Copywriting is a skill that can help you in many aspects of your business. Learning it is a worthwhile endeavor, whether you are a business owner looking to write better ads, or wishing to pursue a freelance writing career.
Check out these ideas for you to consider as you are seeking to become better at copywriting.
1. Take a formal copywriting course. There are many courses available, both by mail order and internet-based. Check out the programs by AWAI, Ray Edwards’ Web Copywriting Explained, and Breakthrough Copywriting by Michel Fortin and David Garfinkel. Other excellent courses exist as well. Just make sure those teaching actually know what they are talking about.
2. Many have hired a mentor to teach and guide them. It’s a major investment in time and money, but is a quite normal choice for someone pursuing a copywriting career. On the other hand, many successful business owners prefer to learn it themselves, and write their own copy.
3. Be constantly studying good marketing and advertising. Any good copywriter does this. When an ad engages you emotionally, do your best to dissect it and discover why.
4. Create your own swipe file. It is a collection of advertisements that copywriters study for inspiration and to model their own writing. It’s a good idea to save ads out of magazines, newspapers, the web, mail, or anywhere you see them. You can also buy books with hundreds of examples of successful ads.
5. Learn by doing. As with anything in life, we learn best by doing. Ultimately, the only thing that matters in advertising is whether people respond favorably to what we have written. So, look for ways to quickly and inexpensively test the waters. It is relatively easy to test advertising on the internet. You can pick a product to promote as an affiliate and let people know about it via pay per click advertising with Google, MSN, or Yahoo.
Other ways to test include eBay, Craigslist, or in local classified newspapers.
Just be sure to keep at it every day. Read, write, and discover what works in the marketplace.