The Difference Between Copywriting and Content Writing

Content comes in many different forms, but the desired outcome remains the same:

If it leads to conversions, bookings, and sales, then that content, regardless of its form, can be called successful.

But something(s) need to happen with that content before it leads to success:

• A) Their needs to be a direct sales pitch within the content or,
• B) The content needs to established authority so that the sales pitch speaks for itself (indirect pitch).

The first point—A—is copywriting, and the second point—B—is content writing. Most of the time A and B—that is to say, copywriting and content writing—need to work together to achieve that desired outcome, and you’ll soon see why.

InspiringClicks’ SEM services provides regular content updates that use both copywriting and content writing for your Search Engine Marketing campaign. So, if you’re a business owner and you want more qualified leads, then here’s everything you need to know about the difference between copywriting and content writing, and which one you should use—or receive—for more leads, sales, bookings, or conversions.

What is the Difference Between Copywriting and Content Writing?

The biggest difference between copywriting and content writing is that copywriting is more geared toward advertising for a product or service, and content writing is more geared toward educating about a product, service, or their particular industry. In short:

• Copywriting: Asks for the sale. It is a direct pitch.
• Content writing: Answers the questions of your target audience to gain their trust, and your credibility.

However, its important not to get too restricted with definitions. Copy can be educational, and content can have persuasive advertising; infact, they often do.

Its really a matter of understanding what your business objectives are when writing—or receiving—content. After the objectives are determined, the content can then be created with a greater emphasis on either copy or content writing, but not necessarily choosing one or the other.

When Should Copywriting Be Used?

Copywriting should be used when the main objective is to advertise. When selling or promoting a product or service, the goal is to ultimately persuade a target to purchase. In this case, the content is short and sweet, because ads need to capture people’s attention; moreover, they need to take into consideration that people who are looking to purchase want solutions, and they want them quickly.

Our SEM Agency creates content that smoothly leads a target through the sales funnel. This means that, from the time they click on your website to the time that they make a purchase, the content we create for our clients has a flow that effectively leads to sales.

InspiringClicks’ Copywriting Services in A Nutshell

• A: Articulates the pain points of your target
• B: Brings your product or service as the solution
• C: Creates incentives that allow for purchases to be made within effective places in the content. These are called personalized Call to Actions or CTA’s, and they are over 200% more effective than basic CTAs. Ineffective targeted messaging, unclear language, or a lack of emotional or value-driven appeal can result in missed opportunities, which is why personalized CTA’s requires a professional understanding of copywriting.

In short, copywriting should be used when:

• Selling or promoting a product or service
• Introducing a new product or service
• Persuade a target to purchase
• Keeping content short and sweet (Example: Ads)
• When the primary goal of the content is to persuade

When Should Content Writing Be Used?

Content writing should be used when the main objective is to build credibility and authority with both the target audience and search engines like Google.

Every product and service has an industry that they operate in. The idea of content writing is to create a knowledge base that informs and educates the target so that they begin to see your business as credible. This credibility leads to more sales without necessarily asking for the sale, which is the case for copywriting.

Moreover, search engines like Google look to rank informative and educational content that satisfies it’s users. It call this content “helpful content”, and it only places websites it see’s as credible and authoritative on the first page.

Building Authority with Content Writing

Think about it like this: When someone type something into Google, they are looking for information. Now imagine that somebody asks Google a question about the industry your product or service operates in, and they find your website on the first page. They then click on your page and find the answers they were looking for. This has some powerful implications for the success of your business. When they find you on Google:

• Your website becomes known to them.

• Your business has gained credibility because people know that only credible sources are on the first page of Google.
• Through that credibility, when your target is in the market for your product or service, they will purchase it from you because you are now seen as the authority in your industry.

InspiringClicks creates helpful content that ranks on Google and helps build your authority with content writing. The trust and credibility your business gains through content ultimately leads to more sales, bookings, or conversion for your website.

In short, content writing should be used when:

• You want to build authority
• Informing or educating a target about your industry
• Telling a story
• You want people to connect with your brand
• It is needed to provide in-depth information (Example: informational articles)

Can You Use Both Content Writing and Copywriting?

Content writing and copywriting can absolutely be used together, and in most cases, they should. Content writing is meant to educate and inform, but this does not mean that the content should not advertise for a product or service. You can educate and inform while still asking for the sale; in fact, the informative aspect of content writing can help effectively lead a target audience through the sales funnel, which is the point of effective copywriting.

Is This Post an Example of Content Writing or Copywriting?

The post you are reading right now is going on InspiringClicks blog. The primary goal of this post is to provide education and showcase our SEM services to businesses who would like to increase their online presence on Google.

However, I have not provided a call to action or directly asked for a sale. For this particular post, I am only promoted InspiringClicks SEO copywriting services indirectly by educating and informing.

So, this post is a prime example of content writing that will soon use some aspects of copywriting like CTA’s (if you have a business and need to increase your sales and authority, scroll to the very bottom of this post or finish up this article to learn more about the difference between copywriting and content writing).

Copywriting vs Content Writing

The main difference between copywriting and content writing can be attributed to four main things: Focus, Length, Intent, and Placement. An easy way to remember this is to use the acronym FLIP.