The Marketing Sleuth: How To Handle Rush Copywriting Job Requests

Thursday 5 May 2011

How do you handle requests from potential clients to write sales copy asap?

Here’s how I handled one a few months ago.

A client approached me and asked me to write some copy in two weeks.

Now, for some people that might be enough time. The problem is, I’m slow.

I take my time. My research can take a long time. And that includes reading. A lot of reading.

I’ll read their material. I’ll scour the internet. Anything I can find to make the final copy the best I can.

If at the beginning I had no idea about the subject, by the end of the job I’d be close to an expert. If not an expert.

So I told him it would take a minimum of six weeks.

However, I also said that by the end of those six weeks he would have world class copy. Which would he prefer – world class, or mediocre?

All of a sudden he was happy to have it later. Two weeks was no longer a priority.

You see, he was an intelligent guy. He knew he could get his job done in two weeks by someone else, but it may not convert very well.

With a little patience, he could have much better copy and make more money with it.

It was common sense.

I made sure to keep him updated. I kept in contact with him via email and skype.

I sent him the first draught and we went over it together. And we did the same with subsequent revisions.

At every step of the way I kept him in the loop. And he felt he was getting an education in copywriting.

When it was all done, he was happy and I didn’t have to run around like a blue-arsed fly trying to get it finished.

To see how another freelance copywriter handles these types of situations, check out this post: How to handle those pesky ASAP copywriting requests

How do you handle rush job requests. let me know in the comments.

The Marketing Sleuth