Estimated reading time: 9 minutes
Many people use the terms “content writing” and “copywriting” interchangeably. While both content writers and copywriters are experts in developing marketing content, there are actually marked differences between the two.
Engineering firms who provide written content in the form of online blogs usually hire either a copywriter or a content writer. But fully understanding the difference between the two can help you and your firm in determining which type of writer is best for you.
Long-form writing is common in content marketing strategies.
As a content writer, you create written content with the goal of informing, entertaining, or educating people. Pillar articles, eBooks, newsletters, podcasts, and engineering white papers are all examples of content writing. Engineering blogs can also be included in content writing, as long as the intent is to inform readers rather than compel them to buy a product.
The core objective is to create useful content for your readers – content writers are often storytellers that engage readers, provide information and build a relationship with their audience.
Every time you create content, you should consider how your information may benefit others. Figure out who your intended reader is, and which topics interest them the most. This will help you in making your content writing decisions.
Copywriting, in contrast, has a very precise objective: to promote a specific product, service, or viewpoint and persuade the target audience to invest in it. These pieces are typically shorter than their content counterparts.
Since people aren’t generally interested in spending a lot of time reading ads, copywriters must summarize their messages in the simplest and briefest form possible. Copywriting must capture the readers’ attention quicker.
Copywriting is all about marketing products and enticing readers to follow through with a certain action, whether it be making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or clicking a link. Copywriting is commonly used in advertisements, sales pages, email marketing, product descriptions, and even scripts and press releases.
Now that I’ve provided a bit of a general definition of content writing and copywriting, let me go into a few more details.
- – Content writing: The goal of content writing is to teach the reader about a specific topic. This could focus on a product’s concept, a technique, an idea, an occasion, or other issues that need to be explained. The more complicated the issue, the more explanation is required.
- – Copywriting: Copywriting aims to elicit an emotional reaction from readers in order to persuade them to purchase a company’s product or service. It’s difficult to ignore well-written copy since it’s largely done to draw and keep a customer’s attention.
- – Content writing: This is a two-way process, involving readers in the content by posing questions and integrating them into discussions on the topic. The content is usually open-ended and free-flowing.
- – Copywriting: This is a one-way process, moving from writer to consumer but not back again. The aim is not to generate conversation or discussion, but to gain new customers, product registrations, new followers (on social media), app purchases, and so on.
- – Content writing: Several tones can be used in content writing, and the tone will primarily be based on the kind of audience you’re writing for. A lifestyle blog’s tone, for example, is usually more informal and casual. Corporate white papers, in contrast, are more formal and may contain technical terminology intended for professional engineers.
- – Copywriting: The tone of copywriting is consistent and constant. It is descriptive, straightforward, and devoid of jargon so it can reach the widest possible audience. Copywriting is employed to create a feeling of immediacy in the minds of the audience, motivating them to take rapid action (like purchasing a product).
Whether you decide to hire a content writer or a copywriter also depends on what type of expertise you require.
- – Content writing: Most copywriters will possess typing and research skills, have CMS experience, command a large vocabulary, be able to manage multiple writing tools, and they’ll likely have a good understanding of the search optimization process.
- – Copywriting: Copywriters will likely possess all of the above, but they’re also particularly geared towards thinking creatively. If you need someone to come up with novel marketing methods or have good narrative skills to construct stories that touch people, a copywriter may be a good bet. Most copywriters will also have knowledge of social media, since this is such an important element of marketing.
- – Content writing: A content writer primarily creates long-form content such as articles, blogs, research papers, eBooks, case studies, etc. Every one of these categories necessitates extensive research in order to effectively convey the subject, and content lengths run from 500 to 5000 words or longer.
- – Copywriting: A copywriter creates short-form content like advertisements, scripts, marketing copy, product descriptions, campaign slogans, social media content, pamphlets, posters, banners, flyers, etc. The length can vary substantially based on the type of material you’re creating. Nevertheless, most copy tends to be short and focused on achieving quick results because few people will spend much time reading these posts.
Chances are you’ll need both a content writer and a copywriter, but you’re likely to need them at different times. If, for example, you’ve just started your engineering company, you may depend more on a copywriter to help come up with initial branding, slogans and copy for your website. If you’re working on a technical or engineering blog, or an ebook for example, you will want to work with a content writer.
Here’s a quick breakdown that may help you.
Use content writing when you want to:
- – Provide information to readers about a certain subject
- – Develop trust and commitment for future sales
- – Concentrate on search engine optimization and driving traffic to the website
Use copywriting when you want to:
- – Produce the copy for your new website
- – Market a product or service to customers
- – Explicitly state your brand’s mission
- – Instill a feeling of urgency in your customers
- – Create an online presence that encourages users to accomplish a specific task
- – Convert visitors into customers or leads
While many copywriters do content and vice versa, it may be worth hiring someone specifically to suit your needs.
Content writing and copywriting can be quite comparable though they differ in terms of content generation, style, and objectives.
Both, however, are essential parts of building a strong online presence.
Contact us if you need an engineering copywriter or technical content writer to help you with your blogs, white papers, case studies, and more.
While generally the distinction between content writing and copywriting is quite clear, this isn’t always the case. Some content, like a well-crafted blog post (usually content wiring) can also include persuasive calls to action (usually copywriting). This would then fall under content and copy.
Some people do work as both content writers and copywriters, but someone would usually lean in one direction or the other. This is simply because there tend to be different skill sets involved. At Engineering Copywriter, we’ve got engineering writers who can cover both.
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Many people use the terms “content writing” and “copywriting” interchangeably. While both content...
