? What would it cost to hire another person for that purpose?

            THAT amount what be the "value" amount assigned to that task.

            The way I look at it is this, if you get way more than you expected and paid for, that's where the real value is.
            I need to really think about this one. I kinda see your point. I kinda agree.

            But this still doesn't answer the "fees based on value".

            Now, this might be my "accounting brain", but I still see no logical reason why are charge what you charge.

            If you were to say:

            "My conversation rates are better than average of X%, my work product is produced faster by X%, my clients enjoy working with me more than X%, if you added up all the "hats" I bring to the table I save you $x,xxx.xx, and this is why I change $XX,XXX."...

            ...I could understand that.

            But again, "value" is about relationship. About comparison. It MUST be explained in order to be validated.

            And most importantly, AT ALL LEVELS OF SCALE, ROI & LCV should be considered #1 & #2 in making a decision.
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  • Profile picture of the author sea queen
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    • Profile picture of the author JakeDaly
      Hmm. I agree somewhat with both Arfa and copy assassin on this one. If you show up at the hospital needing immediate heart surgery, the heart surgeon doesn't say "Well, I'm going to save your life.. so $100,000* sounds good, doesn't it? I mean, I'm saving your life.."

      Copywriters provide a service that makes people more money, that much is true. But assuming we should get a SIGNIFICANT portion of the money that our talents helped generate for the client is a bit off. I mean, there are probably a half dozen great copywriters here on the WarriorForum that do leverage their talent and marketing abilities to get a chunk of the $50,000 that was generated off of the letter..but simply because we're in the business of words and we're good at twisting them, we shouldn't assume that a good portion of the proceeds built off of their business and their customers belongs in our pocket.

      *Even though, charged to either you or the insurance company, open-heart surgery does cost upwards of $100,000. Whatever.. point still stands.
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