What Exactly Is A Copywriter ? Options

[webprofessor]

I am looking for a writer and I am a little baffeled by all the titles.

Copy Writer ?
Technical Writer ?
Creative Writer ?

arhg !! A monkey could write better than me usually so in all likelyhood this doesn't matter what I choose; but could someone clarify the differences for my poor programmer brain ?

[qwerty]

A copywriter writes advertising copy. In the context of websites, they write pages that sell and make use of keywords in an unobtrusive way.

A technical writer usually writes things like help files and user manuals for applications or equipment.

A creative writer writes fiction (I think).

[Jill]

Yeah, that would pretty much be how I would sum it up too.

There's also people like me who write articles and stuff, but who aren't copywriters.

To be a copywriter, you have to be able to distill lots of information about stuff you may not have otherwise known about, and be able to write about it. I can only write about stuff that I know a lot about.

I do think I've learned a lot about copywriting from the writers I've worked with over the years, that I probably could be a copywriter if I wanted to, but it's not something I'd be interested in.

Now, technical writing, that I would find interesting. For that you have to be able to take the complicated and put it into words that the average person can understand. That's right up my alley! I think years ago my Dad used to do some technical writing so it's in my genes!

[Karri]

I am glad someone asked this question.

Would you all consider someone who writes not just headlines or sales copy but who also writes "content" for a site to be a "copywriter"? It's semantics but obviously it is confusing to people. I tend to sell myself as both a "writer" and a "copywriter."

Interesting.
Karri

[Jill]

Would you all consider someone who writes not just headlines or sales copy but who also writes "content" for a site to be a "copywriter"? It's semantics but obviously it is confusing to people.

It is confusing! I'm really not sure what the official definitions are. To me, writing articles isn't really copywriting, and I guess it depends on what your content is. But it's just an opinion thing with me.

The dictionary.com definition of copywriter is "One who writes copy, especially for advertising."

[torka]

As one who's done both copywriting and technical writing at one time or another, here's my (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/penny.gif) :

I usually think of copy as writing intended to persuade the reader to take some action, whether that be contribute to a good cause, click on a link, buy a product, take a survey, vote for your candidate, whatever. There's an element of bias in copywriting -- it's not about the impartial presentation of all the pros and cons or simply an explanation of all the "how-to's".

This is not to say that copy can't also impart information. An article can be largely informational, but if the ultimate point of the writing is to motivate people to do something, it's copy, and the person who wrote it is a copywriter.

Now, whether or not they're a good copywriter would be an entirely different question. (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

Strictly informational writing (no element of persuasion at all) would usually be best done by a technical writer, IMHO. (Technical writing doesn't necessarily imply "technology", so it isn't just software user guides and online help -- a recipe book, for instance, is also an example of technical writing, even though it may have nothing to do with using anything more "high-tech" than a backyard grill.) Technical writing is the reasonably unbiased presentation of factual information, whether it's a set of "how-to" instructions for a DIY home-repair project, the drug interaction guide for a new prescription medication, or your grandmother's famous chocolate-chip-cookie recipe.

As with copywriters, there are good technical writers and there are, uhm... "not so good" technical writers out there.

MHO: a lot of web content is closer to technical writing, when the site owner would be better off (and would see more sales) if they'd lean more toward copywriting. (Nothing wrong with imparting information, but do so in the context of motivating people to buy your product or sign up for your service. Don't just create "informational articles" for the sake of having "more content" on your site.)

My (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/penny.gif) YMMV (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

--Torka (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/mf_prop.gif)

[Jill]

I wonder though, if there's another word for that type of writher, beyond technical writing? Something like "informational writing" or something?

I still think of manuals and that sort of thing as technical writing.

[Karri]

I think it is too sweeping a generalization to say writing is either technical or "copy." For example, writing an article or ebook about small business marketing is informational, entertaining (if it is well written), and will persuade the reader to take action in some way (even if that action is not to buy something). On the other hand, the style used to write a grant proposal will be completely different, yet a grant proposal must both inform and persuade without being literary. The article will likely be more "literary" in style.

I think there is "sales" copy and then there are many other types of "copy." Here is an interesting juxtaposition to show how we take one word and create various connotations (from The Merriam Webster Dictionary):

1) copy editor: one who edits newspaper copy and writes headlines; also: one who reads and corrects manuscript copy in a publishing house
2) copywriter: a writer of advertising copy

In each of these definitions, "copy" can be taken to mean very different things, not just sales.

Another one that comes to mind: What about academic writing? If I write a thesis paper, I am writing to persuade but the content is (or should be) very fact based.

More semantics! Language is perhaps too intertwined with the dynamics of culture to give a word like this static definition. So, back where we started.
Karri

[webprofessor]

I don't really care about finding the most correct word.

I just want to know what to ask for when I purchase services. From the lack of consensus I gather there is no real definition that fits. I will just search for all of the above and run my project by the writers for their reaction.

[qwerty]

What is it you want this writer to write? There are certainly more specializations than those three categories. I know there are sites where writers bid for gigs writing blog posts, and that alone is bound to involve a number of different kinds of writers, depending on what the blog's about.

But if you're looking for someone to write optimized copy for a commercial website, I'd look for a copywriter with online experience, as that's a skill that differs significantly from that of someone who writes copy for radio ads.

[webprofessor]

I am looking for a writer to produce copy covering basic financial topics. I have a topic list and some notes for them to work with initially. The copy does not need to be "optimized".

It just needs to be short and informative but most of all written better then if it was done by me.

[torka]

Grant and proposal writing is a specialty unto itself, with it's own styles and writing conventions. Not usually applicable to web site writing, though, as most grant application proposals aren't posted online for public view, which is why I didn't include it in my admittedly simplistic analysis above. (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

webprofessor, IMHO, the question is: do you want copy (i.e. is this information supposed to sell something or motivate some action)? Or do you want to simply impart information? It really depends on the kind of site on which the articles are going to be posted.

For instance, if you want to tell people about the different kinds of life insurance contracts or explain how the stock market works, you'd probably want a technical writer. In essense, you would expect that people would read these articles, think to themselves, "Hmm, I feel better-informed now," and move on. For a non-commercial educational site, this would potentially be appropriate.

For commercial-oriented sites, though, the objective is usually a little different. If you want to tell people about different kinds of life insurance contracts -- and then get them to give you their contact info so you can pass it along as a lead to an insurance agent... or you want to explain how the stock market works -- and then get the reader to sign up with your brokerage house -- you'd probably want a copywriter. If the writer does his/her job, people reading these article would think, "Hmmm, I feel better-informed now. I see why I might need the services/products this site offers, and I need to click this button/follow this link to purchase/sign up/find out more."

Depending on what you want people to do after they've read the article, a good writer will take a different approach to presenting the material. Whatever kind of writer you hire, be sure to let them know not only what you want the article to be about, but what you want the next action of the article's readers to be.

My further (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/penny.gif) (I've got a lot of spare change lying around today, apparently)

--Torka (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/mf_prop.gif)

[webprofessor]

Torka by your definition I would want a technical writer.

I am playing the adsense game, so I am not concerned about selling.
Just clicks.

[copywriter]

By my definition, webprofessor, you want a copywriter. Just be sure to ask the copywriter if he/she has done work like the type you're looking for before. You might also want to see some samples. Sounds like you pretty much want an article rather than sales copy.

Everyone so far is right. There are all sorts of writing and copywriting and only a few have been named here. Many times, the talents overlap. (Torka saying she writes ad copy and does technical writing, for example.)

(As an aside, my definition of "technial writing" also means writing manuals, etc., Jill, but nobody asked me (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/cry.gif) )

Let's not forget to add to the list:

Corporate Writers (annual reports, etc. (YUCK!))
Business Writers (business plans and so on (also YUCK!))
Catalog Copywriters
SEO Copywriters
Web Copywriters
SEO Catalog Copywriters (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/thinking.gif)
Broadcast Copywriters
and the world turns (IMG:http://www.highrankings.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/mf_type.gif)

My hat's off to grant writers. Now there's a real chore!

[qwerty]

SEO Copywriters
Web Copywriters
SEO Catalog Copywriters

Three different categories?? I would have stuck those three duties into one (ie, Karon). In fact, I mentioned you just today when I was talking to someone who's going to need someone to write the copy for his website's product descriptions.

So Karon, are you or are you not an SEO Catalog Copywriter?