Because of Google Fresh, Panda, Penguin, SEO copywriting plays a bigger role in the success of your website than ever before. In the future, this trend will only grow because Google gives preference to websites with large amounts of quality content. And, the better the quality of the writing, the more likely the content is to be shared through various social channels, which also play a bigger role in your search rankings than ever before.
With all that said, more content/SEO copywriting services are popping up online than ever before. So, how do you discern which company will do a better job than the next?
Here are a few things most copywriting companies won’t tell you:
- Some focus more on SEO than writing
This one you can actually figure out by looking at the company’s website. If you can easily tell their home page is highly optimized, run, don’t walk the other way. They’ll write the same way – with a focus on SEO and not interesting, specific, and actionable content. Straight SEO writing still exists, but its value is diminishing, and over the long haul, will completely disappear.
- Anyone can be a writer
This is both a good and bad thing. It’s bad because anyone who wants to call themselves a writer can. This means people who have literally no skill in writing whatsoever can instantly become “writers.” If your company requires straight SEO writing for pages that won’t be found in a website’s main navigation, then that’s probably okay. But, if any serious traffic is going to view the content, it most likely won’t engage the average visitor because the writer doesn’t know what works and what doesn’t.
This works out well because people who have a high natural talent for writing can get in right away, without worrying about having to get a certification or take a number of classes.
- SEO is easy for copywriters
For typical SEO copywriting services, SEO is pretty simple. You give us a keyword or two to target, and we implement it in the content. Increasingly, more of what a copywriter does involves developing themed content. ”Themed content” contains a primary key phrase, and then a handful of other keywords related to that phrase. It gives the content a better chance of ranking on Google for various keywords and phrases. However, many services get too hung up on the SEO aspect and end up creating content that just isn’t valuable for the reader.
- Rates are negotiable
No matter what firm you work with, the rate charged is negotiable and subject to agreement between you and the company. What you get for what you pay varies widely. As long as you are paying in a range that makes sense for your budget and you are happy with the quality of the copy, you are getting a fair shake. You can search around for somebody who charges $5 – $10 less, but you may end up with an unreliable or poor quality service. Typically, you expect firms who charge more to conduct themselves more like professionals.
- Negotiating down only hurts you
Introverts are more likely to be writers, but less likely to stand up for themselves and say what they want. If you negotiate down and your service agrees, you will still likely lose. Because the company won’t be able to make the money it wants, it will have hard feelings. While these feelings don’t get expressed verbally, they come out with lower quality writing. If their prices seem expensive to you at first, work with another firm whose prices you like.
- The freelance world is full of chaos
Regardless of which of the major SEO copywriting services you work with, things get chaotic. Their workflows are unpredictable and because they usually rely on a freelance team, sometimes things can get bumpy. If you find a reliable service, stick with them.
- They don’t like to pick up the phone
Communication for many firms is spotty, at best. If you can find a company you can always count on to respond in a timely manner, and one that takes responsibility for their actions, stick with them. Much of the business world functions through e-mail. If that works for you, great. If you need to pick up the phone, however, the copywriting service you work with may or may not reciprocate. If you find one that picks up the phone, you’ve found a diamond in the rough.
- They use a “swipe file”
The “swipe file” is a collection of headlines, power words, and techniques the company has used in the past. These all get used again in the future. However, you shouldn’t be upset by this. In the world of copywriting, just about everything that can be done has been done. So, even the upper-echelon copywriters use swipe files. Because they know what works, you can relax.
- It’s tough to be unique
This one piggybacks on the previous point. Yes, every SEO copywriting service wants to make your company look unique. But, the fact is that we’re producing the same amount of data every 2 days (5 exabytes, or 1 billion gigabytes) that our entire civilization produced from its beginning until 2003. With that much data being produced, it’s incredibly difficult to be completely unique. But, it’s possible. And, if you can find a copywriter who takes original angles (which may be outside of your comfort zone), you’ve found someone special.
Wise Swans Intrnet Marketing
