Whether you're an executive or a small business owner, chances are you will have to hire a writer somewhere along
line to create your marketing material. Here is some insight into process, what is expected of you, and how to get most out of your investment.But before we start…
All your written background material please! Rather than set up a meeting, most efficient way to get started is to send all previously written material to your writer. This includes brochures, business plans, press releases, articles, reports and whatever else you can find. The writer will then spend a few days to a week, depending on assignment, taking a crash course on your business. Much like cramming for finals. Then…
Let questions begin! (and there will be lots!)
You are expert, so it's your job to fill in blanks that material doesn't cover. Some questions may seem redundant to you. But remember, in order to create strong selling copy, writer must write with authority about your product or service. And specifics are where it's at.
Here are a few standard questions:
1.Who is your target audience? (age, income, gender) 2.What are characteristics of your audience? 3.What is tone of piece? (friendly, formal, excited) 4.What are features and benefits of your product or service? 5.Who is your competition?
Collaboration
The more open and communicative you are during process, better your copy will be. Hopefully your writer will have nailed down exactly what you envisioned on first draft. But we're not mind readers! Business writing is still an art form and your writer's interpretation won't always be right on mark (although hopefully close to it if they have any talent or listening skills). This is where revisions start. When going over first draft together, it's best to be specific about what areas you need altered. An example of constructive feedback would be "I like this paragraph, but let's emphasize this benefit more". Or, "I want to change tone of this section". By second or third revision it should be 100%.
Trust your copywriter!
You may look at your copy and decide you could have written it yourself. Or you may want to take over half way through process. After all, anyone can write - right? This is a common misconception. You are probably a fabulous salesperson out there with customers. But actual writing part is a different discipline. If you start playing around with a section here and a section there, you risk sabotaging flow and structure your copywriter has toiled over to entice reader into taking desired action. Your writer will know which key words sell, how to write attention grabbing headlines and basically difference between copy that sells and copy that sounds clever but is really just a load of hot air. And how will they have created such irresistibly, compelling copy? By lots of…
