There are only 5 days until Christmas, so Santa Kim’s quite busy getting ready. But I’m taking some time out to answer the last round of questions submitted by your fellow Copy Insiders.
Let’s get things rolling with this burning question from Edward Asanye, an aspiring copywriter from the UK…
“Hi Kim. I’m just starting my copywriting journey. I have zero real world experience but have done the Copyhour course and a couple of AWAI courses. What is the best way to get my first client please. I’m currently trying cold email outreach. I’ve heard I need to be prepared to send 1000 emails to get a client. I’m prepared to put in the work as I’m serious about this. But do you think there’s a more effective method to get my first client. (And no I don’t necessarily mean easier!) 🤣 Thanks”
Ask any aspiring copywriter these days, and they will universally agree…
We are ALL Edward Asanye
The typical client or company is deluged with cold emails and messages from thousands of copywriters like Edward looking to get their foot in the door. So what’s a more effective method? Referrals!
Get the word out to everyone you know that you’re a copywriter now and are looking to bring on new clients. Don’t make it clear or obvious you haven’t had one yet. Instead, put yourself out there as the professional you are — offering a valuable service for which you’ve invested in training in order to hone your skills.
Surely you have friends, neighbors, former co-workers, relatives, parents of kids’ friends, etc that you can reach out to and ask for referrals. Explain to them what you do (people may not know what a copywriter is). If someone refers a client to you, make sure you send a thank you note or gift to show your appreciation.
You may also want to call on local businesses in person and pitch your services to them. Do your research on them first to see what kinds of ads they’re doing now, and not yet doing (i.e., a lot of businesses don’t have a customer loyalty or referral program but could benefit greatly from one).
This is not going to generate the big bucks initially, but you’ll get some experience and more importantly, samples. You can continue the cold email outreach as well if you like (check out Jon Buchan’s Charm Offensive offerings for how to make your emails more humorous and engaging so you get better results). But having some client work and samples under your belt will also help. Good luck!
Alright, next up is Copy Insider Rome (one of my favorite Italian cities) who asks…
“How can a newbie get so good at copy that you hardly need to rely on tactics and tricks?”
Author Malcolm Gladwell popularized the idea that you need to put in 10,000 hours to become an expert in any field. Now, it’s debate-able as to whether there’s some magic transformation that happens between that 9,999th hour and the 10,000th.
But you get the idea: practice, practice, practice! Write a piece of copy every day (you can give yourself assignments if you’re not actively writing for clients or a job). Some people (like our friend Edward) find hand-copying helpful.
I found when I was starting out that studying and analyzing successful promos was hugely helpful. I already had a good understanding of copy, having worked as a marketer for a direct response supplement biz and publisher and written copy before.
But by studying the types of promos I aspired to write (at the time, magalogs and other long-form copy that offered royalty potential), I accelerated my progress. Did it mean I didn’t write a few bombs once I got my big breaks?
No… that happened, too. And it was from some of my biggest failures that I gained the most valuable lessons, and was able to turn them into huge successes.
So the “sneaky trick that turns you into an A-List copywriter” is to develop a strong understanding of copywriting principles, hands-on knowledge on how to apply them (my Get Dangerously Good Copywriting System is a master class on this topic for all types of copy — use coupon code GDG70BF to save 70%)…
And then PRACTICE every single day until you can write good sales copy automatically, with ease.
Okay, let’s move on to a question from Copy Insider Justus, who writes…
“Hi Kim, Hope you’re doing well! As I get ready to dive deeper into supplement copywriting under your mentorship, I’d love to hear your take on the most important trends in the field right now. What consumer demands or supplement categories are standing out most? And are there any key opportunities or challenges copywriters should be aware of to best support clients in this space? Thanks so much for sharing your expertise — looking forward to learning more from you!”
The best opportunities in the supplement niche tend to reflect major categories of best-selling pharmaceuticals — i.e., cholesterol, bone health, blood sugar, sleep, etc. I cover a lot of this in my Supplement Copy Boot Camp, which I just put together last year, so it’s very up to date (get it here and use SUPP60BF at checkout to save 60%). I know you have this, Justus.
But there are always new trending supplements and categories that become “hot” at any given moment. Right now weight loss is a hot category, thanks to the popularity of Ozempic and other similar drugs.
People are always looking for alternatives to drugs, due to their high costs and side effects (plus who wants to inject themselves with a needle? Ugh!)
Some other key trends include botanicals like adaptogenic herbs (i.e., ashwagandha and ginseng), and mushrooms (I drink mushroom coffee everyday). Generally these are used for managing stress, but also for sleep support, mental clarity, and immune support.
Mood, stress, and mental well-being are some of the biggest categories for millennials and Gen Z. Energy boosters are also becoming more popular, especially in “gummie” form and among millennials.
Immune support is still the hottest category — a holdover from Covid — but mood/brain health is right behind it, and weight loss is definitely right up there. And skin health and women’s health are also fast-growing categories.
According to one industry resource, skin health claims accounted for nearly one in three of all claims in recent launches in North America. And the women’s health supplement category has expanded to not just focusing on menopause, but also menstruation and maternal health.
As far as supporting clients in the supplement space, I think it’s important to help them find ways to identify their key target audiences and come up with the best copy and promotional approaches to reach them.
What works for the older (70+) market is different from what works for the Gen Z and millennial markets. The fact that so many of the fastest-growing categories have high appeal to these younger audiences is important to note and will impact the types of copy, channels, and formats used (testing new approaches is key).
Looking forward to mentoring you, Justus, in the months ahead! (For details about my new Copy Champions 2025 Gold mentoring program and to sign up while “early bird” savings are in effect, go here.)
Okay, looks like I have just a few more here in my mailbag. Let’s move on to this question from Copy Insider Patricia Viscount:
“I have an email question… I write a client’s nurture emails, and we just sent one out, which got a bit higher than the normal open rate. She insists that it’s because she did an SEO search and suggested a title that was a top ‘googled search’ for SEO. I don’t think an email sent to your list needs SEO-researched subject lines. Or am I wrong??”
I’ve never heard of SEO-researched subject lines being a “must do”. However, while this could have been a one-time fluke, you can’t argue with success. It actually makes sense to use the same words or phrases your market uses to describe a problem or unmet desire.
I do this with copywriting research all the time — to identify those problems and desires in the prospect’s own language… and then use them in my sales copy, maybe even in headlines. (I talk about this process in-depth in Research Beast, which you can get here — use coupon code RB60BF and save 60%).
So I recommend you try this tactic for future emails, and see how they do. There are other ways to really get to know your client’s list, like surveys. Perhaps that would provide more valuable insights specific to your audience vs. SEO research. I provide examples of customer surveys in Research Beast as well. Good luck!
Okay, let’s move on to the last question in my mailbag — this one from Copy Insider Greg… who originally wrote an extremely long and detailed question (I think it was cathartic for him to write it) and who I asked to provide a more summarized version I could use in today’s email. So here goes…
“I pivoted to a financial copywriting in house role almost 5 years ago after a completely different career in law enforcement.
While I thought I’d learn from some direct response copywriting ‘masters’, which was the reason I took on the job — the reality has been quite different — no mentoring, no copy chief, to the point there’s little support for direct response inside the company.
Now I feel stuck. I’ve only written financial promotions, and my job is keeping me so busy I have little bandwidth to explore other niches or start a side hustle.
How do I break free? And pivot to something where I feel like I’m developing my skills and I’m not burning out in my current role?”
Greg, you didn’t mention if this a remote-work kind of thing or if you go into the office every day. As popular as remote work is these days, it kind of stinks as far as not being around other creative people every day and being able to soak up knowledge via osmosis.
If you are going to the office each day, make sure you are taking advantage of the opportunity to connect with your peers. But I suspect this isn’t the case. (I learned a TON going into the office each day back when I worked at Phillips Publishing, when it was the behemoth of financial and health publishing).
Financial publishing is a huge niche, and if you like writing for it and you’re good at it, there’s no need to “pivot” to something else.
If you’ve developed a strong portfolio, including some big successes, you’re in a good position to go freelance — though it would be best to line up some potential clients, or ideally a retainer arrangement that would serve as a bridge between your current job and freelance work.
That’s exactly what I did nearly 27 years ago when I left my job at Phillips Publishing. A six-month retainer that ensured me 90% of my salary while only requiring half my time gave me that buffer to start building up my freelance business while maintaining a steady income.
(I talk about this experience, as well as the pros and cons of going freelance vs. having ongoing retainers vs. going in-house as a copywriter) in my Client Badassery Secrets book, available here (and on Amazon’s other sites in countries like the UK, Australia, Canada, et al).
But before you hang up the towel on this company, see if you can’t pivot to writing other types of copy you may not be writing now — i.e., long-form VSLs or sales pages, or whatever the direct response copywriting “masters” are focusing on at the company. That way you’ll be much more likely to get their mentoring and copy chiefing vs. if you’re just cranking out piles of email, ad, and funnel copy.
That’s it for Santa’s Mailbag… it’s now empty and it’s going to stay that way for a while. In the meantime, I hope you have a wonderful holiday season. You’ll probably hear from me here and there… but I’ll be busy with family and making sure my husband continues his recovery (at least he is home from the hospital!)
Yours for smarter marketing,
Kim
P.S. Next week is sure to be a whirlwind if you celebrate Christmas. So keep in mind that those 60-70% savings I mentioned on my trainings — plus the “early bird” savings I’m offering on my Copy Champions 2025 Gold mentoring program — expire at midnight Pacific time on December 31st.
So best to take care of things now before the holiday craziness if you’ve got your eye on any of these programs.