Comments on: Do You Need an SEO Copywriting Niche? [Video + Transcript]

By: Heather Lloyd-Martin

Heather Lloyd-Martin — Tue, 10 Mar 2015 14:55:00 +0000

In reply to Matt. @Matt, it sounds like your in-house copywriting perspective was a tremendous asset when you went out on your own. :) Thanks for the podcast kudos! Chatting with Ed was a lot of fun. :)

By: Matt

Matt — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 17:35:37 +0000

Great article Heather. As someone who also has past experience hiring other content writers & copywriters, I asked myself this question when I started my niche freelance business:

“Who would I hire?”

When I used to hire writers, I specifically remember hiring writers that had a specialty. I’ve found that many companies want someone that is familiar with their market, so they can limit how much they have to train and “hold the hand” of the writer they hire.

So, when I started my freelance copywriting business, picking a niche was a no-brainer…I didn’t like to hire “generalist” writers, so when freelancing why would I want to position myself that way?

P. S. I listened to a podcast episode you did with Ed Gandia…it was great!

By: Heather

Heather — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 20:29:38 +0000

In reply to Aaron Hoos. Nice! You're living proof that working within a niche really works (and can make you more money, too!) Your story would make an interesting blog post if you're ever open to sharing it. :)

By: Aaron Hoos

Aaron Hoos — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 20:38:05 +0000

This post is so true! When I first started writing, I was a generalist and (frankly) didn’t make much money. Sick of competing against other low-priced generalists, I sat down and closely analyzed my strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes, experiences, education, and most profitable customers. Today, I run a couple of different brands, each one with a very specific (and very profitable!) specialization… each in an area that I enjoy writing. Specializing was a decision that seemed risky before I did it but now I am a huge proponent of it and would recommend it to everyone!

By: Kevin Carlton

Kevin Carlton — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 15:25:09 +0000

Heather,

Just to back up your point with my own real-life case (but on a broader scale of services):

The only reason I say on my website that I specialise exclusively in website copywriting is because I want to give people something they can readily identify me with.

That hasn’t stopped me from doing stuff like proofreading, copy-editing, manual writing, etc. as and when the work came along.

By: Heather

Heather — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 00:15:06 +0000

In reply to Kevin Carlton.

Exactly!

What some copywriters don’t understand is that having a niche doesn’t mean that they have to write for X clients (like natural health) exclusively. It just means that they specialize in natural health – and they can branch out and work with different clients. Niches don’t limit your opportunities – they actually expand them (although it may not seem like that at first blush.)

Thanks for your comment!

By: Kevin Carlton

Kevin Carlton — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 17:02:59 +0000

Heather,

Many people seem to be rather scared of homing in on a niche. They think that, somehow, they’ll be missing out on other opportunities if they narrow their services down to a restricted market.

Shame, because as you said, with a niche you’re positioning yourself as the natural choice within that target market. In other words, you’re a big fish in a small pond as opposed to a small and insignificant one in a very large sea.