A digital marketing copywriter has skills beyond the art of persuasive writing that should make the MarCom project manager’s job a little easier.
When starting any marketing campaign, looking for a good writer is a great start.
Finding the right kind of writer is essential.
A digital marketing copywriter seems like exactly what you need …
But why? What are (or should be) the unique benefits of this particular skill set?
Let’s break it down.
WHAT SETS DIGITAL MARKETING COPYWRITERS APART?
For digital avenues, like website content, social media, and email marketing, you want someone who knows how to connect with a digital audience and inspire them to take action.
At a minimum, you need to meet three qualifications:
- Digital: Understands digital media
- Marketing: Knows how to be persuasive
- Copywriter: Can produce accurate, concise writing
But savvy project managers know to look further.
A digital marketing copywriter should add value to the project in several ways. Let’s look at five.
1. THEY ALREADY “GET” DIGITAL MARKETING
A good freelance digital marketing copywriter understands how to represent your brand via digital channels to connect with your audience.
You should be prepared to provide brand guides and other support materials, but you shouldn’t have to do basic training on how to use them for digital marketing.
Make sure your writer has experience working in your preferred digital channels, such as:
- Websites
- Blogs
- Social media
And how they all work together to attract, retain, and convert your audience.
2. THEY UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF WORKING WITH AN EDITOR
A positive writer-editor relationship (or writer-reviewer) is critical to just about every project.
And that relationship depends on the writer knowing how to follow editorial guidelines and incorporate feedback.
An experienced digital marketing copywriter is comfortable collaborating with editors, project managers, and subject matter experts.
Let’s put it this way: At a minimum, your copywriter should be able to take an edit.
But it’s best to find one who relishes productive input and feedback. That’s gold.
3. THEY APPRECIATE BRAND CONSISTENCY
You and your colleagues worked hard to build and maintain your brand’s voice.
Your writer should know how to honor that voice.
Consistency is key in marketing, so you want a digital marketing copywriter who will adhere to your branding and style guidelines.
Creativity within those guidelines is welcome, of course.
But a complete departure from them is not.
A good copywriter knows the difference!
4. THEY HAVE STRONG COMMUNICATION SKILLS
A project manager’s greatest challenge is keeping everyone on task and on the same page, especially in our brave new work-from-home world.
So isn’t it freaking awesome when people take the initiative to ask questions so they can get stuff done?
That’s why you want a digital marketing copywriter who is eager to engage with other people involved in their project to extract insights when necessary.
Why isn’t the project moving forward?
Because your writer is waiting on some key information?
Work with one who knows how to speak up and ask for what they need.
Strong interpersonal skills can go a long way toward hitting key deadlines with solid work.
5. THEY’RE A TEAM PLAYER
While you want to set a clear scope of work for your writer, it sure helps to have someone with digital MarCom experience who can see the big picture.
They understand the roles beyond their own well enough to consider what others need.
Let’s say you need to retrofit your company website’s home page.
An experienced digital marketing copywriter understands that content can’t be so dense and unstructured that it doesn’t fit with the designer’s vision.
And they shouldn’t assume that all their ideas for rich media, buttons, modules, etc., align with the developer’s expectations.
Your copywriter likely doesn’t have the skills that others on the team have.
But they should understand what others do in the process well enough not to complicate it.
Work with a copywriter who seeks to understand what’s happening beyond their scope, and who cares about the needs of others on the project as much as you do.
AN EXPERIENCED DIGITAL MARKETING COPYWRITER CHECKS ALL THE BOXES
A skilled digital marketing copywriter can make your brand shine if they’ve got the right toolkit.
- They understand digital marketing.
- They know how to work with an editor.
- They can follow branding guidelines.
- They’re a good communicator.
- They put the team first.
Seem like a tall order? Well …
In addition to working directly on digital marketing projects, my team and I are connected with a larger network of marketing pros that can handle just about anything we throw at it.
So if you need help finding the right fit for your project, let us know. We’re always happy to help!