Choosing a B2B Copywriter
Looking for a website writer for your B2B business? Before you sign on with an expensive agency or waste time on Chat GPT’ers on UpWork, think through this matrix for evaluating B2B copywriters.
Do they have B2B experience?
When you’re hiring a copywriter, it’s important to evaluate their background and experience. B2B companies have a lot of requirements that B2C companies may not like:
Sophisticated audiences
I’m big on saying that there’s no such thing as a B2B marketing vs B2C marketing because all marketing is B2H (business to human). That’s true! Even the most powerful C-suite executives are humans who are influenced by a great Doritos ad.
But buyers are in different mindsets when they’re shopping for sweaters at Nordstrom vs. when they’re shopping for software at work.
It’s important that the writer you hire is familiar with the B2B buying mindset and can speak to an audience that’s in work mode, not consumer mode.
Formal approval processes
Of course large consumer companies also have formal approval processes, but if the writer you’re working with has written primarily for small businesses or entrepreneurs, they may balk or be intimidated by an internal approval process that includes product, regulatory, or legal reviews.
Product price points
If a writer is used to writing product descriptions for $20 gizmos (or even $200 gizmos), writing about $10k software packages or million dollar consulting programs is going to be a little different. There is a different buyer’s journey. There are different buyer’s objections, and there are very different types of competitors in the marketplace.
Hiring someone with B2B experience, whether in-house, agency, or freelance, helps you ensure that they have some baseline of knowledge that will translate to your business.
2. Can they make big ideas concrete?
If you can find a writer who takes your big brand promises, wide-ranging value props, and lofty product differentiators and turn them into understandable copy, hire that writer and hang on for dear life.
Look at your current site and that of your top three competitors. My guess is that at least 50% of the headlines you come across are vague. So vague, that if you didn’t already know what the company sold, you’d be more confused than anything after reading the websites.
Copy that’s easy to read, and tells your audience what you do at a glance is the best kind of copy. That’s not a surprise. But a few things stand in the way of clear B2B copy:
Brands that want to sound bigger and better than their competitors
An emphasis by marketing gurus on talking about effects and results, rather than features and benefits
An emphasis on “Starting with Why” rather than “what”
Trying to sum up an extensive product line under one umbrella value prop
Trying to speak to different industry verticals with one set of brand messages
The right writer will push back against all of the above. They’ll ruthlessly force you to prioritize your value props, cutting away the fluff until only clear messages remain.
3. Are they organized and process-driven?
It’s okay to hire a smart individual who doesn’t have a website. But a writer’s online presence can give you clues into their personal organization and commitment to serving clients.
Then, from the first inquiry reply on, they should be demonstrating capable project management skills. They should have a clear process, and be willing to share their plan and timeline during the pre-sales stage.
Unless you have extra time for hand-holding an unorganized writer, it’s worth paying the rate of someone who’s willing to propel the project forward.
4. Are their rates within the norm?
Good copywriters command good pay. That doesn’t mean you have to pay an arm and a leg. But you should know that most experienced B2B copywriters charge between $3K and $10K for a traditional website with three to seven product pages. If a writer is charging less than that, beware and know that they may not be as committed, experienced, or detail-oriented in their work.
If you’re currently in the midst of a re-brand or a website update, I’d love to talk with you about your project. You can get in touch here.