As a freelance copywriter there is always a pressure to niche. A copywriter can choose to niche by industry type and become a specialist writer within that industry or they can choose to niche by form and become for example, an expert lead-generating email writer or web content writer. Personally, I couldn’t think of anything more boring.
When I worked in the corporate world, I had a tendency to change jobs whenever I had conquered the challenge, and even now, as a freelance copywriter, marketer, and publicist I have resisted the urge to niche because I love the variation of multiple clients in a wide range of industries. I don’t have to change jobs anymore because my range of clients means that I am constantly challenged and intellectually engaged. I tend to be a ‘jack of all trades’, or in modern speak – a multipotentialite - which sounds so much more impressive don’t you think? (For an old TED Talk by Emilie Wapnick all about multipotentialites click here.)
At the risk of upsetting lots of my fellow copywriters, I struggle to imagine how industry specialists keep their copy fresh for each client, particularly when it comes to writing blogs. I can imagine a scenario where a freelance copywriter may have several clients in the same industry, something happens in that industry that every single client wants to blog about, and the copywriter simply rewrites the same blog multiple times using different tone of voice or perspective or angle. Of course, there would be the advantage of subject matter expertise and the speed with which you could churn out the content and I guess there’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s not for me. The lack of originality also means that there would be less differentiation between client competitors, particularly if your clientele is from a specific geographic location.
It's taken me years to realise that I am a storyteller, and that if I have any niche at all, it is that I write stories to build customer relationships for my clients. What I write tends to be organic, authentic, easy to read and hopefully informative. I write with a head for marketing from decades working in senior marketing roles, so that the customer relationship is always top of mind. I try to write content that has a purpose, it’s not robot generated content that is only there to feed the social media/google beast – it is genuinely written to engage the consumer – and surely, if you need to feed the beast, you may as well do it in a way that actually builds relationships or generates sales without constant sales-speak or repetition. My work writing feature articles for local magazines also means that I am an experienced interviewer who can draw out interesting facts and angles to create more engaging content.
I’m now taking bookings for the new year. If you have a story you’d like to tell your customers or the world in general, send me a message to arrange a chat. I write stories and content that can be featured on blogs, feature articles, newsletters, press releases, web pages, marketing collateral, podcasts, videos and more.
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