How to find a copywriter for your blockchain marketing team

Whether you’re building a blockchain marketing team or trying to improve your blockchain content marketing with existing resources, finding a quality blockchain copywriter is one of the most valuable moves you can make.

However, in a relatively new and complex area of technology, that is easier said than done. A good quality blockchain copywriter needs to be able to understand the various parallel technologies at play, interpret your company’s unique offer within the market and write a whole range of content to help you promote your brand, draw people into your community and convert them into advocates.

In doing so, they need to be adaptable and capable of crafting short-form copy and long-form copywriting that is effective within different channels, while always ensuring their work fits with your brand and unique selling point.

Searching for a blockchain copywriter that suits your business can be difficult and time-consuming, even for the most experienced blockchain CMO. Which is why we’ve developed this clear and simple guide to finding a blockchain copywriter.

What does a blockchain copywriter do?

Just like any copywriter, a blockchain copywriter is the person responsible for turning your business ideas into words that will engage and inform your audience.

They usually work within or close to marketing, PR, sales and product teams and can be responsible for writing copy for a product (in-app copy, calls to action, explanatory text, FAQs), a website (sales pages, blogs, articles, guides) or a range of communication channels (email, Medium, Steemit, Telegram, Signal, Twitter, Facebook).

This is not an exhaustive list, as a copywriter could work in any area where words are needed to convey an idea clearly. What this snapshot does demonstrate though, is that it’s important to understand why you need a copywriter in the first place in order to make sure you are hiring someone with the right skillset.

For example, writing a series of short, eye-catching comments for social media channels or community forums is a very different skill to writing a 10,000 word thought leadership report. It is easy to imagine scenarios where both of these copywriting tasks need to be completed by blockchain and cryptocurrency companies, so it’s important for a technical founder, marketing director or head of communications to understand the strategy they want to follow.

If they understand their strategy well, they can decide whether they need to make permanent hires or rely on a freelance blockchain copywriter. For example, they might choose to hire a permanent copywriter who is responsible for regular, day-to-day social media and community engagement while relying on a freelance, long-form blockchain copywriter to write thought leadership articles for senior executives, how to guides for SEO or research white papers.

Regardless of the type you decide your business needs though, there are a couple of important things to remember that all blockchain copywriters must do.

Firstly, they must be able to quickly and autonomously digest technical information about your project and use their experience of blockchain and cryptocurrencies to understand its unique selling points and position within the market. Secondly, they must have a simple and repeatable process for copywriting that allows them to efficiently and effectively produce what is needed.

What’s the difference between a cryptocurrency copywriter and a blockchain copywriter?

Anyone that has any experience of this markets understands that a cryptocurrency and a blockchain are closely linked but still distinct things.

Of course, the reason these two technologies are so closely linked is because of the innovation that Satoshi Nakamoto described in his 2008 white paper for Bitcoin. Satoshi’s efforts were not dreamed up from nowhere. They were a progression of various previous attempts at digital cash solutions, which had often already included some element of cryptography. One of Satoshi’s great leaps forward though was the use of a blockchain (in Bitcoin’s case, as an open, public and decentralized ledger of transactions) to eliminate the need for a central authority of trust.

While there is some debate as to whether a cryptocurrency can be called a cryptocurrency if it does not rely on blockchain, blockchains can operate without a cryptocurrency or token.

Why does this matter to copywriting?

Firstly it matters because your blockchain or cryptocurrency copywriter should understand the distinction. Secondly, it matters because the copywriting needs of a cryptocurrency project are likely to be different to those of blockchain project.

For example, a cryptocurrency project, such as an exchange, usually sees traders as a key audience. The sort of content that this audience wants to see is often short snippets of market or price analysis that help to inform their decisions and, from the exchange’s perspective, draws them into using this information to trade. In this scenario, a social and community-focused copywriter who is able to access analysts’ opinions and quickly translate them into eye-catching headlines for telegram would be the perfect resource.

In contrast, a blockchain development company that is trying to help businesses build decentralized marketplaces to disrupt specific industry verticals is likely to have very different aims. In this scenario, the likely aim is to attract enterprises or investors so they can collaborate on building a large network of users. They need to convince an intelligent but potentially nervous audience that they are the right people to be working with for the long term. In this scenario, long-form content, such as informative articles and how-to guides that support SEO strategies, or research-led whitepapers that support consultative sales processes, are a better option.

When does your blockchain marketing team need a copywriter?

Finding a quality blockchain copywriter can be beneficial at various times in a project’s development. You are the best person to know when the time is right because you have the clearest sense of when not having a quality blockchain copywriter to rely on is really hurting your business.

However, if you don’t have that feeling right now, it’s still worth understanding what benefits a copywriter can bring at various points.

When you are a founder with an idea: Not everyone with a great idea has the ability to explain it clearly through words. The problem is that being found, understood and engaged with on the web is hugely reliant on being able to write.

Getting in touch with an experienced blockchain copywriter at this point can not only help you to boil down your idea into a series of useful resources your audience are familiar with, it will also set you on the right path for effective digital marketing in the future. Some of the activities that a blockchain copywriter can help with are developing sales or investor materials, writing website copy, formalising elevator pitches or boilerplates and ghostwriting thought leadership articles.

When you’re building out a blockchain marketing team: An effective blockchain marketing team must be built on a simple strategy with clear KPIs, tactics that help achieve them and a commitment to acting on the data that these tactics produce. However, to produce this data, a blockchain marketing team needs the help of creatives who can generate engaging content.

Depending on your budget and strategy, you may choose to hire a permanent copywriter to form part of your team. This is most worthwhile when you know that part of your strategy is regular, day-to-day copywriting for blogs, social media posts and community forums. However, if your budget is tight or you aren’t sure yet how much copywriting your business will need, an experienced freelance blockchain copywriter will be a better option.

When you want to increase your blockchain content marketing: If you’ve already established your blockchain marketing team, you may want to consider hiring an experienced freelance blockchain copywriter to help increase your content marketing. It’s often the case that small to medium sized blockchain marketing teams can get overwhelmed with the day-to-day activity of a growing business, with the result being that long-form content falls down the list of priorities.

This is a shame because long-form blockchain copywriting is not only an essential part of a good blockchain SEO strategy but also supports consultative, enterprise sales processes. A good solution in this scenario is to outsource your long-form blockchain copywriting to an experienced blockchain copywriter. By doing so, you can continue the essential day-to-day marketing while not having to worry that evergreen content for blockchain SEO and thought leadership campaigns is ignored.

How to find a quality freelance blockchain copywriter

If you’re building out a marketing team of five people or more, you should consider having a permanent blockchain copywriter to deal with social media and community posts, company news and a range of ad hoc copywriting work for sales, marketing and communications. If you have a small team, limited budget or just want to test out increasing your content marketing without committing to a full-time hire, finding a quality freelance blockchain copywriter is best.

For small teams, a freelance blockchain copywriter can be called on to help with ad-hoc work or specific projects. For larger teams, they can take charge of the long-form copywriting needed for thought leadership articles, SEO strategies and research reports.

There are various places to find a blockchain copywriter, each with pros and cons that you should consider:

Finding a blockchain copywriter on Upwork or Freelancer: Freelancer platforms can seem like a great way to find a blockchain copywriter because of their simple user interfaces and the relatively cheap prices available. Certainly it is useful to see an individual’s hourly rate and to get an idea of their previous jobs, even if it is usually high-level information.

At the same time, it’s worth remembering why these individuals are cheap. You should ask whether English is their first language and review their copywriting for grammar, style and flow. Also, look through their portfolio to see whether they have produced the sort of copywriting you are looking for. If you need long-form, opinion-based thought leadership but the person you are hiring has only produced sales collateral or social media posts, you’ll most likely be disappointed with their work.

Finding a blockchain copywriter on LinkedIn: The advantage of looking for a blockchain copywriter on LinkedIn is you can see a timeline of their experience. A good blockchain copywriter should have a background that explains how they came to this stage in their career.

For example, someone who has worked in fintech, finance or technology and has a journalistic background is likely to be far more capable than a blogger who has jumped on the crypto bandwagon. Another advantage of finding a blockchain copywriter on LinkedIn is the fact that you can check their network and recommendations to see if their blockchain experience is real.

The best way to find a blockchain copywriter: Whether you search the web, use freelancer platforms or ask your network for recommendations, the most important first step is understanding what you want to achieve.

Do you need help to develop core marketing and sales messages? Do you want someone to do the copywriting for your day-to-day social media and communication channels? Do you need the long-form blockchain copywriting that will support a successful SEO and thought leadership strategy?

This will allow you write a clear brief or job description and hire someone who can evidence their experience of doing what you need. Finally, it’s very important to look for copywriters that are willing and able to help you solve your problem. After all, that’s exactly what you want them to help you do for your audience.

How much does a blockchain copywriter cost?

How much your chosen blockchain copywriter costs will depend on a number of factors, so understanding your specific needs is a crucial first step. For example, hiring a permanent blockchain copywriter will incur the fixed cost of a salary plus any benefits you provide. Using a freelance blockchain copywriter will allow you to pay a day rate or a fixed project fee.

According to the 2018 ProCopywriters Survey, the average salary of an in-house copywriter in the UK is roughly £40,000. While you can use this as a sort of benchmark, it’s worth remembering that this is an average across the entire country and across a range of industries, which require varying degrees of technical knowledge. For example, a quick search of Glassdoor for ‘Senior Copywriter’ jobs within technology companies in London will tell you that you are unlikely to be able to hire one for less than £45,000 per annum.

You could hire a junior copywriter but this is a risky strategy as your main copywriting resource. A less risky approach would be to test your strategy and tactics in the short-term by relying on a more expensive but better quality freelance blockchain copywriter.

Looking at Upwork as an example of prices on a freelancer marketplace, blockchain copywriter prices start at $300 (around £240) a day. However, you should not presume that the cheapest option is necessarily right for your needs. Businesses that do take this approach often find that the time wasted dealing with a cheap but inexperienced or unprofessional freelancer wipes out the benefit of a low cost.

For a more appropriate benchmark of freelance copywriter prices you should refer to the aforementioned ProCopywriter survey for 2018. According to this, the average day rate for a copywriter is £342. For copywriters that are more likely to specialise in blockchain, such as those based in London (the main centre for blockchain and crypto in the UK), this day rate increases to £405.

Based on these assumptions and benchmarks, a good quality, experienced blockchain copywriter is likely to cost at least £400 a day.

The ultimate guide to hiring a blockchain copywriter

Do you know why you need a blockchain copywriter?

The most important part of finding the right blockchain copywriter for your business is understanding what you want to achieve by hiring them, before you do so. A blockchain copywriter can help you with everything from early brand positioning to established content marketing. However, every blockchain copywriter has their niche, so knowing what your specific requirements are beforehand will help you to hire the right specialist.

Is your blockchain marketing strategy and team established?

A blockchain copywriter can help you whether you are just starting out with a new business idea or you have an established blockchain marketing team that you want them to work with. However, to ensure they’re as effective as possible and you’re getting the best value for money, you need to be clear with them about what is required and why. A good quality blockchain copywriter can help you with a range of different strategies and will want to know what your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are, so they can help you hit them.

Do you want a permanent team member or freelancer?

This question will be easier to answer if you have a clear blockchain marketing strategy established. A permanent team member is the right option when you have tested a tactic that works and need to expand that operation by building an in-house process for it. A freelance blockchain copywriter is the right option if you want to explore an exciting new tactic, such as long-form blockchain copywriting for SEO or thought leadership, and require specialist help.

Is quality or price your big priority?

This is a really important choice to make early on as it will save you a lot of time and stress in the long run. The cheapest price is very tempting, especially when freelancer marketplaces make it easy to benchmark what the lowest price is. This approach will probably work best for tasks such as social media post writing or community management responses. However you should be careful about using a cheap option to produce anything more significant than that. Long-form blockchain copywriting that helps to position your business as a thought leader in the market requires a high quality blockchain copywriter.