Whether you need web content, email copy or something else, one of the first decisions you must make is about what kind of copywriting partner is right for you. In this post, I'll provide some guidance.
I'm going to start with an analogy. You've decided you need your living room redone, and you're pretty sure you've found the perfect shade of Farrow & Ball ('Giraffe Aura') for the job.
You don't want to do the work yourself because:
A/ You don't have time.
B/ The last time you decorated a room, it looked like someone had dropped a firework in a paint tin.
So you jump online (or hit the Yellow Pages if you're old school) and start looking for someone who can help.
However, do you search for:
Painter and decorator, or
Interior design company?
The answer will mainly be down to personal choice, your budget, and your expectations for the project.
Choosing between a 'full service' approach and a sole trader
Sticking with this analogy for a second, you'd perhaps choose the painter and decorator if you were happy with your colour choice and didn't want to spend a fortune.
And you'd maybe plump for option B if you were having second thoughts about Giraffe Aura and money was no object. Perhaps you also like the idea of dealing with a project manager who could liaise with any workers – instead of you having to deal with them directly?
This is similar to the choice you're presented with when deciding between a copywriting agency and a freelance copywriter. The former will handle your project, assign various individuals to complete the work, and perhaps give you a nice little summary of what's been done at the end.
The other will just get on with doing the job.
When an agency is right for your project
In truth, the services offered by many copywriting agencies overlap with those provided by content marketing agencies.
However, what you're more likely to come across is a digital or 'full-service' agency that lists everything from SEO and branding to copywriting and ad campaigns among their services.
The idea is that they have separate experts for each of these offerings – although that isn't always the case.
One of these digital or 'full service' agencies (not a copywriting/content marketing agency) is a great choice when:
You have deep pockets – which may be the case if you're a successful business planning a website relaunch, for example.
You don't have an in-house marketing officer who could manage a couple of freelancers.
You need a full range of integrated marketing services.
You want someone to handle the whole project and implement everything (ads, design, web development, etc.)
A pure copywriting agency/content marketing agency doesn't usually provide all these services – though some do. They are more likely to offer:
Content writing strategy
A wide choice of writers
SEO optimisation services, white papers, articles, social media posts, etc.
They will also manage your project, possibly keeping you at arm's length from your writer.
Another quick word of clarification before we continue: a percentage of 'copywriting agencies' are more akin to traditional ad agencies. They will use persuasive words – often powerful short-form content – and images to sell your product or service. My focus in this blog post is on the 'content marketing agency' type. Complicated, isn't it?!
How does a freelance copywriter compare to the agency option?
There are tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of freelance copywriters worldwide. Unfortunately, there are no barriers to entry – so the onus is very much on you, the client, to choose someone whose credentials and style you find reassuring.
Choosing a freelancer, therefore, can seem more risky than going with a copywriting agency – especially if the agency has a great-looking website that ranks well on Google.
However, it's not usually a laborious process to create a shortlist of potential freelance copywriters whose websites demonstrate a solid track record.
If a freelancer's website ranks well for your search term, such as "website copywriter", they've almost certainly:
Been around for a while
Got a large number of case studies and reviews on their website
Created a professional, informative website
Ticked all the necessary boxes for Google to feel they are worthy of ranking
It's easy to reach out to a few and get a feel for them.
Are freelance copywriters cheaper than copywriting agencies?
As with most things, price is often a key consideration when choosing a copywriting partner. When I did some research, I found there were copywriting agencies boasting prices of less than 10p per word – meaning a 700-word blog post could be yours for £70 or less.
Compared to high-ranking freelance copywriters, these prices are low. The going rate for a similar assignment among freelance copywriters with experience is anything from twice to 10 times that amount.
So why would you ever go down the freelance copywriter route?
One reason is that not all copywriting agencies and content marketing agencies are cheap!
Another is that when you hire a proven freelance copywriter, you're paying for their experience and expertise.
Is this always worth paying extra for?
Not necessarily.
If your website needs to churn out 10 blogs a week to snap up long-tail keywords – and you're on a tight budget – a low-cost agency may be just what you need.
(Your copy may secretly have been written by AI or a relative newcomer to copywriting, but that's another story!)
As I say, though, not all copywriting agencies are cheap. I spent several years working as a freelancer for one of them, and once they'd added their own fee to the not-ungenerous amount they were paying me, the client must have been paying handsomely.
When to invest in an experienced freelance copywriter
This year, some of the jobs I was hired to do took several weeks or more to complete. These include:
A white paper covering a service that hadn't been written about before. The project needed extensive research to build up a background to the story and also to validate the solution.
Complete website rewrites. These involved customer research, keyword research (including an understanding of search intent), sketching out the website to optimise the user journey, trying different CTAs (calls to action), revisions post-design, and more.
Projects of this kind are well suited to skilled, experienced freelance copywriters whose expertise extends to UX, SEO and storytelling.
In fact, I would argue that this kind of project may be beyond the scope of some copywriting agencies – because their writers lack the necessary skills to complete such a large body of interconnected tasks.
Psst! Check out my freelance copywriting rates analysis for 2024.
Summing up: freelance copywriter vs copywriting agency vs full-service agency
Here's my verdict on which kind of copywriting service is right for different types of clients. Feel free to send me your thoughts if you disagree or think I've missed something!
Freelance copywriter
If you choose an experienced freelancer with a good track record, your project should be in safe hands. Costs will likely be lower than a full-service or digital agency, and you'll be dealing directly with your writer, so you can make sure they understand your goals and receive your messages loud and clear as you start working together.
Strengths: good personal contact, variety of relevant skills, may be able to handle the whole project on your behalf.
Weaknesses: not always easy to find one you like or can rely on. In-demand freelancers are often booked up for weeks or even months. Freelancers also usually lack the tools or skills to see their work through to completion (i.e. web design/development, ad placement, tracking and reporting, etc.)
Copywriting agency/content marketing agency
A good agency should be able to match you up with a copywriter with a solid portfolio – and may even provide someone with experience in your sector (though this isn't always important). They will also manage your project and may provide some kind of guarantee if you're not satisfied. Low-cost agencies may be well suited to content that you wouldn't consider to be of critical importance.
Strengths: can be cost-effective (i.e. cheap), and as they have many writers at their disposal, availability is rarely an issue. Conversely, high-end copywriting agencies can be more expensive than freelancers, as they are effectively hiring freelancers and charging an overhead for their own involvement.
Weaknesses: writers may be inexperienced, and, as with freelance copywriters, agencies are usually just a spoke in a larger wheel – meaning you'll probably have to find other specialists (such as designers) to bring the words to life.
Full-service agency
When you have a large budget, an accomplished full-service agency is often a sensible choice. You'll likely have a single point of contact (your account manager), and this person will oversee all your marketing needs, from web design to social media content to the creation of white papers and billboard ads – whatever you need.
Strengths: once you've briefed your agency, you can take something of a back seat while they get on with the work. The best agencies will take care of everything from start to finish, have access to a wide pool of talent, and give you a report at the end showing what they've done.
Weaknesses: the costs. Agencies are rarely cheap – plus, you may find that you're talking more of a back seat than you'd actually have liked.
Written by Mike Peake, UK freelance copywriter and website content writer.
T: +44 (0)208 133 4306