Should You Specialize in Website Content?
May 12, 2008 - Written by James - 56 Comments
Buyers for website content are out there. Phenomenal numbers of websites are launching daily. If it isn’t a new site selling services, it’s a site selling products. If it isn’t a website, it’s a blogsite or it’s a profile page. Website content is everywhere, and there are plenty of jobs available for writers.
The problem is that, too often, writers land a nice website content gig, but the job has to be redone, reworked and revised. The majority of clients who come to us for website content have one common complaint: they’ve been burned.
Writers are screwing up.
Jack of All Trades
Writing is a common skill. If you can write, you can write anything. Right?
Wrong. The skills required to write particular types of content aren’t the same – and there’s the catch. A great article writer generally sucks at blogging, and bloggers typically don’t write well for magazines.
When a writer tries to be a jack of all trades, he or she is generally master of none.
There are subtle nuances between good writers and specialists. Those nuances matter a great deal, but most writers ignore the differences. These writers believe they are good at writing – and that’s wonderful – but they have trouble accepting that they can’t write different types of content.
Even worse, they believe that all content is the same. It’s not.
Are We All Specialists?
Think of the matter like an airplane pilot – he has different training and qualifications depending on whether he flies a fighter jet or an airbus. Pilots can’t just change planes and expect to be crack fliers.
Each writer has his or her own particular set of strengths, experiences and skill set that creates good potential for a specialty.
Focusing on a specialty is smart. A specialty lets writers focus and become the best in one type of writing. It helps ensure survival by becoming the master of one versus the jack of all trades.
So are all writers specialists? Or can a writer learn how to be great in many types of writing?
The answer is common sense: you can learn anything that you want to learn, and you can learn it well. If you want to have two specialties (or three or four), you can – but you need to learn the proper techniques.
Who’s Flying the Plane?
Many writers glance at a job and think, “I can do that.” They are tempted by the prestige of a job, a nice rate, or the potential big break. They know they can write, and they write well. They believe that’s all it takes.
Besides, they’ve always wanted to branch out into website content. So they give it a shot. The problem? That writer is flying by the seat of his or her pants.
The buyer thinks a qualified pilot is flying the plane.
In our next post, we’ll cover some of the reasons website content falls flat and a few questions to ask that help your work fly high. Hint: it involves a little bit more than luck and a Superman cape.
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All right, you’ve got me interested.
I don’t think I categorically disagree with what you’re saying. I’d add the caveat that sometimes the lines between specialties are blurred – blog writing and article writing, for example, can be very similar, depending on the blog. They can also be vastly different.
Maybe it’s just that the blog, as a medium, seems to be especially versatile. Heck, there are fairly popular blogs that are fiction-based, which is an entirely different skill.
Looking forward to the next installment, James!
Bob Younce at the Writing Journey’s last blog post..The Student Becomes The Master
For me, I have to agree. I personally don’t think that I am a “jack of all trades” when it comes to writing because I know the areas that I can confidently write about and the ones that I can’t. That of course doesn’t mean that I can’t learn however there are some areas of writing that I simply am not interested in, so I wouldn’t apply for those writing jobs. Neither would I attempt to learn them because of my lack of interest.
I too am looking forward to the next post on this topic.
Jenny Burr’s last blog post..Some “Me Time”
I certainly agree. I’ve done magazine articles and a teeny bit of blogging and certainly recognize the differences there. But many times family and friends have said something like “You ought to write a book” and I try to explain to them that writing a book requires an entirely different set of skills which I simply do not possess. They don’t understand, because they don’t write.
Tell someone who drives a car that they should take a job as a truck driver or enter the Indie 500 – it’s just “driving”, right? No, it’s not: different kinds of writing demand different skills.
Tony Lawrence’s last blog post..You sounded annoyed by Anthony Lawrence
I agree, and with a great degree of relief! I started out writing magazine articles and didn’t have super success there (certainly not enough to give up my “other” job) but since I got into blogs and web content, I’ve done much better. Thanks to this post I can see that there might be a good reason for that – my skills are much better suited to the web side of things. Just lucky I was born when I was and not 20 or 30 years earlier, when I would have only had the choice to struggle away with magazines. Thanks James!
Amanda Kendle’s last blog post..Web pirouette: Pizzas, French fries and getting fit
Twitter: @shurleyhall
I partly agree, James. I think Bob’s made a valid point about the blurring of lines between types of writing. I also think that it is possible to learn different areas. I started out years ago as a journalist, writing news stories and magazine articles. Those skills helped me make the transition to writing web content, and I also do press releases. I know my limitations, though. There are some forms of promotional writing that I avoid, because I haven’t learned the skills properly. Like Amanda, I’m pleased that there are so many opportunities for web content writing, which suits the way I like to write.
Sharon Hurley Hall’s last blog post..Promotion Tip: RSSHugger
You’ve definitely grabbed my attention here, James, because I’ve been dabbling in so many different kinds of writing lately. I think your next article will be very helpful indeed. If I’m going to write stuff, perhaps it would be good to focus on what I do best.
Brett Legree’s last blog post..canada 2, greece 0. a story about running.
Well, I’m intrigued, especially since I’m someone who only writes for the web nowadays.
I do believe there are different types of web writing, however – and it goes beyond writing vs. blogging. For instance, there’s sales copy,web journalism, there’s a general information article, there are specific reports and there’s what I call “Adsense Filler.” So yes, you can specialize in web writing, but you can also specialize in types of web writing.
I also believe that many who are buying web copy don’t know the difference and higher someone completely unqualified for a task. Just because someone who writes for the web doesn’t make her qualified to write for every website out there. Someone might hire a writer because she claims to have written hundreds of articles, come learn it’s hundreds of poorly written articles at fifty cents each – and the webmaster who hired her doesn’t know the difference or doesn’t care.
Anyway, I better end it before I go completely off topic …
Twitter: @poewar
I used to occasionally write for magazines, but once I had my own blog and could publish my own content according to my rules and goals, magazine freelancing lost all of its appeal. I mainly publish my own work though. I don’t usually blog for other sites, at least not as a business.
John Hewitt’s last blog post..05/12/2008 Writing Jobs and Links
Not sure I agree with you James — not entirely anyway. I think the basis of all types of writing is the talent and experience of the writer. A good magazine writer should be able to transition to blog writing, and if he or she has the research and interview skills, then probably vice versa as well. In fact I read an article last month about writers using their blogs to springboard to a magazine position.
Definitely, web content writing is a specialization. So is brochure writing, newsletter writing, and medical peer-to-peer writing. But it’s not rocket science (or writing about rocket science, for that matter) — any decent writer should be able to pick up the basics of web writing.
I do agree strongly though that if you are unsure about your abilities, you probably shouldn’t take that gig…
~Graham
Graham Strong’s last blog post..What’s Your Favourite “Gadgetâ€?
I’m going to clarify the title and leanings of this series: webSITE content.
This doesn’t mean web content, which, to me, is any content published on the web. That includes blog posts, articles, newsletters, ezines, brochures, sales copy… what have you.
I am directly targeting the type of writing used by companies to create websites that portfolio their business and their products or services.
Now, a few replies to comments:
@ Grant – Over the years, I have worked with many, many writers. Time and again, the writer versed in article writing cannot blog properly. The blogger cannot write good articles. The sales copy writer cannot write ebooks. The ebook writer cannot write for a website. I have hired and fired many writers because they think that the skill of writing allows them the instant knowledge of different techniques.
As Tony so clearly pointed out – because you can drive a car does not mean you can handle a truck, a bus, a tractor or a snowplow. You can *learn*, but there are techniques and specific skill sets involved that DO make it more complex than just being a decent writer. Not rocket science, but there is science involved.
Otherwise, we wouldn’t get so much remedial work coming in.
@ Deb – Exactly. Most people don’t recognize the differences involve and assume that anyone who can write can write anything. I would never take on a job writing for grants, because I have no idea of the techniques and skills involve to write a GOOD grant proposal.
Yet, so many writers make no distinction, and they should have the integrity to admit that they cannot write certain types of content. The buyer is ignorant of the differences, and writers are too.
I think you’re in a very good position to know the nuances and differences I’m talking about, so I appreciate your input and commentary.
@ Brett – Focus and learn one thing very well and then shift your focus to learn something new very well. Trying to learn 5 different techniques at once does not help you see the differences between each. My two Canadian cents for you
@ Sharon – Exactly. You understand that you can learn more than one type of writing but that because you write well doesn’t mean you can (or should) write anything.
@ Amanda – I think people have certain inherent talents or “knacks” for certain types of writing. Harry’s crack at fiction and just has a knack for it. His fiction glows off the page and shines.
But he sucks big time at sales copy and just can’t “see” what he needs to do, no matter how hard he tries to learn it. He can make it sound okay, but he never has that magical touch that makes it stand out.
And he knows it, so he basically said, “This isn’t for me” and left the job to others. It takes a big person to acknowledge limitations and admit there are better people for the job.
@ Tony – Bah. If I had a nickel for every time someone has asked me, “You’re a writer? Oh! Which books have you written?” I’d be rich.
@ Jenny – Good point. If you don’t *like* something, you won’t shine at it. That just can’t be forced. Sticking with what you know best and what you like really makes a difference.
@ Bob – A blog post is a blog post. An article is an article. An article posted to a blog is a blog post – and it’s formatted differently and reads differently with different elements. It is meant to be different.
If the lines between whether something is a blog post or an article, I think the writer hasn’t done his job well enough. Think of this: A vehicle is a vehicle. But if you can’t distinguish a car from a truck, there’s problems in the design and build, no?
I view specialization not in terms of type or style — Web versus print, sales/marketing versus PR, etc. — but in terms of subject matter. I write about enterprise software and teach people how to use it, for example. A writer friend of mine carved out a great career for himself by becoming an expert both in real estate and in wastewater management (of all things).
I’ve found, and I think my friend would agree, that adapting the writing style to meet the client’s need is relatively easy. Being a subject matter expert is our USP.
Rob in Denver’s last blog post..In other news
Twitter: @jancartier
Although I am not a writer, this question comes up in my field. Some artists specialize in one medium. Others work across several. The same basic “art elements” are used in all the media, but there is a difference ( sometimes huge) in execution. You have to take the time to learn that particular “language”, or find a fabricator ( a specialist) who can make your idea come to life as you dreamed. So being able to work across disciplines , or formats, is a matter of fluency.
I am going agree with Graham…and James. I have had to hire writers before and will always have that need. When I do hire them, I tend to hire specialists, but fluent ones.
I am intrigued. Excellent question….cannot wait for the rest.
Janice Cartier’s last blog post..Going Analog
I’m SO glad someone put this up there. When I first started to write web content, everyone assumed this was something I could do because I was a copywriter. I actually had to sit my client down (she was a marketing director who gave me a lot of work) and explain to her that I was going to need to research the hell out of good web content, and that my first shot might not be spot-on. She just assumed that since I could write everything else, I could write web copy.
Now, I CAN write web copy. But it didn’t just happen. It took a lot of research. So many people assume a writer is a writer is a writer, which makes no sense. Every other profession has its specialties, too.
Tei – Rogue Ink’s last blog post..Serious Journalism Terms. Plus Sex.
@James,
Your 2 cents Canadian is worth much more than that…
thanks!
Brett Legree’s last blog post..canada 2, greece 0. a story about running.
I am a grant writer for a regional nonprofit organization. What we’ve realized in our office is that our web copy reads just like print copy slapped up on our websites. Not good, obviously. I’ve developed a real interest in learning to write web copy specifically, but I’m having a tough time finding the right resources. I read blogs such as Men With Pens, but if there’s a more comprehensive resource out there, I’d love to hear about it.
Disagree somewhat.
While content is the fluid, specific types of media – copywriting, web writing, articles, magazines – are the glass you pour yourself into.
Should you specialize? If you want. You may become very good at it, or you may get bored. Or both.
Even magazines are all very different of how they want a topic covered. And then we have the individual editors who want to put their spin on it…
I agree with Tei, some clients need to very educated. Some do not realize the type of research involved in a project and therefore have no idea of time constraints. In general, the more time you spend on something, the more money you should charge.
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..Bring Your Daughter to Work Day
Twitter: @remarkablogger
As someone who’s written fiction, training manuals, ads, websites, blogs, and taught classes on writing for the web, I can vouch for the truth of this with my own experience.
I’ve never written a magazine article or a press release. I’ve never written copy for product descriptions on an e-commerce site. I couldn’t “fly” those planes unless I get some more training.
People can say they can do this or that type of writing all they like–and it looks like some have in the comments above. But the proof at the end of the day has a dollar sign on it. Beware of “Lake Woebegone Syndrome.”
Michael Martine | Remarkablogger’s last blog post..12 Irrefutable Reasons Why Jude Should Listen to Me
@ Rob – I think limiting the view from area of topic versus type of writing may be damaging. There’s a huge difference in the press release for a software group, the website content they would have and the blog posts they would put on their blogs. All the same subject, but waaaay different types of writing.
@ Janice – The watercolor painter probably would be terrible at oils, and the painter using a large brush and latex while digging down to rock music most likely couldn’t use oils or watercolor. Right?
@ Tei – Learning different types of writing *does* take a lot of research and you’re right, people – not just writers or buyers, but people – need to be educated about that. Well said.
@ Brooke – Oh… I feel the pain. Your example would be the type of client we often get. “Why isn’t this working?” Uh, because you took your brochure and tried to make it website content?
@ Ellen – I’m not sure what you want to say – that writers are fluid creatures that can adapt to their container? If that’s so, then I have to strongly disagree. The cover doesn’t make the book, as they say. Maybe I misunderstood, though…?
@ Michael – Unfortunately, the dollar sign is what the buyers have to deal with when they have to have their work redone. That’s what bothers me. I think it’s best to just say no before doing something that a writer is not skilled in, because that writer costs people twice as much, not helping them. I’m glad you can see the difference.
Oh, remind me never to get in a plane with you
James – I think every writer NEEDS to specialize if they want to continuously move forward in their career.
Look at every other profession…
-Nursing Midwifes make more than general RN’s.
-Brain Surgeons make more than general doctors.
-Specialty lawyers make more than general ones.
The more specialized you are, the more you can charge for your services because you, quite simply, are better at the specific kind of work you do…meaning, you’ll consistently deliver results.
Don’t just partly specialize either (well, you can…but it’s better if you go all the way).
While I’ve chosen “Copywriting” as my expertise – I’m looking to further specialize this next year into being a Copywriter for the Financial Sector.
Chad’s last blog post..5 Secret Habits for Success
Oh, I am going to be sitting in the front row of this class. You are throwing around enough stuff that I can barely keep up. Which tells me I better sit up and pay attention.
I just write. Sounds like a problem doesn’t it ?
Wendi Kelly’s last blog post..Balancing Balloons
@ Chad – Bingo. We are and should each be specialists, as I mentioned in my post. That’s smart business. One specialty, two, three… each one learned and perfected before the next added on.
@ Wendi – You just write… but you write *something*. So what is it that you’re writing? What style? Tone? Wording? Formatting? You’re doing something with your writing – find out what specialty it is
I know that I write motivational, inspirational writing.
Based on what you all are saying, I don’t know why the things I write would or wouldn’t be right for a inspirational style book, or magazine article or a blog or website ( Not really understanding all of those web differences)
Granted, in a blog, you can plop in a you tube or music, media and have the fun of comments and interplay with your readers and a magazine or book is a little more one-side so there would be some formatting changes, but that seems minor.
So, I’m waiting to see and learn. This will be good for me.
Wendi Kelly’s last blog post..Balancing Balloons
Twitter: @jancartier
James- WAY WRONG!!!!! Emphatically. Wrong wrong wrong. So wrong.
And I will show you anytime anywhere. To any music.
(Damn you did again
)
Some artists are one type or another. BUT a lot of us are fluent. Which is my point. Okay every time I read your response I go balistic…Hmm. Why, I ask…We’re talking about writing for one format or another…web content. copywriting, sales copy…Surely James is not so limited that he actually believes what he wrote me… I think Dan Rieck could write a novel just as well as he writes good copy. It would be a doomsday novel, but it would be good, and funny and polished. And he would know what makes a good novel just as he knows what makes good copy. Tell me your creative writing does not inform your copy writing and vice versa and I will tell you that you are an idiot or a hack.
Janice C Cartier’s last blog post..Going Analog
@ Janice – Oh, so you’re saying that the paintbrush artists could do watercolor portraits?
I think you may have to end up calling me a hack, ma belle…
Janice – I agree that Dan Reick could write a good novel just as he could write good copy (although, not AS good in my opinion)…
…but if the publishing house had three novelists to choose from and the other two had already delivered results in that field – Dan would probably have to self-publish because he is unproven in that area (depending on the topic).
In the same way, a general writer will always struggle to get prime jobs when competing with those who specialize.
Chad’s last blog post..5 Secret Habits for Success
Twitter: @jancartier
Mon Cher “Hack,”
Yes.
Hand me a brush and I will show you.
Now for business, it would be silly of me to say I can be all things to all people. So you lead with your strengths. But if I wanted to step out of my comfort zone, oh to say, pick up a new market, or get my share of a proven one, or diversify for the long term…or if what I wanted to say just needed to be said in a specific medium…. I might stretch out of my preferences and known genres and rise to the challenge. I have several times. There’s a learning curve, but is that any obstacle? How can it be so different for writing? If the hot new way to market writing were twitter haiku, you would so be on it. If Stephen King said James, I ‘m editing an anthology of short stories. I would like to include you. You turning him down? If Spielburg says, I need those Men With Pens are you taking his call? You would be looking up formats , and rocking those genres too. That’s what I am saying. Because deny it all you will, you believe in fluency too.
Hack. Hmph. How do you do this to me, crisse…
Janice C Cartier’s last blog post..Going Analog
Twitter: @jancartier
Chad- I agree with the part about publishers and about competition. Although, I am thinking we ought to get Dean to write a novel just to test the theory.
Janice C Cartier’s last blog post..Going Analog
@James – Writing is fluid – and forms are what the words pour themselves into. A novel is a form. A web page is a form. An article is a form. Forms are a structure, like a house. Once you master the form, your words can be the bricks and mortar that give rise to a skyscraper. Or a small cottage. You know, this probably sounds better in French. But I don’t speak that musical tongue and have to work with the analogies in English. Merci.
But also, the medical has suffered because of specialists. They no longer treat the whole person. I would argue that people that do specialize will cut themselves short. Just like people wonder why they need a liberal education when they get in college. Do you not want to think? Do you not want to figure things out? You can’t if you only see a small portion of the larger picture.
@Michael – There are few dollar signs on fiction writing. So you must be a dreamer like most of us. I wouldn’t beware of “Lake Woebegone Syndrome.” But I understand what you’re saying. That’s why non-writers need to be educated on how hard it is. Otherwise, wouldn’t they be doing it themselves?
@Janice – I think you know what I’m getting at. And I know you speak French. And you’re an artist. Artiists have a sense of how to translate this better than anyone else. They “see” the whole in pictures, and then they translate that to all of us. Writers are confined to words.
If you confine yourself to a microscope you miss out on the entire organism.
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..Bring Your Daughter to Work Day
@ Janice – Ahh, but I never said something couldn’t be learned. You can be damned sure if the call came, I’d be burning the midnight oil to learn like a madman.
But if Spielburg says, “I need you now. Tomorrow at the latest,” I would have to say, “I can’t do it. I haven’t learned yet.”
Then I’d haggle myself an extended deadline, of course.
The problem is that writers do just that – someone comes knocking and they say, “Sure. I can write.” They open up a few pages, glance, get overconfident and screw up. Client says, “I love it!” and realizes two months later he knows shit about what good writing really is, and he’s up the creek with what he thought was good content.
He’s also two months older and wiser, so now he knows that what he needs is a specialist – not a writer flying by the seat of his pants.
See the difference? You and I are on the same page, darlin’. I believe in fluency – but I also believe in knowing that I have to learn, and that also I can’t learn everything I’d like to.
Like Forex. I just cannot understand Forex.
Et comment je te fais ça? Facilement, ma belle – tu sais que tu l’adores quand je t’estine *big grin*
@ Ellen – There’s the problem: website content is not a forum. It is not an applied formula. It is not just catchy headline, nice content, good image. You cannot template website content and expect it to work.
You need more – much more than that – to make website content work. The same thing with a novel. You need more than form to make a glowing story that captivates people. It’s not brick and mortar or lego blocks, and writers are not fluid like water taking any shape like a container.
If we could all do that, we’d be rich and the Internet would be a beautiful place to have a good read, don’t you think?
@James – You are not getting it. First of all, very few writers will get rich. Yeah, if we knew the secret of tapping into all of that we wouldn’t be having this discussion. Probably.
I understand what website content is about. You have to have a knack for it. It is a FORM. Study the form and you will become it. I am not trying to demean the FORM! I have a feeling this discussion will soon degrade into if website writers are REAL or not.
Of course you need more than mere words to fill the structural form I speak of. You need to tell a story. You need a hook.
The hook is all about grabbing someone’s gut and twisting it. That’s where they feel it.
And we want someone to do this for us.
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..Bring Your Daughter to Work Day
@ Ellen – I frequently don’t get it – no one’s fault but mine.
What I hope we agree on is that because someone can write a sentence does not a writer make, and that each form of writing (more glimmers of understanding) requires specific skill sets, and that because one can write does not mean that one can write anything well.
If we agree on that, then good. If I still didn’t get it, I obviously lack more coffee or more wine. At this hour, I’ll choose wine. Then I’ll declare my love for the world in a drunken stupor and embrace everyone with fond affection. And the heavens will be peaceable again.
(By the way, I’m loving the comment section today. Very good comments in here.)
Twitter: @jancartier
@Ellen- Yes, I get what you are saying. : )
@Quebecquois- Grrr…..peut- etre, un peu… mais, c’est trop, trop facile
Calisse! Shaking my head and grinning
Janice C Cartier’s last blog post..Going Analog
I have to say James, You lost me on your watercolorist/ paintbrush artist comeback.
What do you think we are painting our watercolors with. Our feet? We use paintbrushes too.
OK, I said I was willing to read more, and I don’t want to jump on the pick on James pile, but some of this is making sense to me, to say that talent will out it’s self and that picking up the nuances of a new format shouldn’t be brain surgery.
And yes James, if you have no talent as a writer, you probably shouldn’t be doing it.
But if I am understanding-maybe- your point- are you saying that just because you have talent as a writer in one FORMAT, that you won’t be a talented writer in another format?
Again, willing to learn, but it seems like you are saying, If a writer learns how to write in lists, then he won’t be good writing in paragraghs. (Simplistic.). but..the point is people can grow and widen their skills if they have desire and talent.
Wendi Kelly’s last blog post..Balancing Balloons
Here *passes the Chardonnay* it’s French! Fat Bastard Chardonnay. Smooth, and a bit buttery. Anyway,
I get it James. One must master the Form. One must master writing. Usually the latter before the former.
Take it easy. I hope you found some good daycare?
Yes, it has been a good discussion. Thanks.
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..Bring Your Daughter to Work Day
@ Wendi, Janice and all the painters. When I say paintbrush and latex, I mean it, literally:
Turn on Your Sound and Watch Denny Dent Paint
@ Wendi – I’m saying that you can have talent and write well, but that doesn’t mean you can write anything from song lyrics to instruction manuals to ebooks to website content.
A skill does not include techniques and writers must learn individual techniques for each task. A list writer can’t write paragraphs. Yes.
The problem is that the list writers think they can write anything because they write great lists.
Oy, and I’m supposed to be skilled at clearly conveying my point in words? lol
@ Ellen – Cheap Chardonnay will do me just fine. Cheers.
@James: You wrote–
“I think limiting the view from area of topic versus type of writing may be damaging. There’s a huge difference in the press release for a software group, the website content they would have and the blog posts they would put on their blogs. All the same subject, but waaaay different types of writing.”
First, damaging to whom? And in what way? I’d hate think there are writers out there who’ve done well for themselves specializing in specific subject areas — as well as in varied media — are somehow causing undue, and ill-defined, harm on unknown people and things.
Second, while I agree there’s a difference between writing press releases and Web site content and white papers (and so forth), I don’t believe the keys to the kingdom are difficult to acquire. In other words, I disagree the difference is the yawning chasm you’d have us all believe it is.
Like Graham said, “any decent writer should be able to pick up the basics of Web writing.” It is, after all, a learned skill. Practice it enough — or, as Ellen said, study the form — and some level of mastery is bound to follow.
Good discussion, as always.
Rob in Denver’s last blog post..In other news
@ Rob –
To yourself. If you feel that a topic specialist can write any type of content as long as it is on the topic he specializes in, that may be a problem. Being versed in a subject doesn’t mean you can write any type of content on that subject. Different skills involved. The knowledge on the topic is the same – the knowledge on the writing is not.
When PRs cost a few cool hundreds, the buyer left holding a crappy PR is the one who definitely sees the damage. When a website can range in the thousands, that buyer too, isn’t feeling too kindly towards writers. Talk to him about damages.
I never said that. I said that writers *should* specialize.
And if the difference isn’t a yawning chasm, why is over 50% and closer to 80% of our writing projects remedial work?
And yes. ‘Tis a good discussion
Continuing to repeat “just because a writer can do X doesn’t mean he can do Y” isn’t making it truer than the opposite… which is “just because a writer can do X doesn’t mean he cannot do Y.” One is as true or untrue as the other.
You asked”
“And if the difference isn’t a yawning chasm, why is over 50% and closer to 80% of our writing projects remedial work?”
This is a logical fallacy. That there are crappy service providers in the marketplace is independent of the ability to acquire the skill… and the type of work you’re taking on. No matter how you slice it, your conclusion doesn’t support your premise.
But since you asked, I suspect the type of work you’re taking on has as much to do with your business plan and positioning in the marketplace as it does anything else.
Rob in Denver’s last blog post..In other news
Twitter: @jancartier
@ Wendi- You go girl!!
@ Ellen- Pinot Grigio here…you so get it.
@ James- tsk, tsk. …wish I had videos from my time as a texture bunny with the New Orleans Opera…. late nights, big brushes, lots of latex…..( Yeah, I see it and I am leaving it in : ) )
Janice C Cartier’s last blog post..Going Analog
Twitter: @vegaspenman
Maybe I’m repeating a lot of what has been said already, I’ll admit I haven’t been keeping up with comments today. Yeah, I’m late to this party, but Rob? I strongly disagree with you. I’ve seen this time and time again.
I’m a writer. I’m also an artist, illustrator, and designer. Just because I can write good fiction, solid informational articles and interesting blog posts, doesn’t mean I have what it takes to write a sales letter or content copy. Along those same lines, I may be a genius with Photoshop and other design programs, but that doesn’t mean I can create fantastic stuff with After Effects or CAD.
I also speak from experience. I’ve tried writing sales copy. I’ve tried writing web content. I’ve also done my fair share of animation. I’m no expert with any of those, nor do I fool myself or my clients into thinking I am.
It takes a certain mindset to do those things. Some people have the skill for it. Some people are natural salesmen, like James, and have the ability to write a sales letter that would bring you to tears and have you giving up your first born in trade for the product being sold.
Not every writer can do X, and not every writer can do Y. That’s not to say they couldn’t do it if they took the time to practice and get good at it, but we see so many people making claims they’re all that and they fall flat. It’s a classic case of having too many irons in the fire and never taking the time to study these specialized areas in order to understand what makes them work.
What a fascinating debate.
I have been reading a lot of ‘writing for money’ blogs lately but I don’t think I have seen many articles that explore in detail the different types of writing or writer. In the web world the terms writer and copywriter seem to be used interchangeably.
What are the main writing specialities? Sales copy versus website content versus articles (print/web)?
My background is corporate communications and since I started my blog I find my natural tendency is to write articles which are quite long by web standards (1000 – 1500 words). I have read that not all web writing has to be short but… I am working on choosing more tightly focused topics and writer shorter but it is hard!
(I even write long comments!!)
I’m looking forward to learning more in the next installment from James.
@Harry: I’m having a difficult time seeing what it is, exactly, that you disagree with me on. I’ve argued — as have a few others — that a competent writer, given a desire and faculty to learn, can acquire new skills. You agree with that when you say, “That’s not to say they couldn’t do it if they took the time to practice and get good at it….” But you lose me when you say, “…but we see so many people making claims they’re all that and they fall flat.”
For one, that second part doesn’t logically follow. Somebody claiming to be “all that” is an event that’s independent of their actual performance of a given skill… in the same way that somebody can be modest about their work and actually be fantastic at it are independent events.
For two, I never put forth that argument… that someone should claim to be great at something when they’re not. Why you’d imply such a thing is puzzling.
Rob in Denver’s last blog post..In other news
I really identified with this post. I think the challenge for me, as a fairly young writer, is finding the type of content I’m GOOD at. Looking forward to the next few posts!
I can’t agree with this article. On the other hand, I can’t disagree with this article.
I’ve always drawn sharp distinctions between fiction and non-fiction and between formal and informal styles. Drawn to write chatty non-fiction, I found it doesn’t work too well in print but seems to be acceptable on the web.
It may be that the web has introduced a new kind of writer, a blend of instant expert and seller of prose by the yard. Does the web customer care about the content? No, the web customer cares about hit rates. Talk to the reader, the webmaster isn’t listening.
Paul Johnson’s last blog post..Homeschooling Or Home Truanting?
@ Rob – Then I think that we’re all debating something that we all agree on. It sounded like you had been saying that you disagree with the post in general and don’t understand why we’re putting this information forward. That’s why I’ve been commenting, to try to get you to see our POV whether you agree or not.
Text. *sigh* It has its limitations. Obviously neither you nor we were clear and were sparking somewhere in the middle. My apologies.
@ Rebecca – There are probably 20 to 30 different types of writers and I’d be missing some. The main ones are:
website content
article writer
ebook writer
blogger
grant writer
fiction writer
sales copywriter
copywriter (in general)
ad copywriter (similar to sales copywriter but not quite)
… I’m missing some. I haven’t had enough coffee. Cheers, and welcome!
@ Eric – Absolutely. A good way to figure out what you like and what you’re good at is to build a portfolio for your website. Write two types of each content and see how you do and what you like.
@ Paul – Ha, a new kind of writer! Can I be first? As for the web customer caring about the content, I disagree. Some care quite deeply and take great pains to explain to us who they are as a person, their values as a business owner and how they feel about working on the internet or having a website to sell their wares. We intimately know many of our clients who care very much about each word that goes up on their site.
James, you’ve come up with a great subject for argument here because you’ll never be proven right and you’ll never be proven wrong. We don’t know, and we never will know, if any piece of writing is good or not. It’s too subjective. Beauty in the eye of, etc. All we can hope for is that the customer pays up and the reader is happy.
I’m glad that you have clients who care deeply about every word on their websites. The only ones like that I’ve ever come across were lawyers. However, I’ve been lucky enough to work with people who cared about what was going into a book because it was their name that would appear on the cover. Maybe the webmasters I’ve come across see their sites as ephemeral.
Congratulations again on choosing a great subject. I look forward to the second part.
Paul Johnson’s last blog post..Homeschooling Or Home Truanting?
Rebecca,
I come from corporate communications too! I so agree that I have the same tendency. I have a hard time with the concept of a 100 to 300 word post. I am always chopping things down.
Always joked that I was better at the novel than the short story.
Wendi Kelly’s last blog post..Balancing Balloons
Twitter: @sushiday
@Janice – I think perhaps what James is saying about writing doesn’t quite compare to oils vs. watercolors, etc. Maybe a better comparison would be how a portrait artist might not be very good at landscapes, who might not be so great at caricatures. Does that make sense? i’m not an artist, so I’m not really sure.
Or, another comparison, with dancing (something I’m more familiar with.
) I’m mostly a ballet dancer so I can do classical ballets, more modern pieces, dance as a soloist, in the ensemble, or do a pas de deux. But, I can’t do hip-hop for the life of me, which would be a completely different specialization. In the same way, I can dance jazz, ballroom, latin, modern, because they are all similar to ballet, perhaps in the same way that a food blogger might be able to write articles, restaurant reviews, or put together a cookbook, but might fail miserably if they tried to do web copy.
Did that make sense?
Allison’s last blog post..Hummus Maki
[...] to Day Three of our series on Writing Website Content. In case you missed them, please read Should You Specialize in Website Content (our first post in the series) and Questions to Ask Buyers About Website Content (post number [...]
What a great topic and discussion to boot. While I vehemently shook my head at the start of the post I have to admit that some of the things you said make perfect sense to me. I think I understand what you meant as the overall gist of things.
While I can only relate to this from my own standpoint I agree that as a writer we are not good at everything. I think Michael said it already in one of the comments.
For me, right now I’d have to be hard pressed to push out a full on website sales copy even though I have taken a copywriting class with one of the best in the industry. Does this make me a great copywriter.
No, I have to be honest and say that experience is the major factor here. We can be multi talented (as I like to believe I am) after all I am a woman
But if we haven’t got sufficient experience in the given field, we would be hard pressed to be really good at it.
Anyway, my two cents (and I’m not Canadian)
Monika Mundell’s last blog post..That Magical Number 8
Jobs Welding Jobs Tug Job…
I didn’t agree with you first, but last paragraph makes sense for me…
[...] with being very good at one thing and not too bad at a few other things? As a freelancer, are you a specialist or a [...]
[...] with being very good at one thing and not too bad at a few other things? As a freelancer, are you a specialist or a [...]
[...] with being very good at one thing and not too bad at a few other things? As a freelancer, are you a specialist or a [...]