On the face of it, this may sound counter-intuitive.
Why would an online copywriter be interested in social media? These two areas of expertise and interest seem worlds apart.
There is a very simple reason.
Smart copywriters focus on the wants and needs of their readers. Smart copywriters try to see the world through the eyes of their prospects and customers. Smart copywriters walk a mile in the shoes of their prospects and customers before they type the first word.
Back in the days before the web we did this mainly through focus groups.
With the arrival of the web, we could take a peek into the lives of our audience by lurking in relevant forums, reading customer reviews and listening to the opinions and voices of our customers at every opportunity.
For me as a copywriter, this ability to listen to my prospects – before I started typing – was a game-changer. I had never been a big fan of focus groups and similar research approaches. With the web, I loved the fact that I could listen in to what people were really saying. I was getting it from the horse’s mouth, so to speak.
For example, if I was writing an online sales page for a particular line of digital cameras, I could do a whole lot more than just rely on the client to give me information about their potential buyers. By researching blogs, review sites, forums and customer feedback I could get an in-depth, first-hand insight into what people really thought about those cameras.
Like I said…a game-changer.
Well, now we can research our audience in even more detail, and immediacy, with social media.
Think about it. The task of a copywriter is to get into the prospects’ minds, identify their problems or challenges, figure out what they want, and then deliver an answer to which it is easy to say yes.
Social media takes the guesswork out of finding out what our prospects are thinking. Using simple search tools, like Topsy.com, I can find out exactly what my prospective buyers are thinking and saying…right now. And now. And now.
For me, the most important thing is that I can find out the exact language my prospects use when writing about the product or service I’m trying to sell. This language is often markedly different from the language used by my clients in their briefing documents. Business people rarely “get” or use the language of their customers. But when I write in that language, I can significantly increase levels of engagement and trust.
This is why I made it my business to dive into social media several years ago. I wanted to understand it and use it as a means to help me become a better copywriter.
Of course, I soon realized that in addition to listening to what people published through social media, I could also take part and connect with other people who shared my own interests, both professional and personal.
It was then a small step towards understanding that participating in social media was deepening the relationships I had with my readers, and leading to more sales of my own products and services.
And once I was able to understand that dynamic…using social media to move my readers from viewing me as a stranger to trusting me as an honest and authoritative source of valuable information…I was in a position to teach the same process to my clients and readers.
You can follow the same path.
But if nothing else, as a copywriter you need to understand and participate in social media, because you’ll always improve your craft by listening to the real voices of the people you’re writing to.
The better you know your prospect, the better your copywriting will become.
NOTE: I have created a social media training program specifically for freelance writers and copywriters. It is published by AWAI, and you can find their information and sales page on the program here…
About the author: Nick Usborne is an online writer, copywriter, author and coach. Read more…
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