You might not think that becoming a freelance copywriter involves setting up a business, but in many ways, that’s exactly what freelancing is. If you’re planning to make a career out of copywriting, then rather than picking up the odd job in your spare time, you should consider starting your own copywriting business.
Calling your side-hustle a business may have you, and many other writers, feeling anxious, especially if you don’t have an entrepreneurial bone in your body. But starting a copywriting business is much simpler than opening your own restaurant and involves considerably fewer risks, making it an ideal avenue to take for those who want to work for themselves but don’t envision themselves as particularly competent CEOs.
Starting a copywriting business
Begin with a website
Creating your own website is the easiest way to centralise your copywriting business, giving any current or potential clients a base from which they can contact you or learn more. Unlike other businesses, you don’t need to worry about coming up with a name unless you want to. Having your name followed by ‘copywriting services’ is perfectly acceptable and an approach that many freelancers use.
Make sure you have a professional social media presence, as well as a portfolio of your work to link to your site, all of which help to further your reach on the web.
Many websites allow you to have a blog alongside your main site, which is a tool that many businesses have been seizing to improve their brand message and marketing strategies. Not only will you be able to showcase your skills, but you can also boost people’s awareness of your business by using SEO.
Find clients
Having a social media presence will certainly help to send clients your way but, in the beginning, you’ll need to put in a lot of work reaching out to people and finding work yourself. Over time, you’ll become an established business with a reputation, but you can’t expect clients to come flocking to your website when you first create it.
You can find freelance writing work on job boards or through agencies, like Copify, which will help you to grow your portfolio. You can also get your name out there by writing guest posts for other publications. Although these might not pay in the beginning, they’re really valuable in the long-term as you build a solid web presence.