10 ways to improve your Copywriter Career

Top 10 ways to improve your copywriter career in just 10 minutes! I checked all Google search results and Quora answers about copywriter tips and how to become a pro copywriter. Below are top 10 tips to improve your copywriter career in 2019. I hope it helps.

10 ways to improve your career in 10 minutes!

1. Set small goals

In order to excel in your career you need to set some goals for yourself. There are various things that you do when you are trying to achieve something in your career or when you are trying to reach a higher hierarchy. Setting up a difficult goal won't help, you need to set small goals which are easy to achieve and which would lead you slowly to your final destination. If you set up a difficult goal, it would increase the mental pressure on you and it would also give you a low feeling of defeat if you are unable to achieve it.

2. Identify your strengths

In order to express the best within yourself, you need to know your strengths. You should always know what your plus points are, which will help you in keeping confidence in whatever you do. There is something unique in every person; knowing your strengths will help you stay motivated and will encourage you to do more good work. But this does not mean that whatever you do is correct, don't be over confident.

3. Connect with a mentor

A person who we always look up to is our mentor. This person can guide you in your various career stages. Your mentor should be wise and experienced, so that he/she can brief on whatever your shortcomings are or what all your strengths are. With a mentor by your side who is from your own career field, you can ask and clarify whatever doubts you have whether it is about your job, your chosen career or certain company insights.

4. Attend career events and network

Always take some time out to go and attend some events, especially the ones related to your career. Find out details of important meetings or conferences, and watch out if your seniors are up with some presentations because those are the best places to learn. Google some career boosting events or workshops. Not only will they help you in your career but such places are also good for making new contacts.

5. Update your resume

Take 10 minutes out and take a look at your resume, see if it is up to date. Skills are developed every day and you are always in a process of learning, so add everything that you have learned in your resume. An up-to-date resume is really essential, because if you are asked by anyone about your work experience or about your skills, then you can straight away hand out your resume to that person.

6. Read various job postings

Always culture a habit of reading various articles, especially the ones related to your career. Reading various job postings will benefit you in several ways. If you are trying to switch your job, you will remain updated with different job openings in companies. Other than that, every such job ad carries a job description which states what quality the applicant should possess. This piece of information will help you understand where you currently stand and what all qualities you need to develop and excel in your work area.

7. Get feedback about your work

You need to learn about yourself, about your work and your performance. Self assessment is important but more important is to get feedback. Question your colleagues, office seniors and all other approachable people about your work quality. Both positive and negative feedback will work for you, but don't let the negative feedback depress you, instead work on those points and improve yourself.

8. Share your ideas

When there is a meeting and everyone is discussing office strategies, listen to it very carefully and participate. If you have any ideas which can actually help, never hesitate to discuss any of them. Always share your ideas with your boss and discuss them, and later, ask your boss whether your suggestions or ideas were helpful. This way, your boss will notice you and appreciate your efforts.

9. Plan a healthy lifestyle

Never compromise on a healthy lifestyle. In order to succeed in your career, you need to be healthy first. If you make sure to take care of both your mind and body, the long office hours wont trouble you and won't give you headaches. Exercise well, meditate, plan healthy and nutritious diets and maintain your health regime.

10. Take a break

Sometimes you may feel down, and a big workload can actually frustrate you. Some signs show up when you are overloaded with work, you start making small mistakes, you feel overwhelmed, get irritated and you can't focus on work. Work is necessary for sure, but these days the heavy workload creates a negative impact on both one's physical and mental health. So when you feel low, just take a break. It will help you improve your productivity. Go places and do interesting activities, adventure sports or simply curl up in a cosy corner with your favourite novel.

So many answers. So little space.

Rather than the writing part, which is fairly self-explantory, let’s take a look at the qualities I have noticed in some extremely talented copywriters I’ve had the privilege of working with.

1. A highly developed sense of curiosity. Not just loving to learn about stuff. But loving to learn about it on the granular level. Really digging deep into a subject. A colleague of mine won an international advertising award because he was the only person on our floor who found a minute fact about the product in a 700-page research paper. He’d read the whole thing. Twice.
2. A broad knowledge base. Not just trivia. Or the latest trends. But a full and expansive understanding of the classics, of history, of the moments that are important touchstones for an entire culture, for the whole of humanity. Remember when Robin Williams would get going on some riff that included Roman Centurions and Mt. Fuji and the Barrier Reef. These writers can not only keep up with that, they can add to it.
3. A passion for getting it exactly, precisely, microscopically perfect. Not close enough. Not almost there. Not just so. But perfect. Most of the best rewrite so many times, they lose count. They kill more ideas in a week than many writers kill in a year. They niggle for hours over a single word, thumb through a thesaurus into the night, then kill the whole idea the next day. One colleague, in the middle of the night, called me into her office and read me some copy. When I remarked that the ad had been published that day, she replied, “So?”
4. A well-developed sense of playfulness (mixed with a smidge of superiority). When your boss gives you “15 minutes to finish that copy or you’re out on the street,” it’d be easy to buckle under the stress. But it’s much more fun to knock that ad out in 10 minutes and take the last 5 minutes to crank out a parody piece that takes his last name in vain 20 different ways. And then give it to him, along with the completed copy, just to show that you can do it. Assuming, of course, that you’re that good.
5. Finally, a love of words. Do you love to read? That’s critical. Love to learn? Critical again. The best writers I know consume media and ideas like whales consume plankton. They scoop it up, sift it out, digest whatever they can and head out for the next mouthful. They love to make words dance, love to create something new, or make an idea just a touch bit better. Every copywriter Creative Director I’ve known has had an office full of books, every one dog-eared and filled with notations. Words make them who they are.
   

9 communication skills that will advance your copywriter career. I checked all Google search results and Quora answers about copywriter tips and how to become a pro copywriter. Below are top 9 tips to improve your copywriter career. I hope it helps.

1. Change is hard. So is listening.

A lot of current research talks about how best to lead and manage change in people and organizations. We naturally become entrenched in habits, especially if they have been successful or rewarded in the past (which is one reason habits are so hard to change). Through a “listen-first” approach, taking the time to learn about the history of a department/team/company that is going through change is a great step in building trust. Being understanding of how hard change can be for people and navigating those conversations with empathy can be even more powerful in leading constructive, effective change.

2. Know your audience.

Take the time to learn about who you are talking to. What are their needs and motivations? Worries, stresses and goals? Talking to the IT people often requires a different approach than the marketing folks. And certainly the needs of your support staff are going to often differ from your boss. Louis Pasteur, the famous inventor and scientist said, “Luck favors the prepared mind.” Taking the time to study and understand your audience is well worth the investment, serves to build trust and often creates future leadership opportunities.

3. Cultivate cultural awareness.

We often think of cultures as groups of people from different countries with different languages, religions, and customs. That is true of course, but if you consider everyencounter as intercultural communication, you become much more attuned to the subtle ways cultures work and influence the way we think, show emotion, react and relate. In the U.S., even geography plays a big part in shaping cultural practices in unconscious ways. People speak more quickly on the East Coast than the West Coast and tend to “interrupt” each other (at least from a West Coast view) more. Depending on your own ethnic background, it might be perfectly fine to raise your voice and show emotion and passion when considering a proposal or idea. For others, that doesn’t work so well either as a speaker or listener. Bringing awareness of how cultures operate and influence you and others is a soft skill and another way to set yourself apart in your organization.

4. Hone your “presentation skills.”

We often think of these skills as something you learned in a public speaking class and use in a formal presentation or speech. Not so. A number of respected communication researchers say that over 60 percent of communication in face-to-face interactions are non-verbal, so honing in on your body language, eye contact, facial expressions, vocal qualities, and how you organize and express your thoughts are relevant and sometimes even critical in face-to-face encounters. Whether you are speaking to one other person or 500, focusing on the micro-skills of effective delivery and organization can make the difference in your success and influence. I’ve seen good public speakers ignore best practices in small group settings (like a job interview) at significant cost. Learning and practicing these seemingly little, basic things and seeking feedback from trusted friends and co-workers on what to work on puts you into a growth mindset and will certainly propel you to becoming a better communicator.

5. Friendliness

Through a friendly tone, a personal question, or simply a smile, you will encourage your coworkers to engage in open and honest communication with you. It's important to be nice and polite in all your workplace communications. This is important in both face-to-face and written communication. When you can, personalize your emails to coworkers and/or employees – a quick "I hope you all had a good weekend" at the start of an email can personalize a message and make the recipient feel more appreciated.

6. Confidence

It is important to be confident in your interactions with others. Confidence shows your coworkers that you believe in what you’re saying and will follow through. Exuding confidence can be as simple as making eye contact or using a firm but friendly tone. Avoid making statements sound like questions. Of course, be careful not to sound arrogant or aggressive. Be sure you are always listening to and empathizing with the other person.

7. Open-Mindedness

A good communicator should enter into any conversation with a flexible, open mind. Be open to listening to and understanding the other person's point of view, rather than simply getting your message across. By being willing to enter into a dialogue, even with people with whom you disagree, you will be able to have more honest, productive conversations.

8. Respect

People will be more open to communicating with you if you convey respect for them and their ideas. Simple actions like using a person's name, making eye contact, and actively listening when a person speaks will make the person feel appreciated. On the phone, avoid distractions and stay focused on the conversation.

Convey respect through email by taking the time to edit your message. If you send a sloppily written, confusing email, the recipient will think that you do not respect her enough to think through your communication with her.

9. Feedback

Being able to appropriately give and receive feedback is an important communication skill. Managers and supervisors should continuously look for ways to provide employees with constructive feedback, be it through email, phone calls, or weekly status updates.

Giving feedback involves giving praise as well – something as simple as saying "good job" or "thanks for taking care of that" to an employee can greatly increase motivation.

Similarly, you should be able to accept and even encourage, feedback from others. Listen to the feedback you are given, ask clarifying questions if you are unsure of the issue, and make efforts to implement the feedback.

 

10 things I expect from copywriters:

1. You are just as responsible for coming up with a visual as the art director.

2. Copywriting is more than stringing the support points together from the brief.

3. "When it comes to" is a lazy way into your subject. You can do better.

4. “We’re here at...” is a lazy way of establishing location in radio.

5. The bigger your idea, the less copy it usually needs.

6. You'll have a better chance of selling your idea if you write copy for it.

7. Read your copy out loud in meetings.

8. Writing body copy often leads to discovering another headline. Or two. Don't put it off.

9. Copywriter is one word.

10. You are a professional writer. Write and act like one.

 

 

If you want to start a career in copywriter you need to do three things.

1)Find a place to get clients.

2)Figure out the process to pitch and follow up with clients.

3)Book clients, deliver work, get paid.

1. “It’s about who you are in the process,”

Mary Lee Gannon, CEO of a $24 million healthcare foundation and a certified executive coach, with over 20 years of experience as a CEO, told me. This could be good to keep in mind as you evaluate the relevance of these tips to your world. It can also provide your “true north” as you make individual choices and decisions every day. That is, you could ask yourself, “Who am I being in making this choice? Talking this way? Taking on this assignment? Performing this way?”

2. Execution is key:

“It’s about building the skillset to get you that job you want in that company you want,” Shamina Singh, President of Mastercard’s Center for Inclusive Growth told me. “They’re not amorphous. I think it’s making sure you’re being very real about how you plot the points….You have to have an implementation plan… Execution is as important as the aspiration.”

3. “Know how money moves”:

Singh advised, passing on advice she herself heard early in her own career from the late Texas Governor Ann Richards. When you understand how money moves, you understand people’s agendas and motivations better, and what they may need from you to achieve their goals, which can help you achieve yours.

4. Get varied experiences:

All the C-level executive women I’ve interviewed throughout my own career – and my career is a testament to this too – it’s vividly clear that gaining experiences across and array of disciplines is hugely valuable, as a leader, and for your own professional development. Even if you stay in the same company, as Mary Snapp of Microsoft has done, or move around, as Shamina Singh has, you want to learn to do and thrive taking on different responsibilities, in different cultures (even a different business unit is a different culture). This also helps you give a voice to different parts of who you are, which is more fulfilling.

One of my clients, for example, has spent 20+ years in one large multinational, and is now growing a new unit that she created over her time there. She would have had no idea 10 years ago that her work every day would lead to this exhilarating opportunity, and yet every choice prepared her for it, even the obstacles she still faces today.

5. Be prepared, get the information you need to make the best decision you can at that moment:

Time and access to the ideal data are not usually on your side when you have to make an important and potentially career- or life-changing decision. Been there, lived that. So, as Singh emphasized, ask yourself, “Do I have the tools and capacity and the data itself to make the right decision?”

That applies to a business decision on your job, such as which vendor to choose in response to an RFP, to whose advice to seek and/or follow in a career choice, to whether to take a new opportunity or a relocation that seemed to appear from thin-air, as I had to do in moving to Fargo, North Dakota to work for Chrysler’s Global Electric Motorcars, a choice that ultimately changed my life for the better.

6. Learn how to thrive within a multi-generational workforce:

There are five generations in the workforce at once today, more than ever before, so we have to figure it out. In order to do so, Gannon reminded us to notice and set aside our assumptions about what people like our parents or our kids (or grandkids) might have as a work ethic or perspective or value system. Instead, give everyone the space to show who they are and what they can do, and to show you how adaptable they are and how they think things through. It’s more important to let people unfold before you with an open mind. Let them and their ideas surprise you.

“Every generation wants to know that the work they’re doing is purposeful and makes a difference, no matter how old they are, what ethnicity, race, male or female,” Gannon explained.

7. When you hit a roadblock, find another way:

Women have had to find another way around the obstacles to their growth that are present as a result of being an interloper, that is, an intruder into an existing system. Men created the workplace for themselves, and women have historically had to contort and adapt to succeed, as Laura Liswood, Secretary General of the Council of Women World Leaders reminded us. What exercising those muscles has done though, is to teach women how to be creative, to find another way to get things done, to build relationships and manage power differently. Obstacles are just momentary bumps or can reveal a detour that can be equally effective, or a better solution.

8. “Be willing to do something where you don’t know what the outcome is going to be ….

Have confidence in yourself that whatever happens, good or bad, you’ll figure it out,” Mary Snapp This is so important to grow your skills, even proving to yourself what you can really do, as well as to find new solutions and breakthrough ideas.

9. If you decide to build a side hustle, check your employment agreement first:

Christina Martini, veteran intellectual property attorney, implored us to make sure we own our side hustle, because our employer may if we aren’t careful.

10. Ask! Ask! Ask!:

Ask for opportunities to speak at events. Ask for opportunities to present at key meetings. Ask for assignments that will position you for a higher level job, so you can prove your potential. Ask for support when you have a question or are confused. Ask for a raise, ask for a promotion, and ask for feedback on an ongoing basis, don’t wait for your “performance review.” This is implied in every interview and every coaching session I have had throughout the years, especially today.