When Should You Hire A Copywriter? A Guide For Small Business Owners
You've rewritten your About page three times. Your homepage keeps you up at night, and you feel waves of imposter syndrome coming over you every time to check out the competition.
So you strip everything back to basics, rewriting your core pages until you're happy. Then a few weeks later you go through the same process yet again.
No matter what you do, your copy either comes across as a corporate brochure that nobody really wants to read, or a nervous ramble. NOW you start to think "hmm..should I hire a copywriter?"
Now, obviously I'm going to say yes, you absolutely should hire a copywriter - but not for the reasons you think.
Hiring a professional copywriter is a deeply personal decision that depends on where your company currently is, if you have a budget, and whether you have the vision to focus on long-term ROI instead of the initial investment.
The No BS Answer
You should think about hiring a copywriter when the cost of not having great copy outweighs the amount you'll spend by asking a professional to write it for you.
Most small business owners frame the question the wrong way. They ask: "Can I afford to hire a copywriter?" instead of the more useful question: "What is my current copy costing me?"
A website that doesn't convert visitors into enquiries. A service page that undersells what you actually do. An email sequence that never gets written because it keeps getting bumped down the to-do list. These things have a cost — it's just less visible than an invoice.
Here's what it looks like in practice.
6 Signs It's Time to Hire a Copywriter
1: Your website is up and running, but enquiries are non existent
There's a huge difference between getting some traffic, and that traffic becoming active leads or sales. If you notice that your website attracts visitors but that's as far as it goes, it's time to consider hiring a copywriter for your business.
An expert can look at your current website copy, assess whether it's sending the right message, and review your calls to action.
Good copy doesn't show or tell. It sells.
2: Writing is about as appealing as doing the washing up
The new service page. The email welcome sequence. The case study from that client you worked with a year ago and keep meaning to write up. The sales page for the thing you're launching in spring.
If it's been on your to-do list for more than six weeks, it's not a time problem. It's a writing problem. And the longer it sits there undone, the more it's costing you in missed opportunities.
If you're not a writer, you'll know how hard it is to not only get motivated, but also put effort into creating marketing materials that will propel your business forward.
3. You're launching something new
From rebrands to new services, your web copy really matters when you're launching something new.
Launching something new with DIY copy that doesn't do it justice is a false economy. The upfront investment in getting it right is almost always smaller than the cost of underperforming for six months and then having to redo it anyway.
4. Your copy sounds nothing like how you actually talk
Read your own website back. Does it sound like you? Or does it sound like a slightly stiffer, more formal version of you — or worse, like it could belong to any business in your industry?
The best copy sounds like the business owner on their best day. Warm, clear, confident. If yours doesn't, a copywriter who takes the time to understand your voice can bridge that gap — and the results tend to be noticeably better, because people buy from people they feel they know.
5. You're growing and can't keep up with the content
Blog posts, newsletters, social captions, service pages, onboarding emails. At a certain point, there simply isn't enough of you to go around — and content tends to be the first thing that slips.
The problem is, inconsistent or absent content means inconsistent visibility. Hiring a copywriter to handle the ongoing stuff gives you your time back and keeps your marketing moving, even when you're busy doing the actual work.
6. You're undercharging, and your copy might be part of the reason why
This one doesn't get talked about enough.
If you're consistently getting pushback on your prices, or you find yourself discounting to win work, it's worth looking closely at how you're presenting your services. Copy that doesn't clearly communicate your value — your experience, your process, your results — puts you in the position of competing on price by default.
A copywriter who understands positioning can help you articulate what makes you worth what you charge. That's not spin. It's just making sure your words do justice to your work.
When You Probably Don't Need One Yet
Not every business is ready to hire a copywriter, and an honest guide should say so.
If you're still in the early stages of figuring out what you offer, who you serve, and what makes you different — a copywriter can't fully help you yet. Copy is built on strategy. If the strategy isn't clear, the words will reflect that confusion regardless of how well they're written.
Equally, if you're genuinely at capacity and can't take on new clients right now, investing in copy that drives more enquiries is just going to create a problem at the other end.
Get the foundations right first — a clear offer, a defined audience, a realistic sense of your pricing — and then bring in a copywriter to communicate that clearly to the world.
What to Look For When You Hire One
You'll find plenty of copywriters in the UK, US, and further afield. The problem? Finding one you can trust.
Heading to Fiverr or choosing a copywriter who guarantees to help you find clients for $10 might seem like a good way to save money, but you get what you pay for.
At the same time, you don't want to hire someone who's willing to charge £3,000 for your small business website.
Here's are the most important things to look for when hiring a copywriter:
Questions: A copywriter should always ask about your ideal customer and target audience. Good copy is written for a specific person, not for everyone. If a copywriter doesn't want to understand who they're writing for, politely wave goodbye and back off.
Samples: Voice and style vary enormously. Ask to see examples relevant to your industry or the type of content you need, not just their most impressive piece.
Understanding: You shouldn't have to spend three hours explaining what you do before someone can write about it. Look for a copywriter who either has relevant experience or does genuine research before picking up a pen.
Clarity: Scope creep in copywriting projects is common. A good copywriter will be upfront about what's covered, how many revisions are included, and what happens if the brief changes.
What Does a Copywriter Actually Cost?
Rates vary, but here's a realistic picture of what to expect from a UK-based freelance copywriter.
For a single piece of work — a homepage rewrite, a service page, a short email sequence — expect to pay somewhere between £150 and £500, depending on the length, complexity, and the copywriter's level of experience.
For ongoing support — regular blog posts, monthly newsletters, consistent content — many copywriters offer retainer packages. These typically run from around £400 to £800 per month for a reasonable volume of work.
What you're paying for isn't just words. It's strategy, research, an understanding of your audience, and the experience to know what works. A copywriter who charges £30 for a blog post is probably producing the kind of content that does nothing for your SEO and little for your credibility. Rates in the middle range, from an experienced specialist, tend to represent the best return.
So...Is Now the Right Time?
If you've recognised yourself in more than one of the situations above, it's probably worth having a conversation.
I work with small business owners — coaches, therapists, consultants, and sole traders — on copywriting, content, and SEO. No long-term contracts, no agency overhead, and no vague deliverables. Just clear, well-written content that reflects your business and works hard to bring the right people in.
Copywriting packages start from £150 for one-off projects.
Or if you'd like to talk through what you actually need before committing to anything, get in touch with me today.
