Thinking about becoming a copywriter?
I don’t blame you.
Copywriting is a highly sought-after skill and the demand for copywriters is only going to continue to grow — by 7.6% by 2026, to be exact.
Plus, being a copywriters comes with world-class benefits such as:
✓ Working remotely
✓ Collaborating with diverse clients
✓ Digging into the human psyche on the daily
Overall, it’s a pretty fantastic career path — and I’m not saying this just because I’m a copywriter myself.
(Alright, I may be just a LITTLE biased…🤠)
But becoming a copywriter — especially if you have no experience — can be challenging.
I got 5 tried-and-true tips up my sleeve to share…
…but let’s get crystal clear on the basics first!
What Is a Copywriter and What Does a Copywriter Do?
A copywriter is someone who creates persuasive messaging for businesses to promote and sell their products or services.
This “persuasive messaging” is called “copy” and it can come in the form of:
- Website copy
- Sales pages
- Landing pages
- Email sequences and funnels
- Ads
- Product descriptions and pages
- Video sales letters
- SEO blog posts
- Case studies
- Social media posts
- White papers
…and more!
But copywriters do WAY more than just sit at their desk and crank out sales page after sales page while high on coffee.
To write high-converting and personality-packed copy, copywriters also have to:
✓ Organize and analyze data
✓ Research competitors
✓ Conduct interviews and surveys
✓ Do message mining
✓ Review marketing strategies
✓ Create brand messaging frameworks
✓ Do SEO research
✓ Create wireframes
✓ Test and optimize copy
✓ Proofread & edit
…and the list doesn’t stop there 👀
The truth is, a LOT goes into writing copy that convinces people to buy — which is exactly why copywriting is such a high-paid, in-demand skill.
It’s both an art and a science.
You have to dig deep into the psychology of your audience and then use your research AND writing skills to craft an irresistible message.
Sounds like something you’d get a kick out of?
The truth is, becoming a copywriter with no experience is a lot of work — but it’s definitely possible (and sooo worth it!).
Here are my top 5 tips to get you started.
Becoming a Copywriter with No Experience: 5 Practical Strategies
1. Learn Copywriting Skills
If you want to have a successful copywriting career, you need to do more than just “be a good writer.”
The truth is, being good with words is kind of a given if you want to become a copywriter — it goes way beyond that.
You also have to become an insightful psychologist and a savvy marketer to arrange words on an empty Google Doc in a way that’ll make your audience feel connected, shift their perspective, and, well…
…make them buy!
To learn these skills, there are many resources out there, from free podcasts to copywriting courses. Here are some of my favorite ones.
Copywriting Podcasts
- The Copywriters’ Club Podcast. Hosted by Kira Hug and Rob Marsh, this podcast is PACKED with valuable info to help you grow your business and improve your copywriting skills.
- Hot Copy. Tune into this collaboration between Belinda Weaver and Kate Toon for good copywriting tips, interviews, and Australian accents.
- High-Income Business Writing. A great podcast with Ed Gandia zooming in on how to find better and higher-paying clients, write good copy and create content, leverage your strengths, and more.
- Copy That Pops. A math and psych teacher turned entrepreneur, Laura Petersen digs into where writing, psychology, and business overlap.
Copywriting Books
- Breakthrough Advertising by Eugene Schwartz. This hardcover is pretty much the Bible of copywriting. It introduces fundamental concepts like levels of awareness and that copy is “assembled” from hopes, dreams, desires, and fears that already exist on the market — not created by the copywriter. Fair warning: this book can cost as much as $500, but it’s worth it if you can afford it.
- The Copywriter’s Handbook by Robert Bly. This book is a great starting point for beginners. It goes over different copywriting techniques and the new edition has been updated with modern copy formats like email funnels, sales pages, website copy, and more.
- Made to Stick and The Power of Moments by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. Not copywriting books per se, these paperbacks are rooted in behavioral psychology and are GREAT study materials for copywriters, marketers, and business owners.
Copywriting Courses
- Copy School by Copyhackers. Created by THE original conversion copywriter Joanna Wiebe, Copy School is an awesome resource that teaches you how to become a better copywriter and master all kinds of copy, from sales pages to ads.
- The Copy Cure with Laura Belgray. Laura Belgray is an email copywriter and the founder of the Talking Shrimp. The Copy Cure is her flagship copywriting course, but her website has a ton of other resources as well.
- Semrush Academy. Semrush is one of my FAVORITE copywriting tools and they have various courses on digital marketing and SEO. These are great if you want to go into content marketing.
Most importantly — read a TON of good copy.
Browse websites and sales pages of the businesses you admire and get on different email lists to see what others are doing well to learn from them.
2. Get Your First Client…
Don’t overthink getting your first client.
It’s easier said than done, I know, but your first project doesn’t have to be perfect — it just has to be something that gets you GOING.
It can feel daunting, but there are quite a few places where you can find copywriting clients:
- Local businesses. All businesses need copy. Like, literally, all of them. Whether it’s your favorite coffee shop or a neighborhood gym, try pitching them a couple of ideas and see if they bite.
- Brands you buy from. If you don’t have any small businesses in your area, think about brands that you often buy from online. Research them and reach out with a pitch — you can look up people in the marketing department on LinkedIn.
- Freelancing websites. Places like Upwork, Fiverr, and People Per Hour have hundreds and hundreds of job postings and you can just keep applying for different gigs until you get one. Keep in mind that these are typically low-paid, so don’t plan to stick around for too long — although some people go on to become quite successful on freelancing platforms.
- Tap into your network. Reach out to college friends, old colleagues, random family members you never talk to…basically, make it KNOWN that you’re searching for copywriting gigs so you’re top of mind for people. You’d be surprised how many opportunities just come up.
Whatever you do, don’t be scared of rejection — hearing “no” is very normal for freelance copywriters. You just have to grow a thicker skin around it 😎
3. …and Build Up from There!
Everything becomes easier after you get your first client.
You feel more confident, you have a glowing testimonial to show off…
…so now it’s time to start getting more and more clients to build a STEADY flow.
Keep searching for gigs, but also start focusing on getting higher-value, better-paying clients.
Here is how to make it happen:
- Build your brand. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, but this is a good time to launch your website or at least start a social media account.
- Networking. Find a community, whether it’s a free Facebook group or a paid membership, and focus on forming high-quality, genuine connections.
- Create partnerships with designers. Copywriters and designers are meant to be best friends. Find a designer who’s in a similar stage of business as you are and combine your efforts to find more clients.
- Start offering referral rewards. Make it known that when someone refers a client to you, they get a certain percentage of the revenue that you make. People become much more likely to remember to refer you then 😅
It takes time and effort to build a consistent flow of clients — don’t get discouraged if things don’t work out on the first try. Just 👏 keep 👏 going 👏!
4. Don’t Stress about Choosing a Niche
You may have heard that you must pick a niche — a specific industry that you want to focus on, such as health & wellness or AI — to become a successful copywriter…
…but I personally DON’T believe in niching down and love working with diverse clients from different industries.
You may decide to niche down later on, but when you’re starting out it’s actually a good idea to try working with different clients to see which ones you like the most.
A common mistake is thinking that if you like doing something, then you’ll LOVE working with clients in that industry.
The truth is, sometimes you just like doing things…
…not necessarily writing about them!
So, experiment and figure out what works for YOU.
5. Focus on Building a Copywriting Business
When you’re a freelance copywriter, you’re not just a copywriter — you’re also a business owner.
Doing copywriting research and writing copy is a big chunk of any copywriter’s average workday…
…BUT, if you’re serious about doing copywriting full-time, you need to treat it like a REAL business.
That means wearing all kinds of different hats and doing things like:
✓ Creating and implementing your marketing strategy
✓ Growing your brand awareness
✓ Staying on top of administrative tasks
✓ Paying taxes
…and more!
The truth is —
If you’re just chasing one gig after another without dedicating enough time to your own business, it’ll be hard to turn it from a side hustle into something more consistent and sustainable long-term.
How to Become a Freelance Copywriter with No Experience: Final Thoughts
My biggest piece of real world advice?
Don’t give up.
Seriously, you’ll probably feel the urge to burn everything to the ground more than once, but this is when growth happens — so stick with it.
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