“How many pages does my copywriter website (really) need?” is the second most asked question by copywriters as they begin to build their freelance websites. And the answer is… Most copywriter websites only need seven to eight pages to get started. Once you have written for a few clients, you can add more pages to showcase your talents, completed projects, and client success stories.
The first step is to determine how you will build your website. You can hire a web developer to create a one-off design that nobody else has.
The smarter and faster option is to use a program (WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, Weebly, or SBI) with a wide variety of customizable templates. After choosing a template, you can customize the components like fonts, background colors, headlines, and images.
Once the page template is complete, it’s time to start writing the seven, or eight, web pages every copywriter website needs.
The Homepage
Since most of your prospects will land on your homepage, it is your best chance to make an excellent first impression. Please resist the temptation to list every potential topic on your homepage. If you do, the result will be an assortment of disorganized topics that need to be clarified for the prospect. Instead, create a funnel of related information that will lead the prospect to your CTA (call-to-action), which should be to learn more, schedule a call, or contact you via email.
Creating this funnel is pretty straightforward once you start thinking like your prospect. Chances are that your prospect knows they need to find a copywriter (or content creator) for __________ project. So let them know you are a copywriter as soon as they land on your homepage. Forget the terms like newbie, aspiring, practicing, and learning to be one. Being connected to the world’s best training resource for copywriters puts you miles ahead of everyone who isn’t.
Next, they’ll look for industry experience that aligns with their services or products. Unfortunately, this is where those who claim they can write anything for anybody usually get left behind. Here’s where having a niche, whether an industry or a specific project type, pays the most dividends. The prospect doesn’t have time for you to learn about their products, services, or industry. They want to find someone to assign this project to and get it off their to-do list.
Now that you have answered their two big questions, it’s time to briefly mention your training, certifications, recent projects, or anything else that might help them say yes to your services. Generally, an H2 or H3 headline and a short paragraph with a link to your training, certifications, or recent projects page (which you can build now or later) are all you need on the homepage.
Portfolio/Products and Services Page
Here is where you can list the projects you can provide for the prospect. You can list them by name with a brief description of each project and the typical turnaround time you require to complete.
You should include some pricing here, but always leave yourself some wiggle room by quoting a range or inform them that you price each project based on the complexity, required research, and your current pipeline of signed projects.
You can also post links to your recently published works, such as blog posts, white papers, web pages, etc. Nothing establishes credibility as quickly as seeing well-written examples of the projects they need to be written. You don’t need to list every blog post you’ve written since becoming a copywriter; three to five recent examples should convince the prospect that you are the right person for the job. List your favorite projects at the top of this list, with the other projects in descending order.
Contact Page
Thanks to all the email scrapers running amok across the internet, including your email link on a web page, which typically results in tons of spam in your inbox. A contact page normally includes a basic questionnaire form and a CAPTCHA (Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart) device to minimize spam.
The questionnaire should require the basics: name, email, and phone so you can reply to their inquiry. However, adding some additional fields, though not required, can help you sort the tire-kickers and shoppers from genuine prospects. For example…
- Website URL
- Project type
- Project schedule
- Project budget
- How did you find me?
The last question can help you determine whether your prospects come from Google searches, LinkedIn, or Facebook. This can improve your marketing efforts and allow you to focus on the best pool of available prospects.
The Hiring Process
This page should outline how you work with clients on a project, from initial contact to final payment. Use a step-by-step approach to spell out your hiring process.
- I typically respond to email inquiries within 24 hours.
- A Zoom or phone call to discuss the details is required before pricing the project.
- I will send a proposal to you within 1-3 days.
- Include your required deposit
- Ongoing payment terms
- When the final invoice is due
- Edits or revisions policy
- Payment options
- Start the project after receiving the signed proposal and deposit.
Having an established hiring process on your website shows that your copywriting business is not some side hustle for a few extra dollars. You are a professional copywriter running a real business providing a highly valuable service to other business owners.
Privacy Policy Page
The Privacy Act of 1975 established a process for handling Personally Identifiable Information (PII) by the federal government. The law has been expanded to include HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) for personal medical records in 1996. Then, in 2003, the California Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) began requiring any website accessible to Californians to provide a privacy policy that states the type of visitor information collected and how it will be used, leased, or sold.
Today, every state has a privacy policy requirement for websites. If someone claims that their privacy was violated, and you don’t have a privacy policy in place, you could be found guilty of violating the individual’s civil rights. If found guilty, you may have to pay substantial fines to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) and damages to the victim.
And no, you can’t copy another website’s privacy policy and call it good. Privacy policies are protected by copyright and intellectual property laws, just like other types of website content. Special Note: If you plan to work with international clients, your website also needs a GDPR compliance widget.
If you connect your website to any social media platforms, your privacy policy must include a link to each platform’s privacy policy to be as transparent as possible to site visitors.
AI Policy Page
While there is no current requirement for an AI policy page, why put off the inevitable? AI isn’t going away anytime soon, so let your prospects know how you do or don’t use AI programs to assist with your writing projects. I don’t use any AI for my writing except for Google searches. I have six ongoing clients, and each has asked me to sign and add a “No AI” rider to my copywriting proposal.
Despite all the talk about the benefits of AI, the Supreme Court has already ruled that “human authorship ‘is a bedrock requirement of copyright’ — works generated by AI without sufficient human contribution do not meet the human authorship requirement and thus are not currently copyrightable under U.S. copyright law.”
The courts have also issued similar rulings for art, images, music, computer programs, online platforms, and patents, stating that the absence of a “guiding human hand” disqualifies the AI-generated product/service from copyright protection.
404 Page
You will likely delete, rename, or combine pages as you expand your website. As a result, you’ll need a 404 Error page informing your visitors that the page can’t be found. The 404 page doesn’t require much content, but it should include an in-context link to your homepage and the site navigation bar to avoid creating a dead-end for your visitors.
Affiliate Disclosure Page
I saved this page for last because it’s an “if-then” topic. Bonus points if you like coding humor, too. If you plan to sell other people’s or other company’s products through your website to collect a commission, then you must have an “affiliate disclosure” on your website.
This page doesn’t have to include the commission amount, but it must state that you collect a fee when your site visitors purchase these products. It should also include language stating that you don’t recommend the product/service because you are getting paid.
And that covers the seven or eight pages needed for your new copywriter website. Of course, you can add as many pages as you like. As you build your site, always focus on quality over quantity. Having 100 poorly written pages won’t improve your SERP (Search Engine Results Page) ranking or deliver the prospects you’re hoping to attract and convert to clients.
