Writing engaging and valuable copy is crucial to the growth and survival of any brand. Big or small, the words you put to the page matter to your audience.
Strong writing, whether it’s for social media captions or a full blog post, is vital to helping you attract and keep customers. This can allow you to effectively explain services, products, and even your brand purpose in a way that your customers and clients understand, improving sales and long-term retention.
We’ve gathered feedback from two brilliant writers, Vanessa Checchio Lima and Amanda Brashi, to help explain everything you need to know about the differences between content writing and copywriting, and how to write the best content for your brand.
What is content writing?
Content writing, in its most basic sense, is the writing, editing, and publication of content that is used to engage and entertain readers. According to Don Dodds, founder of M16 Marketing, content writing is primarily meant to be informational and helpful to website traffic. When you read a blog, white paper, email newsletter, news articles, etc. you are reading content.
We know this seems broad and yes, content writing has grown a bit over the years, but this is the core of what defines this type of writing. Content writing is there to give you information and, if it is written well, give you some entertainment, too.
What is copywriting?
If you have just discovered that content writing isn’t the same thing as copywriting we can assure you that you aren’t the only one. A lot of people discover the difference when they are trying to figure out who to hire or what they need to know to write content for their upcoming campaign.
Copywriting is going to be content that is written primarily to encourage action. This type of text is going to be made with a goal in mind, such as getting the reader to book an appointment, buy a product, or sign up for a course. Copywriting is going to include content such as ad copy, sales emails, product pages, landing pages and more.
What’s the difference?
Yes, both content writing and copywriting involve the creation of content to be published for your audience, but they are used for different goals.
As explained by Amanda Brashi, founder and CEO of Amanda Brashi LLC, “The main difference between content writing and copywriting is the intent behind it. Where content writing educates or entertains an audience, copywriting sells to and persuades an audience. For example, I’d write a blog post to teach someone about a topic. I’d write a sales page to pitch them an online course.”
Other differences between content writing and copywriting include:
- SEO: Content writing is often based around SEO keywords while copywriting may or may not involve keywords.
- Length: Copywriting is often on the shorter side while content writing may involve longer pieces of content.
- Length of use: Content writing is usually meant for long-term strategy while, depending on your plan, copywriting may be used for short-term projects.
- Grammar: While grammar matters for both content writing and copywriting, grammar faux pas can be used on purpose to create eye-catching copy.
A key detail to remember for writing content and copy
While understanding what makes content and copy writing different, we also want to make sure to address some common misconceptions that you may have encountered about this kind of writing.
Vanessa Checchio Lima is a creative copy + content writer and the founder of Rose Star Co. According to Vanessa, people may fall into the trap of thinking that copywriting has to be boring and content writing has to be on trend. However, this isn’t true!
“Whether you’re writing copy for a sales page or content to promote that sales page, they should both be creative, colorful, and connective to your audience,” says Vanessa.
A crash course on creating top-notch copy
Not sure where to start or how to start creating the content you need? We can help you get those first notes down so you have a starting point. Here are some helpful tips to remember when writing some of the most important copy you’ll need.
Website copy (Copywriting)
The copy on your website can make or break your connection with your audience. If it isn’t engaging or is cluttered and confusing, you’ll lose people. You need to create copy that is clear and highlights how your products or services meet a need or solve a problem that your audience has.
- Keep it engaging: You want every word to count. Make sure your website copy is straightforward, but make sure that you incorporate your brand’s personality too.
- Focus on your brand: If you don’t have your brand guidelines in place, go back and handle those first. You need your brand guidelines to help keep your content in alignment with your brand voice and messaging. You can find more information on building your brand in our blog.
- Consider your structure: “When navigating a website, people take in information following a specific pattern,” Amanda Brashi points out. “A copywriter needs to keep this in mine so they know where on each page to put key information.” The structure and layout of the copy on your pages makes a difference with how readers absorb it so make sure to break it up using helpful headings and shorter paragraphs.
Social media captions (Content Writing/Copywriting)
Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and even Twitter are all the platforms that a majority of people spend a majority of their time on. Make the most of the words you use in your posts or captions!
- Use those hashtags: Use hashtags to your advantage so the right people are connected with your brand. You can check out our blog “Hashtags: What To Know and How to Use Them in Your Social Media Strategy” to learn more about how to use hashtags to your advantage.
- Know your intention: Know what the intention behind the post is and stick to it. You need to stick to the point of your post so that your reader doesn’t lose the point of the content before they finish reading.
- Remember a Call-To-Action: This may not be applicable in all social media captions. However, if the goal of your social media copy is to get the reader to complete an action, make that clear with an understandable and grabbing Call-To-Action such as:
- Attention-grabbing question + how your service provides the answer + Call Today!
- Does this problem/situation sound familiar? + How your product can provide a resolution + Reach out to get yours now before they run out!
Hero content(Copywriting)
Amanda describes the hero content of a website as “prime real estate. “It’s usually the first thing someone sees when they land on a page.” When it comes to writing content for your hero section, you need to make sure every word counts.
- Make it clear: “Because it’s so important, I always say opt for clear over clever, advises Amanda. “To make sure I’m clear, I follow this general formula: Your product/service + who (specifically) it’s for + how it benefits their lives OR a pain point they’re experiencing.”
- Get the point across: Check the copy before you hit publish. Can someone figure out who you are or what your product is within a few seconds of getting to the page? If not, rewrite!
- Make it to resonate with the right people: The statement that sits in the hero section of your website is something everyone will see. Write this text so that anyone who visits your site can not only understand it, but also so that it resonates with your target audience.
Email content (Content Writing/Copywriting)
When you get into someone’s inbox, you want to make that click-to-open worth the readers’ time and energy. Along with the ideas that can be found in our blog “How to Create a First-Rate Email Marketing Strategy” you can use some of these tips to guide your email content creation.
- Provide value: If you are sending any email to anyone on your list, you want to make the content in it valuable. Make sure you are informing them of something they’d be interested in such as a sale or a new album release OR make the content you send engaging.
- Don’t overwhelm the reader: As Vanessa tells it, you want to provide value but you don’t want to send an email that overwhelms the readers with a large number of tasks or to-dos. “Use the rule of ONE,” she tells us. “One idea. One reader. One promise. One CTA.”
- Go back to the basics for evergreen content: Vanessa also advises getting back to the basics when you are writing evergreen content. “Skip the trends,they’re only going to be around for a hot second!” she advises. “The basics are the foundation of your brand; they may shift as your brand evolves, but they’ll never go away. Write about them!”
Blog posts (Content Writing)
Blogs can be where a large amount of your followers or customers get to see the real you and get a better idea of what your brand is all about. While a blog can be anything you want, make sure to curate blog posts that promote your business well.
- Tell a story: Don’t just state facts and statistics. Tell a story that engages the reader and makes them want to keep reading, not just because they need the information in the post but because your content is genuinely interesting or fun.
- Provide answers: When writing a blog, you should be providing an answer to a question that your ideal audience member has or even might have. This ties into providing content with value!
- Break it up: How you structure your blog post counts too. If a reader sees a giant wall of text, they may feel overwhelmed and click away. Break up your content with clear headings, smaller paragraphs, and, if it works in the blog, lists.
Staying on brand
Whether you are writing content for a blog or copy for your social media posts, you want to make sure that you stay on brand. If your social posts sound like they are written by a totally different brand than your website copy, it can be confusing and may actually drive people away.
Keep your brand voice and your audience’s needs in mind when you start writing or typing. “Know your audience, their pain points, and any words or phrases that may resonate with them,” Amanda counsels. “Set up a quick list of brand standards. This could include words, phrases, or style choices (punctuation, emojis, etc.) that feel true to your brand AND words, phrases, or style choices you’re wanting to avoid. Use this list to guide your writing and keep it consistently on-brand.
Creating engaging content and eye-catching copy doesn’t always come naturally. While practice makes perfect, it helps to have someone who can build a content strategy with you so you know what your next steps need to be. That’s where we come in.
Contact RM Creative Services by sending a message to info@rachaelmattice.com or visiting our Contact page to start creating killer content and copy for your business.
Written by Brianna Fries, a California-based writer, editor, bookworm, and mother of two. You can discover more of her work at briwritesthings.com.