You’ve probably heard the roles of copywriting and content writing. This position plays an essential role in effective business marketing and brand-building purposes.

Some of us may less know the difference between them. Thus, both those roles are often misunderstood. 

Regardless of their similarities, copywriting and content writing are two distinct disciplines.

Understanding the difference between those roles can help you to decide which one is suited for your career.

In this article, we describe the difference between copywriting and content writing so you can gain a better understanding.

Read on to find out more!

What Is Copywriting?

Copywriting is a part of marketing content and advertising a product or service. It is the art of building brand awareness and persuading the readers by constructing the right words.

The word in copywriting comes from “copy, ” which describes text for an article or advertisement.

Meanwhile, the copywriter is a talent behind the creative words. Copywriters are responsible for writing the text or copy for marketing materials. 

They have the ability to create attractive, persuasive, and evoking emotions like FOMO (fear of missing out).

Hence the readers can take action by clicking on a link, making a purchase, downloading a report, or anything related to your business sales process, and even engaging with a company.

What Is Content Writing?

Unlike copywriters, content writing is a form of writing to inform, educate, and entertain readers.

This type of writing focuses on creating engagement and building trust with the audience. If the writer successfully engages with the audience, the readers will come to trust the brand and show an interest in the product or services.

Content writers specialize in writing online content. They craft words and materials for any digital medium.

They also fulfill the reader’s information needs and increase engagement with relevant content. The content topic is often achieved through some research.

Thus, the author can provide content with the necessary facts. The topic objective is to interest the reader and increase the traffic website, lead generation, or bounce rate.

These professionals strive to generate web traffic using search engine optimization (SEO). Moreover using SEO and keywords in original content has become the fundamental way of appearing at the front of searches. 

Hence, it’s easier for some companies to attract audiences and potential customers.

What Is The Difference?

Although copywriting and content writing are interconnected, they are still different. Here are some key points for you to remember between those two.

The Length

One crucial comparison between copywriters and content writers is the length of their writings. Typically the length of copywriting is not as long as content writing.

A copywriter writes short-form copies like slogans, sales copies, product descriptions, taglines, social media posts, brochures, posters, billboards, flyers, etc. 

Therefore, it has to be brief without tangents. The purpose of copywriting is to increase brand awareness and sales.

While on the other hand, content writing has a more in-depth description of a topic. The writer will compose the content with well-prepared research.

Furthermore, content writers usually produce articles, blog posts, whitepapers, ebooks, case studies, and web page content to grow customer engagement and brand image.

Depending on the topic, they can write between 500 to 2,500 words. As content writing aims to educate readers, the content should describe the issue well with more evidence.

Insightful content tends to be more valuable to readers.

The Purpose And Goals

On the copywriter side, The goal of copywriting is to increase sales and sell a product. Therefore, it would be best to consider its purpose or objectives before composing it.

Copywriters inform the product or service you sell. Then, it will present the end of the copy with a call to action to the ad or landing page.

As a result, copywriting can persuade the reader by inciting an emotional response. 

On the other hand, content writing aims to share engaging information and allow readers to understand the company’s brand.

Content writers encourage their brand loyalty through writing articles. For example, the story may discuss the brand itself, a technology, a concept, or any other topic that requires explanation.

A successfully written article will attract and maintain the reader’s attention.

The Skills

You have to be a creative thinker if you want to be a successful copywriter or content writer.

The writer of copywriting and content writing must understand the target audience’s needs in the beginning phase. So, they can achieve the desired result such as customer satisfaction, lead generation, and successful online marketing campaigns.

A copywriter must have the following skills:

1. Understand SEO
2. Ability to write persuasively
3. Excellent team working skills
4. Analytical Skills
5. Know the audience
6. use storytelling to stir emotions in the reader.
7. Ability to simplify complex information
8. Implement the appropriate brand “voice” to connect with readers
9. Strong grasp of grammar and proofreading
10. Time management

While for content writing, you must have the following skills:

1. Extensive research skills
2. Excellent understanding of SEO practices
3. Strong grasp of grammar and proofreading
4. Have the ability to write across several topic areas and industries
5. Know the audience
6. Analytical Skills
7. Time management
8. Present fresh content ideas
9. Generate structured content to make it easy to read and scan
10. Implement appropriate keywords to maximize search engine visibility

As explained above, you should already know the difference between copywriting and content writing. Although these two roles may have similarities, they are still different.

A copywriter is to persuade people to take action with brief information, whereas a content writer educates the reader with a detailed description. You can do both of those experts in your career as a writer expert in the future if you have the willingness to learn it.

If you wish to make the right decision to become a content writer or copywriter, visit our career page to check out the latest job openings. Contact us for further information.