What’s the difference between a writer and a copywriter?

A writer can tell a story.

A copywriter can sell a story.

That’s why every business needs a copywriter. And this is a very important distinction to make in a highly saturated marketplace full of people peddling the written word.

Finding a writer to generate text for your business is fairly easy. 

They come in a range of guises: SEO Writers, Bloggers, Journalists, Content Writers, Social Media Writers, Technical Writers. The list is endless. And although they each have very specific titles, what they all ultimately produce is content.

Now, content is not a bad thing at all. It’s just another term for digital marketing collateral. In fact, ‘content’ has simply become the umbrella term to describe and collate the various methods of online marketing communications we use today. As such, it includes editorial writing, online advertising, social media, email, websites, landing pages, infographics, and blogs, to name but a few of its more common written forms.

The point is, writers can create content. And when you need your website or your social media channels to push out fresh new material regularly and consistently in order to maintain your online presence and drive traffic, a writer could suffice.

However, if you want words that convince/convert/retain/sell, well, that’s a different kettle of fish altogether.

A copywriter gives you the best words in the best order for the right audience in the most appropriate medium.

Basically, copywriters offer all of the above with interest. You’ll get great content in any form for any channel. Content that convinces/converts/retains/sells. Isn’t this a better investment even if it comes at a slightly higher initial cost?

After all, who wouldn’t want the best outcomes for their business?

Naturally, it’s easy to be seduced by the promise of cheap alternatives.

However, ignoring the short-term impact and focusing on the long-term strategy, it’s better to opt for quality at a premium. Cheaper alternatives won’t achieve the same results. Or worse, cheap writing may need to be revisited, fixed, or improved because it’s not to the standard you anticipated. Thus, compounding the expense by having to engage a copywriter further down the line to either rectify the problems or redo the work from scratch. This should be at the heart of your content marketing plans. 

So, when you’re looking for someone to provide perfect prose for your business, whatever their title may be, make sure they’re a copywriter at heart. 

After all, you know what they say about paying peanuts...