I’ve learned a lot in my time as a freelance copywriter, and not only how to spell diarrhoea without spellchecking it (that was a take away from a project writing about IBS). One of those things is that every job, and every client, is different. They all have a completely different voice, brand and objectives. So, as a writer, the first part of the writing process is to tease it out of them.
‘Tell us about your writing process. How do you go about crafting a potent piece of copy or content?’
Usually, a client will give me a brief. I love a client with a really clear, detailed brief, because it makes my life – and the writing process – so much easier. I was asked at a recent interview how I would research content to create a particularly technical article for their blog. It was an area that I knew very little about: accounting and company formation.
Why did they need it?
My background research on the company identified two distinct markets, neither of which were really being served by the current blog posts. My feeling was that they were too technical for a layperson, and very dry to read. They also gave the sort of information that a professional would already know, so weren’t teaching the professional anything they didn’t know or giving them any new information.
It transpired that the client wanted to appeal to the professional end of the market, where the majority of their income came from. But they had asked me to come up with an idea for a technical article, and these were clearly aimed at non-professionals even though the language wasn’t accessible. I suggested that what the blog needed was readability and a combination of news and opinion pieces that would appeal to the professional end of the market, along with updated and simplified technical articles on aspects of company formation and accounts that would draw in the ordinary businesses, and encourage them to see that the product offered was easy for them to use and understand.
Who will be reading it?
This was particularly tricky as the ideal client was actually two different types of business. I suggested that while the technical pieces could be aimed at people who didn’t have professional knowledge, there should be news and personality/opinion pieces that highlighted the know-how, approachability and personality of the company, giving them authenticity and a recognisable voice in their sector.
The specific article I wrote was a technical one, so I chose a subject that plugged a gap I’d seen on the blog.
For other clients, readers might be professionals and so the subject matter needs to be explored at a higher level than a consumer website. For P3 Pharmacy, I regularly have to explore subjects that are covered extensively in consumer media, but try to get a different angle. It can be tricky; I have to rely on PR and marketing managers who have their own agenda – to sell more. Many of them also try to shoehorn consumer-related copy into a professional magazine, so trying to get brand-related updates from them that will be useful for pharmacy teams is a challenge. I interview experts in different sectors, and try to get hold of updates, news and statistics that are relevant. After many years as a journalist, and four years as a student, I’m pretty good at making sure my sources are reliable…
Branding and Voice
One of the questions the accounting software company asked at interview was ‘what do you think about our company tone of voice?’
My honest opinion was that there wasn’t one! I explained that the copy on their website and blog was written by several different authors and was not consistent in either voice or tone. I suggested that as they were keen to present an approachable, friendly image, and prided themselves on the ease of use and non-technicality of their software, that should probably be reflected in the tone used on their website and in their marketing. In reality, it was a mish-mash of different voices and didn’t have any kind of coherent feel about it.
Most clients, especially larger companies, have already got a brand voice in mind, and so when they ask me to write for them, I’ll just use the brand guidelines if there are any, and research their existing copy to make sure anything I write matches it. A lot id also common sense. If I’m writing a description of a spa treatment or a holiday destination, I’ll use different language and style then if I’m writing a medical article or a legal blog post. I always think about the person reading it, and what the client wants them to do. Am I writing an article designed to show knowledge and gain trust for a brand? Am I encouraging a purchase or booking and trying to make the reader imagine just how fabulous they’ll feel after a spa day? With the Thai massage centre, the brief was to reposition the business as a respectable wellbeing centre and encourage more females to visit. With healthcare brands there needs to be authority, and understanding. These are household names and the reader needs to trust in them.
So…there’s a quick look at my writing process for you. Does that help?
LinkedIn says that you need to look for
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Evidence that the candidate seeks to gain a clear understanding of the ask, including the intended objective and audience.
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A strong information-gathering process, especially for long-form content—including necessary interviews, research, data, and insights.
That’s question #2 covered, I think? Question #3 to follow.
…and here’s a recap on Question #1 – ‘what types of copywriting have you done in the past?’
