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7 attributes of great financial copywriters

A great financial copywriter

Financial copywriters are a specialist breed and you need to make sure you are hiring the right one.

Some of the attributes you’ll be looking for from your financial copywriter are obvious, some not so and may surprise you.

But all of the things in this post are important to consider if you are about to trust your brand to a writer.

Copywriting experience

Well it goes without saying right?

But really, if you are looking for a copywriter then hire a copywriter, don’t think that someone from the office can do it because ‘it’s only a few words’.

Copywriting takes skill and is harder than it looks.

You might want to find someone who understands SEO or who has experience writing for an insurance company or someone who is really good at making techincal subjects accessible.

But whatever you want you’ll need a copywriter

Financial experience

This is always helpful.

OK so some financial copywriters are amazing even though they have never worked in financial services but not many.

Frankly if you want someone to write about your accountancy software or your B2C loans or your whizzy new fintech app then it’s going to be a lot easier if the person understands a chart of accounts and APR calculations.

It saves you a lot of time explaining things too!


Financial copywriter at his desk
5 ways a financial copywriter can help your business

Something to add

What’s the difference between a good financial copywriter and a great one?

No it’s not a joke.

Genuinely, the difference is that a great financial copywriter will add something to your business.

They’ll come with ideas, tips and tricks to make your copy stand out.

They’ll have something to add to the conversation and it might even be totally unrelated to the copy they are writing.

Good standard of English

You might think that this is a given in the copywriting industry but you’d be wrong.

I’m always amazed when I see work from other writers that just doesn’t make sense.

Or has speeling errors (just my little joke).

Or has clearly been written by AI.

If that spelling error is annoying you then think what it will do to your clients.

Attention to detail

This isn’t just the details that go along with copywriting; it’s the detail that goes along with the gig.

Answering emails

Asking questions is they don;t understand

Making sure their copy is accurate

Delivering on time.

This is one thing that gets my goat. You have a deadline and I’d expect to deliver my copy by then if not before.

Some copywriters just don’t bother.

They get you

This is one of those ‘soft’ things that can’t be quantified but it is absolutely imperative.

They have to get you.

They have to get your company.

They have to understand your tone of voice.

If there’s a mismatch then it’s likely that the copy they provide, whilst great, doesn’t quite do what you want it to.

A great financial copywriter will understand what you are about and how to add real value to your team.

You like them

People laugh when I say this but one of the reasons that I went freelance is that I wanted the freedom to work with people I like.

And you should like your copywriter too.

Life is too short for tetchy meetings and awkward email exchanges.

It’s Friday PM and you want to talk about your campaign but you don’t mind having a little bit of a laugh too.

You have to like the people you are working with, otherwise the time passes very slowly indeed.

Financial copywriters are a different breed

We work differently and we think differently but we’re not that odd!

Someone who has worked in finance for any length of time will understand that there are some things you can say and some you can’t.

They’ll be as invested in the work as you are.

And they’ll add to the project by bringing their knowledge and experience to bear.

If you’d like to have a chat and find out how I can help your business then click the button and let’s talk.

How a financial copywriter can help your software company

Financial copywriter for software company

A Financial Copywriter isn’t perhaps the first person you think of to write content for a software company but read on, as you’ll find that there are some very good reasons why it makes sense.

You see you shouldn’t necessarily be writing for your own industry. (although it is possible you may want to, see below)

The people you are writing for are your customers.

It may seem obvious, but it’s actually a lesson that many people forget and they do so at their peril.

Technical feels good, but actually is bad

This is one of the main problems.

It doesn’t really matter what business you are in and we’re all guilty of this.

You see when I worked as an accountant I made the mistake of thinking that my clients wanted to know that I had completed the bank rec and that form CT600 was ready to go in…

It wasn’t until some way into my career that I realised that many of them wanted two things from me; they wanted me to tell them if things were good, or if there was something they needed to think about.

They genuinely didn’t care that I knew the HMRC code for the form I was sending in, and me telling them it was just me showing off.

Technical details interest people that are in the same industry, but they don’t excite clients to the same degree.

What interests clients is the effect that their application has on their business.

Tone of voice matters

Admittedly I am breaking my own rule here because tone of voice is a technical term used in copywriting.

It means the way things are phrased, the language used, the manner of writing.

The problem is that unless you are a member of the clan you are speaking to then you may not understand what the tone of voice should sound like.

We’re all members of clans and accountants are no different. We have a way of speaking but we are also customers.

I can promise you that if you start using IT type technical terms in a piece aimed at engaging accountants you will be wasting your time largely.


You can find out more about tone of voice by clicking on the image below

How do you choose your tone of voice
Find out more about tone of voice here

Credentials matter

So imagine this; you have an app that is designed to make running an accountancy practice easier.

You have two pieces written, one by your head of sales and one by an accountant who has run an accountancy practice.

Which one carries more weight?

Exactly. So having a copywriter who is experienced in the field as a guest blogger adds weight to your proposition.

Naturally you have to use their name and credentials and some copywriters may not be comfortable with that , but many are.

It’s not about features, it’s about effects

A technical or general copywriter can probably write a great blog all about the features of a piece of software.

But what your customers want to know is what the effect will be.

How will it help their practice?

How will it help their clients?

How will it help their staff?

If you aren’t able to articulate this in the tone of voice that your potential customer base understand then you can forget it.

Why you need a financial copywriter for your software company.

It doesn’t really matter what your software does, what matters is how you talk to your customers.

A great financial copywriter will;

  • Speak in the tone of voice your customers prefer
  • Use the language of your customers
  • Understand the effects and benefits of your app
  • Automatically understand the issues your customers are having
  • Add weight to your offer
  • Add credibility to your content
  • Be able to articulate all of this in an engaging piece of content.

So that’s it:- if you are wanting to sell into the accounting and bookkeeping space then you need a proper financial copywriter.

Now where can you find one of them?


Why is copywriting for financial services different?

Freelance financial services copywriter

Financial copywriting is something that involves a very special set of skills and experience and it would be a mistake for companies to think that any copywriter is able to produce good quality content.

There are some specific aspects that you need to think about and in this article I am going to look at what I consider to be the most important pieces of this particular puzzle.

Tone of voice

The tone of voice used in the writing is really important. It gives the reader clues as to the values and attitude of your organisation.

This has changed significantly over the last few years. Two decades ago banks and building societies would use a very conservative tone of voice designed to engender a sense of professionalism, steadiness and respectability to the reader.

However in latter years the dividing line between professional services and other copy has blurred, especially with the advent of new fintech companies.

Newer, younger companies tend to still use a professional tone of voice, but this will be more informal and will be younger in outlook.

This sense of professionalism is important, because if you are looking after people’s money then they need to know that they can trust you.

Accuracy

If you are providing information for your customers then the last thing you want to do is to make simple mistakes.

Accurate writing is important as errors can cost people money and reduces confidence in your brand.

A good financial copywriter understands this and fact-checking comes as second nature.

This is perhaps the biggest difference between a general copywriter who may be writing lifestyle articles and general blog posts and the professional financial copywriter.

Experience

A great financial copywriter will have relevant experience and will be able to add in value from their own background.

Being able to weave in real-life examples to an article is especially valuable as it add depth and richness.

For example an article from a financial software company that is written by a qualified accountant who has actually run finance departments carried much more weight.

Gravitas

Many clients prefer to have their articles prepared on a ‘white label’ basis. This means that the writer completes the article but this is posted either using the name of an employee of the company or using just the company name as an author.

However, with financial copywriting the option is available to include the name and credentials of the writer.

An expert guest writer who has relevant and direct experience of the issues at hand adds gravitas when posting for their client companies.

Clarity of language

Financial subjects can often be steeped in jargon and three-letter acronyms.

A great financial copywriter will be able to take the key points and add the kind of clarity that your customers need to fully understand the subjects that they are reading about.

This use of language, transferring complex topics into easily understandable and engaging content is a key difference between and ordinary copywriter ans a specialist.

In summary

Expert financial copywriters are experienced in taking complex models and breaking them down into their basic building blocks, then producing a clear and understandable narrative for the layman.

They understand the need for accuracy and credibility and will bring a sense of gravitas to you company.

If you would like to talk to me about writing for your company then why not get in touch by clicking the button below?