7 Mistakes I Made as a Beginner Copywriter

September 7, 2023

7 Mistakes I Made as a Beginner Copywriter

I’ve been hammering away at the keyboard for a solid 5 years. That’s ample time for a seasoned hand, a bout of carpal tunnel, and a mini-balance sheet that could proudly sport the hashtag #Disillusionment. Is raw talent all you need for writing? Should you write every single day? What constitutes a compelling blog post? Find answers to these seemingly straightforward questions in this retrospective of my grueling journey into the world of Freelance Core copywriting.

I Believed Talent Was All You Needed

It’s not. Writing is, in the strictest sense, a craft, laden with its own set of nuances and intricacies. Practice is what turns you from novice to expert, and that only comes with time. Piecing words together into coherent thoughts is just the starting point, and each hurdle you clear in the realm of copywriting simply leads to the next. A foundational skill for any copywriter is the ability to manage a variety of formats, and let’s just say the online marketing world has more formats than you can count on your QWERTY-tapping fingers. The crucial ones deserve a mention:

Blog Posts – This is where greenhorns quickly grasp the unforgiving gospel of SEO: “Write for both humans and search engines!” Learning the ins and outs of keyword analysis, mastering the art of H1 and H2 tags, understanding the significance of backlinks, and recognizing that a post’s title can seriously impact your bounce rate (measured in ruthless percentages) doesn’t happen overnight. You’ll need to earn your stripes, notching up hundreds of experiences before hitting that coveted momentum.
headlines Just like a compelling magazine cover can make you stop at the newsstand and fork over some cash for a slick read, headlines have the same pull on your smartphone screen. They’re directly linked to whether a customer will open an email newsletter, eagerly explore a brand-new product in your e-shop, catch up on your latest updates, or just take a quick scroll through your social feeds. The content needs just the right amount of punch—too little and it ends up in the trash; too much and you’ve entered clickbait territory.
Social Media Posts – These are a unique category of text that can sometimes be grueling to craft. A brilliantly sculpted set of even just a few sentences becomes unique content that determines whether a client’s ad budget, fed into the insatiable machine of social media, becomes a worthy investment or a cautionary tale. Once you get the hang of things like dark posts, you gain invaluable insights into targeting specific demographics, which is also a gateway to grasping the overall psychology of online marketing.
Claims, Slogans, and Taglines – These bite-sized pieces of text are where the art of performance marketing and the craft of wordplay intersect beautifully. They need to instantly resonate, carry the right tone, and strike a balance between simplicity and impact. I’ve been amassing a collection of advertising slogans for years, using them as a well of inspiration; it’s the pinnacle of copywriting. Once I nail a tagline as spot-on as the one from Czech Ford’s campaign (“Everything we do, you drive!”), I might just treat myself to a Mustang GT.

I Thought I’d Write a Masterpiece on the First Try

Not happening. Every great piece of writing needs to be cooked, stirred, kneaded, and shaped. Then, like a fine French Brie, it needs time to ripen, to settle into the right consistency, texture, flavor, and aroma. You’d be amazed at what a few hours away from the laptop can do. Go chop some wood, and suddenly your mind clears, freeing up mental RAM. When you come back to Word, you’ll see things you missed before.

Beyond fixing glaring errors that go unnoticed when you’re too close to the text, this pause often lets you introduce key phrases, ideas, connections, and unique punchlines. These are what transform an ordinary piece into compelling, original content that readers will want to revisit. Underestimating this process is a costly mistake—figuratively and literally—it never pays off, not by a long shot.

Writing alone just won’t cut it.

Teaming up with other experts—be it PPC wizards, Google Ads specialists, colleagues zeroed in on every Meta platform, or PrestaShop managers—is the be-all and end-all for making your mark in the expansive realm of online marketing copywriting. This sea is teeming with sharks, minnows, and even glow-in-the-dark oddities. What sets one apart from the other is a crucial factor: to excel as a copywriter, you’ve got to be a marketer too. The two are inseparable. While the converse isn’t necessarily true, this interdependence is irrefutable and introduces multiple layers of ongoing pressure.

1. Project Management Expertise – It’s crucial to understand your specific role in any given project, as well as to be familiar with key processes and stakeholders. An adept copywriter needs to have an inquisitive mindset, ready to ask the right questions to the right people.

2. Execution Skills – You need to know the what, when, and how of your tasks, prioritizing timeliness and accuracy. Remember, your mistakes can cost not only time and energy but also have a financial impact on the client, dampening the spirits of the entire Freelance Core team.

3. Keeping Up with Trends, New Platforms, and Continuous Learning – Whether it’s employing the STDC model for post-writing, setting the brand tone, or crafting UX-friendly website copy, staying current is key. It’s essential to be aware of the latest trends and practices, but also to understand time-tested principles. Personal growth through ongoing education, like the Digisemester course, can be highly beneficial.

4. Soft Skills Development – Though we often take quality communication and a friendly demeanor for granted (even touting them on our CVs), their importance extends far beyond what’s on paper. I view these skills as a vital competency set for a proficient copywriter. Over time, I’ve realized that genuine expertise encompasses not just technical know-how but also personal attributes. This is especially true when dealing with demanding clients—you must guide the conversation to a point of mutual understanding.

I thought writing every day wasn’t necessary.

It is. Taking a weekly break from writing can be as detrimental as suffering from a severe hangover; both scenarios result in substantial downtime for a copywriter. It’s crucial to understand that good writing needs a clear mind. Even when I don’t have demanding tasks at hand, I remain alert. My day starts with lighter assignments, like Facebook posts for my most engaging clients. The goal is to achieve a mental state that merges flow, concentration, and a certain level of relaxation.

Writing is, after all, a profoundly creative process that cannot be strictly regimented. There are days when each sentence feels like a hard-fought battle, carved out from an endless universe of words. Then there are days when it would be a shame not to start writing as you sip your first cup of Earl Grey. The key is to maintain a consistent pace, keep the rhythm, and endure.

I thought it was possible to write for 12 hours a day.

Not a chance. Practical experience has demonstrated that there are limitations to the amount of focused writing one can do daily. The term “average” is deceptive (it essentially means that if I have a whole chicken for lunch and you have none, we both had half). A more useful measure is the median. Through my experience as an employee in a medium-sized company, as a freelancer taking on various projects, and as a Freelance Core copywriter, I’ve consistently found that about 4 hours per day is the optimal amount of focused writing time. A substantial portion of a copywriter’s daily workload involves research and topic analysis, gathering materials, or simply engaging in deep thought. It’s crucial to master the art of purposefully switching gears into a mode that Jaroslav Dušek calls “rambling.” This is a mental state where you allow your mind to freely wander without the pressure of focused attention. It’s a double-edged sword—sometimes your thoughts can get stuck in a loop, while at other times, your mind operates like a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting precisely where needed.

It’s worth noting that a copywriter’s typical workday isn’t neatly wrapped up in just 240 minutes. The role is a blend of execution, creativity, project management, continuous learning, and administrative tasks. Even the seemingly mundane responsibilities like tracking work hours and reporting to clients must be woven into the fabric of the daily routine. Keep in mind that these peripheral activities will inevitably consume a slice or two of your overall time “pizza.”

I used to think systems weren’t necessary.

I’ve learned differently. Today, I know that every job kicks off with a precise brief. Client directives, insights, and clearly defined text objectives significantly influence the quality, time management, and delivery of the end product. The initial phase of any collaboration sets the tone for what follows, and shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Besides readability and content value, it’s crucial that a piece of writing has a compelling narrative and flow. Coherence from start to finish is a must. That’s why structure is the starting point. I often sketch out longer pieces first, literally penciling them onto a notepad while creating various diagrams and maps. This isn’t just for in-depth, research-intensive texts like those you’d find on a tech college’s website. Personal checklists come in handy, helping me tick off all the essentials before hitting the “Send” button in my work Gmail.

What’s great is that with practice, these critical processes become automated. This allows you to knock out the majority of the work in a shorter time frame, thanks to this professional routine, freeing you up for pure creativity and wordplay.

I thought it would be a cakewalk.

It’s not, and never will be. The landscape is ever-changing, from evolving formats to a wide array of clients, each with unique products, services, and needs as diverse as colors in an oil slick. Mistakes happen, both mine and my colleagues’ (yep, even us folks at Freelance Core are mere mortals). You know what you can’t do and where you need to level up. The cardinal sin for any copywriter? Resting on your laurels. Do that, and you’ll find yourself sprinting after a train you’ve missed, out of breath and frustrated.

Conscious ego management is vital here. A copywriter has to understand they are not their text, and should actively seek feedback—or at least not shy away from it. It’s equally important not to take criticism personally while being assertive enough to defend your work. Often, explaining the reasoning behind a specific word choice or phrase can make all the difference. I’ve found it useful to attach rich annotations to complex texts, explaining the rationale and meaning even before the client begins to probe.

Being open to recognizing your limitations, aware of growth potential, and mindful of glaring gaps are crucial. These form the foundation for any sort of professional development, whether you’re a paramedic, a hairdresser, or a copywriter.

Mgr. Lukáš Jan Bednařík

Copywriting & Emailing

E-mail: lukas@freelancecore.com

LI: Lukáš Bednařík

FB: Lukáš Jan Bednařík

IG: @lukasbednarik