As a copywriter, I often get asked to ‘throw a few words together’ – to write a paragraph on a particular topic, or to pull together 200-300 words of content. When you’re presented with the end result – which can sometimes be, as requested, a single paragraph – it can sometimes be difficult to convey to a client the amount of work that went into creating that punchy little piece of content.
So, with this in mind, I thought I’d share with you what’s generally involved in the copywriting process, and this applies to every piece of content I create – no matter how long or short. Indeed, the shorter the content, the more stringent the editing must be, and it takes skill to do it right – to refine a piece of content so it says all that it has to in as small a space as possible, when so required.
When I’m asked to ‘throw some content together’, I subsequently do the following:
1. Arrange a briefing: I speak with the client to establish what the work is – generally via a face-to-face meeting, a phone call, or on Skype.
2. Research: I usually have to do a bit of background research, to supplement the information supplied by the client. You may know your business/chosen topic inside out, but I must be similarly informed. This stage may involve interviews, online research or other methods.
3. SEO: If the content is for online use, then I’ll have to research SEO keywords and phrases, and work these naturally into the text. For a website, this will also involve writing meta data.
4. Copywriting: I write the content, pulling together all the information I’ve gathered from the client and my research.
5. Editing and refining: The content is revised as I go along, and after completion, before I send it to the client. They may then ask for additional information to be added (I include one revision in my fee), so further editing or light rewriting may be required.
As well as these key areas, I will also have:
– Meetings/communication (on the phone, email exchanges etc) with the client (how often these are will depend on the client)
– Possible third-party liaison
– Miscellaneous work (perhaps uploading content for example)
There can be a lot of groundwork involved in creating ‘a little piece of content’, 
particularly if it’s for a new client and you haven’t worked with them before. Ultimately, the most important thing is to create content that works hard and ticks all the boxes. As a copywriter, the skill is in making all this look effortless and with experience it is, of course, something writers can do well.
The behind the scenes stuff, however, can’t be skipped over, so does no harm in making the process as transparent as possible for clients, so they can see exactly what’s involved.