What's your market?

I bought two pairs of apparently identical trousers by mail order the other day. When they arrived I tried one pair on to make sure they'd fit, as sizes vary so much. They were fine. Then I tried the other pair on and they were a bit tight. Not bad enough to need sending back, but definitely smaller than the other pair.




It got me thinking. They were probably cut out by machine, so the pattern pieces will have been the same size for both pairs. Only when the pieces went to the (human) machinist did the size alter - but not sufficiently for them to be re-classified as a smaller size or to be sold as seconds. They're fine, just not the same as the other pair.


It's human input that makes the difference.




Same with writing. Two people can work on an assignment (say writing an article for a web site) and produce completely different pieces. Identical subject, different angle. Or, if it's a re-write to keep a web page fresh, they'll make different choices of words and change the whole feel of the article.


That's what makes copywriting so interesting: the individual slant each of us brings to a piece of writing. It's also why one person will write better for business-to-consumer (B2C) copy while another is better at business-to-business (B2B): the first will have a chattier style, the other a more formal, less sales-orientated one. Some lucky people can manage both and they really thrive.



B2C tends to fairly niched - you write a good sales letter for one business and its competitors ask you to write for them too. Writing for B2B is much more varied - you never know whether you'll be writing a Company Report for an oil company, a brochure promoting a conference venue or a website for a high-end leather-goods company catering to executives. You're still in the persuasion business, but you can leave out all the high emotion of B2C sales copy.



It can take a while to discover your style, but once you've found it you're half-way to finding your clients; you at least know which sector you're aiming for (B2C or B2B). They both pay well, once you've got a bit of experience under your belt, and there's plenty of work in both areas.



Which way do you think your talents lie? Worth a thought...