Know-How Exchange : Copywriting

Hi Turqiz my sistah,

Of course there are many criteria for price of which a great deal has to do with who you are in the marketplace and how well known you are for what you do.

But deals are also contingent upon what the client is willing to pay and what you might be willing to accept in some cases I'm sure. I was just online this morning examining this same topic and there is a wealth of advice on google about it. https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=what+do+copywriters+charge+for+copywr...

I've seen some price ranges online that go from $90-$150. But I'd be more than happy to help you pull some info online if you need me. Please let me know. Remember our only real problem in life is our failure to be "MORE Creative" than we’ve ever been. If you “Invent” your opportunity YOU WILL most definitely create your future. I'm only an email away from you if you need my help. Is there anything else I can do for you?

Your Servant, Deremiah, *CPE (Customer Passion Evangelist)

I have varying rates for copy writing.

When I'm writing an ad, I may choose to waive any fees and charge a percentage of sales generated. This can reduce the initial cost to the client and lower their risk. If I write an ad that does not perform, my fee is greatly reduced and I take a loss. If I write a killer ad that drives sales, I may become expensive compared to an hourly fee, but the client gets a bigger and better sales. Pay for performance is not often used, but is fun! :-)

Its a different thought, and one I hope you include in your research. Email me via my profile if you have questions.

Darcy Moen
Customer Loyalty Network

Hi Turqiz

Well, here in Bangladesh and also in Nepal (from my experience), usually copy writers are tagged with creative/ad agencies. as a result you hardly see any free-lance copywriter and separate charge for copywriting as such, rather its all bundled together for creating an ad.

creative/ad agencies charge variously for creating new ads (i am talking about non-electronic). here in Bangladesh (and also in Nepal), price of ad/creative is dependant on size of the ad, medium (like press, OOH, BTL etc.) and also varies from agency to agency. MNC agencies like Grey, JWT etc. charge a premium over local agencies.

the average price ranges from US$ 200 to 250 for OOH design while for press its based on the col-in size of the ad and there are slabs for various size range.

foe example there is a price for a new ad in the size range of 30 to 40 col-in while there is another price range for 40 to 60 col-in size and beyond. And there is special price of full-page and half page ad size.

hope this helps, should you have any query please contact me via my profile.

cheers!!

Hi Turqiz - I used to hire copywriters in the corporate world (financial services) as a director of marketing communications. I then started a company that provides these and other marketing services - so I can address this from both sides.

When did I hire copywriters:
1. when my team of writers was over capacity with projects. We often had peak periods where we needed temporary help but not enough to hire someone full-time. Often I couldn't hire additional writers even if I wanted to because of efforts to keep headcounts down. Outsourcing was the perfect solution.

2. when we needed highly specialized expertise e.g. we outsourced advertising copy to our brand agency but writing for all other marketing collateral was done in-house.

3. when we had someone away temporarily e.g. maternity leave or someone on loan to a different department or division, or someone on another type of leave

In terms of fees:

As the corporate client - I asked writers to provide a quote on each project - generally a range. If my review team dragged their heels at my end or had excessive revisions, I would just ask them to bill us for those extra hours (it happened a lot).

Generally, these writers based their quotes on an hourly rate of $ 40 to $ 75 an hour. That was about 5 years ago and I would say it hasn't changed much.

As the provider of writing services - my company charges $ 80/hour - some clients who know us well, trust us and are happy with our work are just fine paying by the hour. This is great for us.

With new clients we typically provide a project rate - we estimate the number of hours the project will take at $ 80/hour. I usually provide a range with about a 15% buffer.

Fyi - the freelancers I know charge between $ 45 and $ 80 an hour. Freelancers who write specifically for media tend to charge less and marketing writers charge more - simply because of market conditions. I am in a high-tech hub and high tech writers tend to charge the most because of the complexity of the work.

Criteria for satisfaction:

1. copy that reflects a good understanding of the industry, target audience, and product/service

2. someone that actually understands something about business strategy and how their marketing project can further those business objectives (e.g. is the focus on client retention? Sales? Profit? Lead generation? Most writers I've met do not have a good business grounding.

3. someone that clearly understands marketing principles - why and how people buy - and how their work will help in the sales process

4. creativity in expressing complex ideas and products in an way that is engaging and clear.

5. technical writing skill - this was always last on my priority list - I viewed it as a given, a minimum requirement. I became very frustrated with writers who prided themselves on their stellar punctuation and sentence structure but who clearly didn't understand business, marketing, or creative writing.

6. on-time delivery - very important in my level of satisfaction. Also, those who keep me up to date on their progress, any issues that need resolution etc.

Hope that helps! If you want to pick my brain some more, feel free to contact me - my email address is in my profile.

Good luck...Harp