You probably landed on this page after seeing my post on Instagram, which means you’re here to watch my interview on the Build Your Copywriting Business podcast. First of all, thanks for tapping the link and showing interest in the life of little ol’ me, it really means a lot! You can watch the video now, and if you have time I would love for you to read this entire post as it dives into the steps I took to become a Copywriter. Either way, I’m just glad you’re here!
My Copywriting Journey
My journey of becoming a Copywriter has been interesting, to say the least. Copywriting is a very slept-on profession, and it wasn’t until I started looking deeper into how it’s needed for running a business, that I really started to understand the value of the service I provide.
Truth is, every business needs a copywriter and they are willing to pay the price to have their written communications handled by a professional.
As you continue your research to figure out how to make money online, you may run across the term copywriting and wonder if it may be an option for you to escape the corporate grind.
Today I’m sharing the story of how I became a copywriter in hopes it will help you get there faster than I did.
What is Copywriting?
It’s important first to understand exactly what copywriting means, and what’s involved in the job. Dictionary.com defines a copywriter as:
But when you get into it you’ll discover it’s so much more! Ok, now that we know what a copywriter is, let’s talk about what one does. The word ‘copy‘ refers to the words written in advertisements, which can appear in emails, websites, magazines, and newspapers. The person who writes these pieces of information is called a Copywriter.
Full disclosure, my journey to becoming a copywriter came with several bumps in the road before I figured it out, so if you want to skip the mishaps, skip to step #5 which is where I really got the ball rolling — I wish my road would have started from there, but it wouldn’t be my story without everything that happened beforehand, so let’s get into it.
Step #1- Purchase a Virtual Assistant Course
When I first sought out my way to make an income online, my search results consistently mentioned being a virtual assistant, so this lead me to research the term. I learned that a virtual assistant (VA) is an umbrella term that includes a wide range of service offerings.
I signed up for a course titled the VA Bootcamp and started learning everything from starting a business to getting clients, but the thing that held me back was nailing down which services I should offer.
Step #2- Get Discouraged
There is a long list of services you can offer as a VA, so starting out I chose web design. Since I built my own website and a few for friends and family, I thought this was a good route to take. This lead me down a rabbit hole that ended with taking a course to learn how to design sales funnels using the Clickfunnels platform.
This was indeed a bad idea, the course was built on hype, which turned out to be nothing more than a sales pitch for ClickFunnels.
This discouraging realization caused me to put my dreams of being an entrepreneur on hold to get a new job in the mortgage industry, which was booming in 2020.
Step #3- Enroll in a Different VA Course
After two years I tried my luck with a different course hoping it would show me something I may have missed in the previous one. This time instead of only selecting web design as my service of choice, I tried to sell myself as a VA for bloggers/influencers, offering the following services:
- Writing SEO-optimized blog posts in WordPress
- Proofreading & editing blog posts
- Creating Pinterest Images
- WordPress maintenance
- Basic WordPress web design
Needless to say, all the bloggers either ignored me or said they didn’t need anyone to do this work for them because they were doing it themselves. So, I regrouped and tried a different angle.
Step #4- Decide Your Niche
I still wasn’t happy and was nowhere closer to my dream of leaving corporate America and working for myself, but I didn’t give up. I’ve always enjoyed writing, so I decided to try niching down to only provide copywriting services.
A content marketing agency found me on hiremymom.com and brought me on to write blog posts for a few of their clients. This arrangement was ok for a while, but I was juggling it with a stressful mortgage job that drained all my energy, so I couldn’t give it my all and had to end the contract. I knew I wanted to keep going but copywriting would have to wait until I sorted some things out.
Step #5- Learn How to be a Professional Writer
Once I got fired from my mortgage job, on a whim I reached out to the owner of a marketing agency (via Instagram) and asked if her company was hiring writers.
She said yes and I was subsequently contacted by her team to submit an application and complete a writing test. I was so ecstatic to get the job and obtain a better understanding of the type of things people will pay to have written.
This was when I decided to get training specifically on copywriting and join a community of other copywriters where I could share my wins and frustrations with people who understood.
Joining the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy was the best decision because it allowed me to finally change my career. In September 2022, I landed a full-time position as an SEO Copywriter in the automotive industry. In this role, my clients are dealerships and my job is to write the words on their websites. I mostly do content writing which can range from “how to” blogs to vehicle inventory pages. As a result of my success, I was featured on the Build Your Copywriting Business podcast. In case you missed it, the full interview is at the top of this page and will shed more light on my journey of becoming a Copywriter. Although I wish I’d found the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy sooner, I’m so happy I found it when I did!
I can’t wait to update this blog post when I transition to a full-time business owner with my own clients. Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for my corporate writing job but my ultimate goal is to work for myself and have the freedom and income I’ve always dreamed of. I know the steps required to get there and I’m on my way!
Becoming a copywriter might sound like a lot of effort up-front, but the benefits of changing your career far outweigh the initial effort you’ll put in to get started. If you would like a full review of the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy, let me know in the comments and I’ll get right on it!