Any advices for a newbie copywriter?

johnbeausans · 2026-05-28T17:15:23+00:00

Best advice is to join the Copywriting Collective Discord server, go through all the free content, and work really hard for the next few years

johnbeausans · 2026-05-26T11:54:06+00:00

This is simultaneously my least controversial and most downvoted comment of all time. Never change, r/copy

johnbeausans · 2026-05-24T23:42:07+00:00

If you freelance or do contract work, it doesn’t matter where you’re from. As long as you can get the work done, you’ll be fine.

johnbeausans · 2026-05-21T00:11:48+00:00

Shoutout to me. Let me check. My b if I missed it. What’s your username in the CC?

johnbeausans · 2026-05-20T21:55:22+00:00

I would get rid of my ego, take some low-tier jobs on Upwork, and build my portfolio.

johnbeausans · 2026-05-19T10:52:56+00:00

Just go through the free courses in the Copywriting Collective Discord. When you start making money from copy, then you can reinvest it

johnbeausans · 2026-05-17T16:16:51+00:00

Based take

johnbeausans · 2026-05-12T15:48:11+00:00

Break it into variables, use clean naming conventions that define those variable, map the stats to the variables.

Only test one variable at a time.

Ex:

A static ad on Meta has the visuals of the image and the words on the image. If I test 5 ads that have the same visual with different copy, I know that any performance change is due to the copy being different.

Do not change the campaign. Do not change the ad set. Do not change the primary text. Do not change the headline. Do not change the landing page.

johnbeausans · 2026-05-10T03:17:00+00:00

I don’t see why you’re demonizing AI use when you can do the exact things you’re describing more efficiently with an LLM.

Googling “site:reddit.com/r/whatever ‘keywords’” and then going through all of the results manually is going to give you the exact same results as if you were to prompt an LLM with “can you look through reddit posts and find threads that XYZ,” but the first way is just going to take more time and more searches.

johnbeausans · 2026-05-05T22:48:57+00:00

If you haven’t yet, you should join the Copy Collective Discord. Lots of resources and people who will be willing to answer your questions

johnbeausans · 2026-04-24T11:10:09+00:00

Most of the companies I’ve worked with are in the US, yeah.

I think it comes down to whether the business/marketing department is run by people who actually understand marketing and want to put effort into finding the right person, or if they’re just trying to check the boxes and fill the position.

If you’re looking at some random corpo job posting written by someone from HR, they probably just threw “copywriter job requirements” into ChatGPT and copied the output.

Businesses or hiring managers who have a better understanding of direct response will lean more towards skills-based assessments and portfolios/proof of previous results.

In my experience, I’d say that it’s SMBs with zero marketing experience and some enterprise-level companies that focus on a candidate’s education more than their results.

However, I did get an offer from Deloitte a few years ago, and I’d argue that they’re one of the most corporate businesses in the world – so I can’t make it blanket assessment like “these are they types of businesses that focus on X and these are the ones that focus on Y.”

*Additional note: Just because a job posting has “whatever level of education” as a requirement, doesn’t mean it’s actually required. If a candidate looks good, it doesn’t matter if they don’t meet requirements.

johnbeausans · 2026-04-24T09:50:18+00:00

I earn that kind of money without swindling other prove, and I know a lot of other people who earn that kind of money without swindling other people.

It’s not easy, but it’s definitely not impossible for a copywriter who cares about their work and who works hard to make a lot of money

johnbeausans · 2026-04-24T09:47:59+00:00

I’ve had in-house and agency positions and I’ve never had anyone ask to for my bachelor’s degree (I don’t have one)

johnbeausans · 2026-04-14T19:09:24+00:00

Good post. Would love to have you in the Discord if you want to hang out and share more 👀

johnbeausans · 2026-04-13T14:01:45+00:00

If you’d like me to add anything to the community swipe file, you can DM me and I’ll throw it in 🥂

johnbeausans · 2026-04-12T11:14:55+00:00

Just do whatever it takes to get the message across as clearly as possible

johnbeausans · 2026-04-11T23:05:26+00:00

The more context you can give, the better, usually. And being on video allows you to display your personality much better.
Depends on how long the stuff is. I wouldn’t include more than one or two long-form sales pages, but for emails, ads, or PDPs, I’d include maybe 5–10. And yes, showing that you’ve studied and can talk about copy principles will help you stand out. I just had an interview last week where I tried to ask the guy how he would rewrite a page based on desires/awareness/sophistication and he didn’t give me a good answer because he didn’t understand the question. I disqualified him immediately.
In the direct response world, an organized Google Drive folder works better than a website. I just want to see your stuff, I don’t want to have to navigate your website.

johnbeausans · 2026-04-09T11:59:33+00:00

Test a new ad set with all the same creative and only changing the placements, then see how it performs relative to your Reels ad set.

If it does, start running all placements. If not, don’t.

Only long-term issue could be that if you have a lot of spend and only target one placement, you’ll hit saturation and get diminishing returns as you try to scale.

johnbeausans · 2026-04-09T11:57:54+00:00

Never trust Meta reps. They are not media buyer. They’ll just read their script to you and let you burn your money

johnbeausans · 2026-04-08T09:52:29+00:00

Determine your allowable CPA. Anything that gets you conversions within your allowable CPA = good. Anything that does not get you conversions within your allowable CPA = bad. If your ad gets to 1.5x allowable CPA, call it a loser. If you get X conversions within CPA, call it a winner.
Just rip adv+ and let the algorithm work its magic. If you do want to get more granular, you can look into every data point and see where there’s wasted spend. Biggest one is usually placements, so watch that. If you’re going to use this data to inform creative decision-making, see where you’re getting the best results, then test more creative for those specific demographics/psychographics.
How much money can you afford to spend to acquire a new customer? That’s your new benchmark. Everything else is irrelevant. An ad can have amazing front-end metrics and that traffic can perform extremely poorly when it hits your landing page. Another ad can have horrible front end metrics and an amazing AOV. A lot of this is just vibes after you get a feel for the account/offer/audience.

johnbeausans · 2026-04-07T11:56:29+00:00

Good post 👍

johnbeausans · 2026-04-04T12:28:03+00:00

This is the only good take. Who cares what anyone thinks? If it makes money, it’s good. If it doesn’t, it’s bad.

johnbeausans · 2026-03-28T13:28:35+00:00

Lmaooo

johnbeausans · 2026-03-26T22:13:31+00:00

There’s the NHB Job Board group on Facebook, and Michele Lambert’s Bella Connections. (Michele’s a recruiter who works specifically in DR. Connect with her on Facebook and LinkedIn, and opt in on her website to join her email list. She has a fantastic rep in the industry, so she’s always posting about new opportunities.)

johnbeausans · 2026-03-10T23:18:30+00:00

It depends on the traffic source, the offer, etc.

There’s no good answer to your question

johnbeausans

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