The first question a copywriter usually gets from a new client is, “How much do you charge?” In truth, the answer is: “It depends.”
It depends on how much of my time your project is likely to require for consultation, research, interviews, initial drafts and a final version. It also depends on the level of expertise required to successfully complete your project to your satisfaction.
My process starts with a free, initial consultation during which we will:
- Discuss the size and scope of the project, the goal of the copy, the general subject and tone, the featured products or services, the target audiences, and a strategy for reaching those audiences.
- Identify any key contacts or sources that will contribute to the content, and discuss any photos, images, illustrations, video or other elements that might be developed at your company or through a third source to support the web text. (Please note, I am not a graphic designer and do not pretend to be one. I write copy. But I’m always happy to work with your designer to produce a superior final product.
After the consultation, I will calculate my fee based on the following:
- Research: Meaning, how much research I will perform to gather the content needed to support the copy, including an in-depth review of reports, memos, white papers or other key documents that will contribute information for the text, or any interviews with executives or subject-matter experts.
- Search engine optimization: If appropriate to the project, I will apply analytic tools such as Google Autocomplete, Google Insights, Google Trends, and Yahoo News Search to identify the keywords that are most likely to attract the target audience to online versions of the content.
- Size and scope of the project: In short, I charge more for a 10,000-word white paper than I charge for 1,000-word news release.
If you agree to my fee, my next steps are to conduct whatever research is required to complete the project and (if needed) to conduct a keyword analysis to optimize your text for search engines.
I will then provide a copy platform, which is a brief document that will offer two optional headlines, a lead paragraph, an outline of the remaining text, and (if appropriate) a list of suggested keywords to optimize the text for search engines.
Once you have reviewed the copy platform and returned it with your changes, I will write an initial draft based upon the copy platform and submit it to you for your review. After you return the draft with your revisions, I will write and submit a final version of the copy with my invoice.
The invoice will always reflect the fee we negotiated at the beginning of the project, or that we negotiated to reflect significant changes made in the course of completing the project. Bottom line: I will never surprise you at invoice time.
A few more things you should know about my approach to my work:
- Meetings: I conduct as much business as possible by email, by phone or by video conference. I rarely attend meetings, which tend to pull me away from the writing I’ve contracted to perform for clients, and rarely contribute anything of substance to my end of the project. Instead, I work with the folks who attend the meetings, and who then provide guidance on the project from start to finish.
- Stylebooks: I use the AP Stylebook for copy designed for public relations or brand journalism. For all other materials, including web copy, I use the Chicago Stylebook. If you prefer an in-house stylebook, please share it with me at the beginning of the project.
- Pricing: While my fees are reasonable, they are not the lowest you will find on the web. If you are looking for a bargain price on copywriting, you won’t find it here. What you will find is clear, concise, effective copywriting produced to your specification and on deadline. Guaranteed.