There are many copywriters, as the job title is not defined or protected in any way. Accordingly, there are no training standards that copywriters have to fulfil. So how do you separate the wheat from the chaff?
Of course, there are career changers who can write well, but you have the best chance of consistently high text quality if the writer has a degree in linguistics or journalism. However, you can’t rely on a degree alone, because a degree in linguistics doesn’t teach you all the skills that a good copywriter needs. (More on what these skills are below.) Ideally, your writer should also have professional editorial experience. They may have gained this as a freelancer or in a permanent position, for example, in a publishing house, a PR agency or public relations for a larger company.
An exception to this is texts that have very strict content requirements. The medical field, for example, requires such a high level of expertise that it usually leads to better results if the expert (e.g. a doctor) becomes the author. To meet the highest linguistic standards, the subject matter expert ideally works in tandem with a copywriter. If the above requirements are met, it is quite likely that your copywriter will have the qualities you need and expect from them. These are, in particular:
- absolute accuracy and confidence in spelling, punctuation and grammar,
- the flexibility to write in different language styles, e.g. advertising, factual, sober, emotional, scientific, etc.,
- a quick grasp of new concepts and a desire to learn new things, as a copywriter must be able to familiarise themselves with a wide variety of subject areas,
- knowledge of the requirements for different text forms –– for example, these are completely different for a press release than for a LinkedIn post.
The best way to recognise whether you are dealing with a suitable professional is to look at the references and work samples. Someone who regularly writes good blog articles on food topics may not necessarily be the right copywriter for a popular science article on decarbonisation. But they might be –– so it’s best to ask what kind of texts the writer has already written or usually writes.