I’ll keep this simple. If you want to learn to write copy then simply pick up a pen or open your computer and start writing words.

BUT…

If you want to understand copywriting, then you must be curious and disciplined.

Copywriting, as a whole, is made up of 6 subjects: Selling, Marketing, Writing, Researching, Editing, and Testing.

Now, I’m going to elaborate a bit in a second, but first, I want to preface this post with a few notes. (If you’re impatient then feel free to scroll down and read the bolded titles.)

When I say copywriting in the post, I’m referring to Direct Response Copywriting. Not the copywriting for TV ads.

Copywriting is a great skill to have. Businesses always need someone who knows how to write copy. And if you write successful copy, you won’t be short of work.

But, being successful at it takes work. A lot of work. Work upfront you don’t get paid for. In order to understand how to write effective copy that increases revenue you need to educate yourself and practice.

So, if you’re asking because you want to pursue a career in copywriting, then buckle up. You’ve gotta be curious enough to learn on your own time and passionate enough to get through the hump. You have to want to be better. Write better. Sell better. Do everything better. Find systems that work and then test the shit out of them.

You must be disciplined with your studies. It’s not some job you simply slap the title “Copywriter” on your resume and voila you’re writing successful ads.

No. Copywriting is a constant state of “How can I make this better?” “How can I sell more?” “How can I improve conversion rates and revenue?” etc.

With all that being said, here’s how you learn to be a great copywriter:

Learn how to sell

Being a copywriter is more than just writing words. You’re essentially a person who sells things through words online. So, naturally, it makes sense that you need to know how to sell.

Selling is knowing the psychology and behavior of your target audience. Knowing who you’re talking to, who they are, how they think, etc, in order to speak their language. You need to learn how to sell online which is slightly different than in person.

In-person you can interact with the people and ask questions. Online, your game has to be tight. You gotta answer all the questions before they ask or simply click out the page or toss the brochure. You gotta lower their risk. You gotta explain the benefits and how it will help them. And a lot more. And moreover, you gotta do it in a way that doesn't come across all sales like. That’s a turnoff.

Get good at pre-intimacy in word format my friend.

Learn marketing

If you’re a copywriter, you’re a marketer. You’re marketing someone's product or service which means it’s your job to understand marketing strategies to align your copy with.

If you’re a freelancer, you’re not going to be handed a project and be told what to do. You’re not going to only write copy. And you’re definitely not going to just sit back and get paid for a blog post.

If you truly want to be a copywriter, you’ve gotta be a marketer. You’ve gotta pitch your clients with how you think they can better market their products and then show them.

If you want to just write words then go write a book or work for an agency. But even at an agency, it pays to know more than just how to sell through writing.

Get better at writing

You get better at writing by writing more. Write everything. Write in different forms: Technical Writing, Poetry, Stories, Blog Posts, Journals, Ads, etc. Write about different topics.

Also, read more. Read everything. Make note of words and concepts you don’t know. Explore them. Get curious and educated. Edit your work harshly. Find flaws. Learn grammar and sentence structure. Everything.

Develop your researching skills

Part of being a good copywriter is knowing everything about who you’re talking to. This requires research. And if you want to learn copywriting you better learn to love reading because most of your time is spent reading from researching.

A very minimal part involves the act of writing. You research a lot, then you write, then you edit a lot. Then you test.

Edit, Edit, Edit.

Read through everything you write and be your harshest critic. You’ll learn to write better if you learn how to edit.

Learn the ways of the copyeditor. Then write and copyedit everything you write. It’s great practice.

Test, Test, Test.

And of course, you must learn how to test your ads and everything you write. You test ads to improve conversion rates. You test stories to improve the emotional connection. You test poetry to improve relatability. You test technical writing to improve simplicity and understanding…etc.

Never stop testing. Always look for ways to improve your work.

And that’s it. I mean there's a lot more, but this is a good starting point.

Final thoughts:

By way of life, you should be a student of knowledge and truth.

You shouldn’t limit your scope of knowledge to just copywriting books. I highly recommend reading everything you can. Books that broaden your perspective. Books that add a variety of color to the mix of your life. Things that are challenging for you to understand.

Don’t stop growing. Search for truth and naturally, you’ll become a better thinker, and then a better communicator and in return a better writer.

Self-education and ambition are the secret sauce to life. Do a little bit to make yourself better every day.

Now, go learn.

Please, can you put me through? I want to do copywriting.

Can I have you WhatsApp number, sir?

Mine is 08104749909.

No one should ignore this post