I’m too ill to recap the whole debate, but if you want some background on the Copify issue, here’s a quick-n-dirty guide to where in the Blogosphere the debate is happening.
Search Twitter for Copify – you’ll get a rough idea of what’s going on.
Unmemorable Title
Whilst not strictly about (but obviously inspired by) Copify, my post on Paying Copywriters by the Hour has a decent conversation attached.
Ben Locker & Associates
Ben weighs in with what could be described as “cheap traffic bait” or “insightful comments on just how Copify have riled people up”. I favour the latter description, but judge for yourself: Copify, Unprepared to sell Cheap Copy?
ABC Copywriting
Fresh from his Guardian Liveblogging adventure, Tom gives us his two pence worth (if that’s taken literally, it’s much cheaper than 2p per word) and raises an interesting point regarding Google. Read his piece on the perils of content mills.
Lemondrizzle
Don’t think this is purely a copywriting issue. We’ve got comments from the world of PR too. Copywriters. Just how much are you worth?
The Drum
Larner Caleb is right on the money, in hilarious fashion with his sarcastic swipe at content farms, Copify and the cash per word scandal. Is the pen mightier than the sword when it comes so cheap?
Copify Blog
In the name of fairness, and because it’s only right that the company in question get their say, here’s what Copify have to say on the subject.
Oh, and one last link. Just for giggles. Here’s what one half of Copify has to say about the web developer who designed their site.
Before you ask -
Yes, MJR Web is the poster who’s replying on behalf of Copify on the above blogs (with his official Copify email address no less).
No, I don’t know if he wrote his own testimonial or asked his business partner to do it for him, but I think it’s a great tactic nonetheless.
Related posts:
#1 by Jemma on June 2, 2010 - 3:19 pm
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Interesting debate! I reckon it’s getting a bit overboard now though. It’s not going to change anything and so long as customers are informed of the differences then I don’t see why there’s any problem in letting them have a choice of service!
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#2 by Stephen Da Cambra on February 10, 2010 - 2:51 pm
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Tom, Thanks for putting much of the off-Twitter debate into one place. This is an important issue for all copywriters, new and old, and having a bit of a digest helps.
I too took issue with the “changing the way people think..” point. To me, that statement shows what Copify is truly about, not what they have been saying in their blogs and responses.
Stephen Da Cambra´s last blog ..Whatever You Do, Remember Your Brand
#3 by Andrew on February 10, 2010 - 7:51 pm
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Cheers, thank Tom for my post!
#4 by Tom Albrighton on February 10, 2010 - 1:55 pm
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@Martin
I appreciate the polite tone you’re adopting, but your point is disingenuous at best. Only today, you’ve blogged these words:
“Different businesses charge differently for providing the same services. The same principle applies to Copify. You will find plenty of copywriters who will happily charge you 3, 4 or even 5x the amount you would pay from us. Would the quality of work or the end result reflect this? Probably not.”
Rather than ‘acknowledging’ the difference between the ‘personal touch’ and the ‘cost-effective service’, you’re explicitly saying that both offerings are exactly the same, except that yours is far cheaper.
The point, as I’ve exhaustively explained elsewhere, is that a pro copywriter brings a lot more to the table than words on the page. Copywriters naturally object to the implication that research, consultation, discussion and consideration (which account for higher prices) are utterly worthless.
It’s a bit like saying a doctor should just get on with the operation – the hands-on bit – and forget all that tedious diagnosis beforehand.
I don’t really blame you though. If I was promoting your service, it’s probably the line I would take. You can always position yourself as the customer’s champion if you sell on ‘best price’. But bear in mind that if someone cheaper comes along, your USP goes down the pan.
Tom Albrighton´s last blog ..What copywriting clients won’t get from content mills
#5 by Martin Harrison on February 10, 2010 - 12:16 pm
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@ Tom, thanks for the referral. No-one is saying that what you are doing is wrong, but then is what we are doing wrong either? No, it’s just different.
We acknowledge that some people will want the personal touch that you offer, while others will want the more cost-effective approach that we offer.
#6 by Tom Albrighton on February 10, 2010 - 11:22 am
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That’s right Alasdair, and they also have ‘experts in every conceivable subject area’, so you can request your 1500-word editorial on the challenges facing financial regulators, or the latest advances in particle acceleration, in complete confidence.
Tom Albrighton´s last blog ..What copywriting clients won’t get from content mills
#7 by Alconcalcia on February 10, 2010 - 11:15 am
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To be fair Tom, it does say that what you get paid is ‘dependAnt’ on your experience. Mind you, at those rates I couldn’t afford any dependants! They also say they have ‘vast experience’ – yup, just under 3 years each to be precise.
#8 by Tom Albrighton on February 10, 2010 - 11:08 am
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Copify’s blog post of this morning is very interesting:
http://blog.copify.com/2010/02/10/why-you-should-always-shop-around/
This goes to the heart of what irritates many copywriters about Copify’s stance: the implication that ‘by the yard’ content creation and copywriting services are the same thing, and can be compared directly. They’re not, and they can’t. Apples and oranges!
Phrases such as ‘changing the way people think about copywriting’ are aimed at furthering this elision. The idea is that everyone’s been somehow doing it wrong until now.
In truth, I have absolutely no concern that any of my existing clients would switch to Copify – the idea is just risible. For many of them, I add far more value in meetings and consultancy than I do with the actual writing, important though that is. The rest simply could not get a comparable service from a content mill. This is an objective fact, not my judgement.
You could argue that the level of comments make copywriters appear worried and defensive, which is way wide of the mark. In fact, I referred an agency to Copify yesterday, since they were enquiring about ‘by the word’ SEO copy.
Tom Albrighton´s last blog ..What copywriting clients won’t get from content mills