Читать книгу Start & Run a Copywriting Business - Steve Slaunwhite - Страница 14

What does the future hold for copywriters? A lot of work! Most established, self-employed copywriters regularly turn down work. In fact, on the day I’m writing this, I had to turn down an assignment from a potential client because I was just too busy. I hate doing this because every business thrives on new clients (and turning them down makes me feel pretentious). But my current clients always come first.

Of course, I’m not immune to slow times and dips in business activity. No self-employed copywriter is. But you can rest assured there is a high demand for writers who can craft persuasive words, sentences, and paragraphs for effective advertising and marketing materials. If you’re dedicated to learning the required skills and you can actively identify and attract clients, there is little reason why you won’t be a busy professional for years to come.

There are a number of reasons why the demand for good copywriters is so high:

• Continuous need for copy. Businesses have an ongoing need to develop ads, brochures, websites, sales letters, press releases, articles, newsletters, and other collateral to promote their products and services. Business people often don’t have the time, inclination, or skills to write the copy themselves, so they “outsource” to self-employed copywriters.

• The growth of the Internet. The growth of the Internet has created a new market for copywriters. When the medium first emerged, many people thought the days of printed brochures and direct-mail promotions were over. But did television replace radio, or even motion pictures? Hardly. These days, when I get an assignment to write a brochure, I get a second assignment to write copy for the website. In fact, developing content and writing copy for websites is now an important part of my business.

• Shorter life cycles for materials. The lifespan of sales and marketing materials has shrunk. This means more work, more often, from the same client. A few years ago, a brochure for an industrial gizmo would have had a useful life of five years. Now, it’s trashed and redone within six months. (I wrote a series of brochures for a software company just seven months ago, and recently received an assignment to update every one.) Today’s market moves fast, and customers want to see fresh, up-to-date material.

• Downsizing of big business. There was a time when many corporations and most ad agencies employed in-house writers. Those days are gone. After years of downsizing, businesses routinely farm out copy to freelance professionals (that’s us) because they don’t have the internal resources to handle the workload. Yes, downsizing has motivated many formerly employed copywriters to set up shop, which has increased competition. But the demand for copywriting services has outpaced available copywriters by a wide margin.

• Writers don’t know about the market. There just aren’t enough copywriters on the market to handle the demand. The reason? I suspect many prospective writers don’t appreciate the potential of this business, or have little knowledge of copywriting in general.