5 New Trends that Spell Opportunity
for Digital Copywriters

Man with his back to the camera looking at the ocean

I love this about the Web …

It’s a dynamic space. Everything is changing.

Old media never changed much. Writing a print ad for a magazine is the same today as it was 20 years ago.

Same with writing a radio commercial. Or writing copy for a billboard.

Same old, same old.

But online … wow.

The landscape is changing all the time.

And to me … and every online copywriter … that rapid rate of change spells opportunity.

Here are just five of the fast-developing trends I’m tracking right now.

Trend #1 — The rise of short-form copywriting

It used to be that copywriters were prized for their ability to write long copy.

Sometimes that copy was for a print ad, or a piece of direct mail.

Online, long copy is still used effectively on sales pages.

And don’t get me wrong, there is still a demand for long-form copywriting. It’s an amazing skill.

But if you’re asking me about trends, and about the future, I’d encourage you to at least take a look at the demand for short-form copy.

What do I mean by that?

Look at the amount of copy on a Facebook Ad. Or an Instagram Ad.

Count the words on display ads on some of your favorite news or sports websites.

Look at the amount of copy on one of those annoying popups.

Or on one of those small ads that appear on your smartphone.

And count the characters in the average email subject line.

These are all places where you have very few words to play with. BUT … these are also key drivers of business online.

The copy may be short, but these short bursts of copy are an incredibly important component of any digital marketing sequence.

Master short-form copywriting, and you’ll be in massive demand.

Trend #2 — Increasing demand for video scripts

Here’s another area of huge and rapid growth.

Video.

In particular … and to continue with the “brevity” theme … short-form promotional videos.

I’m sure you’ve seen them … on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

And that doesn’t even take into account the 1 BILLION people who use TikTok each month!

These are super-short videos. But they’re an incredibly powerful way to attract attention, generate leads, and drive sales.

And someone has to write those video scripts!

Am I right about the level of demand?

I think so! According to Wyzowl, 87% of online marketers use video as a marketing tool.

54% of consumers want to see more video content. (HubSpot)

And by the end of this year, 82% of all Internet traffic will come from video streaming and downloads. (Citco)

Like I said … a huge opportunity!

Trend #3 — It’s still a thing … Quality content, everywhere

Maybe writing sales copy or video scripts isn’t your thing.

Maybe you’d be more comfortable writing editorial content … like blog posts and buyer’s guides.

You’re in luck.

While content writing may not be “new,” it’s still an area of huge growth and demand.

The demand is particularly high for QUALITY content.

How come?

Because quality web content engages prospects, and engaged prospects are more likely to buy.

That’s why companies pay so much attention to their content, and why they are always looking for new and fresh writers to try.

Trend #4 — How voice search is revitalizing SEO

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has been an essential part of online marketing for over 20 years now.

It’s all about writing and “optimizing” a web page so it appears in the search results on Google.

For a while now, plenty of pundits have been saying SEO is dead!

Not so. Absolutely not true. Optimizing pages for the search engines is still as essential as ever.

And companies need “SEO copywriters” to help them win in the race to appear on page one of those search results.

But there’s more!

The world of SEO is being revitalized by the growth of voice search.

Voice search is when you speak your query into your phone or a smart speaker at home. Like, “Alexa, where can I find a good house painter?”

You don’t type it, you speak it.

Voice search is totally disrupting the world of SEO right now.

And, as always, disruption translates into opportunity for writers like you and me!

Trend #5 — Exploding demand for chatbot scripts

This is one of my favorites. It’s an area where I’m investing a ton of my own time and attention.

I’m talking in particular about when companies reach out to you through Facebook Messenger.

Out of all of these five trends, this is the one showing the fastest growth right now.

EVERY company out there should be marketing through Facebook Messenger chatbots. Thousands already are. But most of them haven’t got there yet.

They don’t know how! In particular, they don’t know how to write effective scripts for the messages and flows that every chatbot needs.

Again, this is about short-form copywriting … but of a very particular kind.

And it’s an area that offers a huge opportunity for writers who dive in and learn the core copywriting skills they’ll need.

BONUS Trend # 6 — Everything Web3

This is something fresh new. Which is one of the reasons I love it!

Web3 is the name being given to a new iteration of the Internet being built on blockchains like Ethereum.

This space is already huge.

Two of the biggest areas of activity are NFTs and DeFi.

Trading in NFTs reached $22 billion in 2021 alone.

Established artists like Damien Hurst have launched new works of art as NFTs.

Big brands like Coca-Cola, Gucci, Nike and Adidas have created NFTs for their fans. Sports teams and celebrities too. Snoop Dogg is a major collector of NFT art.

DeFi – short for Decentralized Finance – is the playground of choice for a whole new generation of investors.

The DeFi sector, measured by the market capitalization of the top 100 DeFi coins, is a huge $105 billion as of January of this year.

Does this translate into new work for digital copywriters?

It sure does!

In fact, my biggest new client this year, by far, is immersed in both NFTs and DeFi. Part of my fee agreement includes payment in crypto!

It’s early days in this space, but it’s good to know that more and more fresh opportunities are coming our way.

Wrapping this up …

Like I said at the outset, I love the online copywriting space because it’s fast moving.

There are always new trends to identify.

And when I see an area that is growing fast, I like to ride that wave and use its momentum to propel my career forward!

Whatever kind of writer you are, I bet one of these five trends could do the same for you.

Jump on and use it to accelerate your own success as a writer!

Did any of these trends create a spark in you? Share with us in the comments.

The AWAI Method™

The AWAI Method™ for Becoming a Skilled, In-Demand Copywriter

The AWAI Method™ combines the most up-to-date strategies, insights, and teaching methods with the tried-and-true copywriting fundamentals so you can take on ANY project — not just sales letters. Learn More »


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Published: February 3, 2022

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