TOR. How much pain and tears this abbreviation hides. Especially I will be understood by specialists who, 8-10 years ago, also began their careers on copywriting exchanges. We also rewrote the texts several times, because the customer said, not all points from the TOR were fulfilled.
But even now, the most painful and offensive thing is when the edits come based on nonexistent points from the terms of reference. For example, a client indicated an inaccurate volume, and then complains that the text is too small. Or when they set only a general topic (“Write me a text about plastic windows”), and then in the correspondence they accuse of incompetence, they say, it was necessary to write only about its characteristics, and not life hacks for self-assembly of windows.
So that's it. There are two main ways to quickly and efficiently work on orders and not cry afterwards at night:
not to work with a TOR with vague formulations and inaccuracies (in 9 out of 10 cases, problems later arise with them);
teach customers to give correct terms of reference.
But if copywriters abandoned every “inaccurate” TOR, then now not a single representative of this profession would have survived. In case of lack of data, experienced specialists ask the client to additionally fill out a questionnaire, where it is requested all the necessary information. But often very busy businessmen do not even find time for this and end up with a low-grade content, or high-quality content that does not meet expectations.
It remains to teach clients to correctly formulate the terms of reference, but we will talk about this in one of our next materials. And now we will talk about the sore point - common problems when working with customers, who do not allow you to write the content that you are counting on.
This article will cover the following questions:
Text or article?
Why is it important to provide background information about the company?
Why so expensive?
How not to write a TOR.
How to draw up the terms of reference if you want to get a high-quality text.
Why doesn't a copywriter's text sell?
How to choose an intelligent author?
What do copywriters expect from customers?
Many customers call everything an article: from a press release and an informational message to a review, an interview, a text on the main page and in the sections. It is important to understand that an article is a genre of journalism, which is characterized by a deep analysis of facts and phenomena with a pronounced social orientation, but this is not a description of a product in a catalog or a text on the page “Our Activity”.
When you ask an artist with a degree in journalism or philology to write an article for a landing page, they have a cognitive dissonance: "What the hell do you want from me?" Therefore, one of the first points in a human-readable TOR is the purpose and goal of the text. Here are examples of correct and understandable wording:
“We need an informational text for the section “ Mink coats ” on how to choose and care for a fur product. The structure of the text is attached. "
or
“Write an ad block on the home page of the site describing the benefits of working with the company (up to 10 points). The TOR benefits of our cooperation are attached. ”
There are three main types of content on the Internet: informational, advertising-informational and advertising (in relation to commercial resources). If you indicate what the text should do (inform, involve the target audience, remove objections, sell), then it will be much easier for the author to choose the correct structure (if it is not given) and words. Thus, you increase the chances of getting the text you are counting on.
Customer: Write me a text in the "About us" section.
Copywriter: Good. Can you provide information about your company (year of foundation, achievements, how many people are on the staff, what is the mission and the brand values)? It can be in the form of a TOR .
Customer: No.
Copywriter: Why?
Customer: If I have to tell you everything, I will write it myself.And again the pain. This lyrical digression clearly shows why, instead of a high-quality description of the company, which confirms its high status and professionalism, customers receive a cheap rewrite from the competitors' website. What is there to do? No information is given, but the order must be submitted on time.
About “I'll write it myself”. As practice shows, there are two main options for the development of events:
1. You find a contractor who does not require any real information from you about the company. They will also rewrite a more or less thematic description or invents information out of their head. Below is an example of what can come of it.
Expectation: “XXX company has been operating in the market since 2005. The main specialization is the design and construction of prefabricated buildings and residential buildings. During our existence, we have implemented more than 300 projects, and the total volume of work performed has already exceeded 11,000 m2 of cozy comfortable housing and premises for various purposes. "
Reality: “Our company has been building houses using pre-fabricated technology for several years. We have a lot of positive feedback and completed projects. We are real professionals in our field who are ready to provide you with a full range of services. "
Do you see the difference?
2. You are trying to write the text yourself, but SEO experts say that you need to insert some keywords into it. You get nervous, don't understand anything, and in the end you just copy-paste someone else's "About Us" section, changing the name of the company to your own. What can this lead to? For example, you can catch Panda for repeatedly stealing content. Yes, Google's Panda filter, which leads to a drop in site rankings, natural traffic and slow indexing of new pages.
Let's be honest: no copywriter is an expert in all areas at the same time. To write useful and reliable material, you need to connect an expert opinion. Typically, this is the business owner or other responsible person. If the person makes contact, then the material is written quickly and without problems. If you constantly do not have time, then the work on the project is significantly delayed and deadlines are missed, or you again will get low-quality content.
Oh, and this is my favorite. Usually, outrage about the cost of writing texts is expressed by people who have never turned to copywriters before. They don't know what the process of creating content is: how it goes from the customer through the project manager to the writer, from a list of keywords to structured and meaningful text on a given topic.
Basically, you pay for the qualifications and experience of a specialist. It depends on whether the content will fulfill the assigned tasks:
Entrepreneurs, whose websites are consistently in the TOP of search results, will never ask professionals: "Why is it so expensive?" Because they perfectly understand how much labor is needed to write one high-quality SEO-optimized text and what result it brings. Because they know how many specialists are involved in this.
Most reputable copywriting agencies and IT companies offer fair value for their services. But if they seem to you, to put it mildly, “not democratic”, you can always turn to copywriting exchanges, where they still offer copywriter services at a price of 4-5 lei / 1000 characters. Although such texts cannot be called content, this is an almost random set of words and phrases generated through a free synonymizer. Here's an example (I generated the first paragraph of this article): Would you place such a text on your website? I'm sure not. Therefore, copywriting costs as much as it costs.
“100% unique. by Text.ru
Volume - 2500 characters
List of keywords (and further - the list) "
If you send such a TOR to the writer, then the result will be 100% opposite to what you expect, because no one knows what exactly these three lines mean. In principle, such a formulation can hardly be called a TOR, because it omits important information for writing content. And we are talking not only about technical aspects, but also about the text itself: what should be the structure, in what language should it be written, from which keywords to create H1, H2, what exactly should be told in blocks, the limit of spam, water content, etc.
If the writer works conscientiously, then they will definitely start throwing questions at you directly or through the project manager. And it will do this until you provide all the necessary information or refuse to cooperate with the company. Nobody wants and cannot work on “conditional” conditions and produce a specific result.
Remember: if instead of a full-fledged TOR you give a three-line text uniqueness-volume-keywords, then then do not complain that the text is “not about that”.
We are already preparing a detailed manual in an understandable language for drawing up a TOR, which will greatly facilitate your life and that of your writers. As part of this material, I would like to give a very brief summary of what needs to be indicated in the terms of reference if you want the expectation regarding the content to coincide with reality:
- Indicate the topic and type of text (selling, SEO text, informational, advertising, etc.);
- Specify the volume (5000 characters / no spaces, tolerance +/- 250 characters);
-Specify uniqueness (100% for Text.ru, at least 95% for Advego);
-Tell about your target audience (for example, single girls between 18 and 35 years old) so that the author can write in the language of this age / socio-demographic group the text and communicate your message more effectively;
-Determine the need to use keywords in the text. If they are needed, note them in the TOR with a list with clarifications (only in direct entry / can be declined, frequency of use, etc.);
-Describe the structure (heading, subheadings, what the blocks should be about and how big they should be). If you do not do it, then later you will not be able to prove to the writer that it is incorrect and demand a free rework;
-Give the exact requirements: writing style, first / third person call, literacy, readability, etc .;
-Indicate what should not be in the text (template expressions such as "Today", "As you know", links to third-party sites, etc.).
Tip: Attach examples of materials that you like if you can't seem to spell out the structure. This will allow the specialist to better understand what exactly you want. For example:
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Yes, if it is a selling text. But not everything is so simple. Content is only one of the links in website promotion, it cannot win a market war without such allies as good traffic to the site, correct design and placement of text on the page, nice design that increases the efficiency of interaction with the information presented. And the list goes on.
Do not expect a miracle from the selling text if your website is visited by an average of 10 people per month. Or you have a construction business, and the text describing the benefits of the company and asking for a call, is placed on a pink and blue background. Yes, design can kill even the most ingenious sales text from Gary Halbert. It's hard to convey how copywriters feel when their text is treated this way. Although no, it's not difficult:
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If the content is really high-quality (targeted at the target audience, includes social evidence, gently leads to conversion action, evoking the “right” emotions), and the boom in calls and requests did not happen, then the reason for this may be:
bad reputation of the promoted product / service on the network;
lack of price, or it is greatly overpriced;
technical problems on the site;
Ideally, content creation is done by the: client, copywriter, designer. Sometimes an SEO specialist, layout designer and others can connect. Therefore, before lashing out at a writer with accusations, test the text in proper conditions and assess whether the past web design does not interfere with its correct perception.
And this is not the pain of copywriters, but of the customers. Who would not want to find a content specialist who will understand at a glance and without technical specification, take inexpensively for work and consistently write fast? But let's be realistic: any work should be paid in accordance with knowledge, experience and skills.
How to check what the author is capable of? Look through the portfolio, read the reviews of those who have already ordered texts from them. If you have a positive impression, check the price and start cooperating.
What else is important to consider when choosing an artist to write texts:
Personal impression. Remember, if the project is large, then there will be a lot of content work on it. If possible, talk to a specialist in person, make sure that you can find a common language.
Professional skills. If you have a complex technical topic, it is best to search a little longer, but find a writer with a good knowledge of your field. As the saying goes, no one can write a text on medical topics better than a doctor.
Responsibility. You can check whether the performer always delivers the work on time by studying the reviews.
Where to look?
Copywriting exchanges. If you are a gambler, then you come here. The prices are loyal, the choice is large. But there is always a risk that the author will break the deadline by abandoning the task at the last moment, or the text will have to be sent for revision 10 times.
Official sites, copywriting agencies. Cooperation with such copywriters is guaranteed quality and “working” selling texts. But you will have to pay not only for quality content, but also for the brand.
Digital agencies, IT companies. Here, in addition to the standard package of services for writing texts, you may be offered to conduct an initial content audit, marketing analysis of the site, etc. Thanks to this, it is possible to make the new content as useful and customer-oriented as possible.
Compliance with payment deadlines
A structured TOR
Complete information
Respect
Honesty
Constructive comments on the text
Recognition of professionalism
Love their work
If you are not initially ready to make contact and provide information about the company, to fully draw up a TOR, then you will always get badly written texts. Always always. Because quality content is not created in 15 minutes. Because any professional, including a copywriter, deserves an honest and respectful partnership.
Take content development seriously, as if you're closing a big business deal, and you'll get good texts.
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