Marketing Writing: Copywriting, Content Writing, Sales Writing — What’s the Difference?
Today’s customers are online. Reaching them means embracing all forms of content that help differentiate your brand from an ever-growing army of competitors.
Marketing writing that stands out makes all the difference. According to
eMarketer, 60% of marketers produce at least one piece of content
every day. This is hardly surprising when you take into consideration that year-on-year growth in unique site traffic is
nearly eight times higher for content marketing leaders than followers.
Are you interested in building the best content marketing strategy for your business? We’ve made things easier on you by demystifying the different types of marketing writing and what exactly makes each of them effective.
What Are the Different Types of Marketing Writing?
Online marketing takes many forms. Understanding how to cut through the clutter and reach potential customers means taking a look at what makes each type of marketing writing uniquely effective.
1. Copywriting
Copywriters speak the language of your brand. Traditionally, copywriting was limited to advertising. However, the internet has
transformed the landscape of marketing, introducing new forms of copy including, but not limited to:
- Web page content (such as landing pages)
- Video scripts
- Email campaigns
- SEO content
- Whitepapers
- Social media ads and posts
While copywriting is an umbrella term for all of the above and more, it is often confused with content writing. The difference between the two lies in their purpose: copywriting is meant to sell your product or service, while content writing is introducing what you offer while also providing valuable content.
2. Content Writing
Content writing fulfills a need. The goal of content writing is either to educate or entertain while attracting potential customers. In fact, more than 85% of marketers use content to push their prospects through different stages of the buyer journey.
While copywriting tells target audiences what your brand is all about, content writing shares relevant information while enticing readers to keep reading and often presenting your brand as a solution to a problem they’re experiencing.
Another difference between copywriting and content writing is reflected by the copywriter versus the content writer—a copywriter is a professional dedicated to producing copy while a content writer can be anyone. For example, a content writer can be a professional in another industry altogether, offering seasoned insight into a niche topic.
So, what do content writers write? Here are a few of the most common forms of content used to attract potential customers:
- Articles
- Ebooks
- Website content
- Product descriptions
- Email newsletters
Effective content writing understands what readers are looking for. To do this, brands make a concerted effort to identify their audience’s biggest pain points while honing in on search intent and keyword research.
3. Sales Writing
Sales writing is a form of copywriting that produces sales copy, otherwise known as conversion copy, which is written to sway potential customers into taking action. This action can be purchasing a product, signing up for a monthly newsletter, booking a free demo, or any other action that would forward your business goals.
Sales writing uses concise, compelling soundbites that make people want to do something. Unlike a whitepaper or an ebook, sales copy is short and sweet. It’s a hook that’s meant to generate interest rather than spread useful information.
The key to sales copy that sells is to focus on the benefits that your business can offer. While it’s tempting to delve into the specs or features of whatever it is you’re selling, the best copy highlights potential benefits. For example, if your software platform leverages automation, you might call out potential time savings and reduced administrative burden.
4. Social Media Writing
Social media success isn’t as easy as it looks. That’s because every social media post you publish is a reflection of your brand. And yet, social media writing can be one of the farthest-reaching forms of marketing writing.
Social media algorithms are constantly evolving. Generating engagement and reaching target audiences requires a winning social media strategy and action plan. Taking the time to get to know your audience on each platform is an excellent way to make sure your posts resonate. For example, a platform like LinkedIn will require a different approach than Instagram.
This type of writing requires a set of unique and versatile writing skills. While long blog posts can build authority and email marketing can drive leads, social media offers a number of unique opportunities for marketers. Here are a few reasons why social media is so important to brands:
- It cultivates brand awareness using your unique voice and content
- It directs web traffic to original content
- It forms customer relationships by interacting directly with potential customers
It’s no wonder 70% of marketers use paid advertising on social media, with up to 40% of brands operating an Instagram account. In fact, social media posts are the most popular form of content among B2C companies.
5. Brand Awareness Writing
Simply being heard on overcrowded digital platforms is a major challenge for today’s businesses. Brand awareness writing, or brand journalism, is a type of marketing writing that expresses the story of your brand. Think of a brand awareness writer as a brand ambassador.
Brand awareness writing often appears in the form of:
- Press releases
- Interviews
- Customer stories
- Internal communications
- Boilerplates and company bios
The best way to master brand awareness writing is to define your company’s vision, value, and voice. Creating a clear and concise mission statement is one of the easiest ways to establish your brand identity.
6. Email Writing
Email marketing writing is a tried and tested method of driving conversions. Email writing must have a strong grasp of lead generation strategy. That is, emails that aren’t optimized to be succinct, persuasive, and attention-grabbing won’t work.
One of the easiest ways to make sure your emails convert is to land a winning subject line. Your subject lines-as well as any preview text-should convey a clear benefit to recipients. The body of your email should be concise, follow a logical structure, and keep each paragraph limited to one idea.
Drive More Conversions by Partnering With an Award-Winning Digital Marketing Agency
Move your business forward with a consistent content strategy that improves performance across every key metric that matters, from sales to click-through rates.
Get in touch with our team Conscious Commerce Corporation today to connect with customers, boost engagement, and improve sales.
