Why niching into website copy for creative service providers saved my freelance business

Do you remember the day you decided to start your creative freelance business?

And on that day, did you have an idea of what you were going to do, how it was going to work, and who you wanted to work with?

Well, I didn’t. I literally woke up one day during one of the pandemic lockdowns (Melbourne, Australia had the WORST relentless lockdowns in the world) and said to myself, “I’m going to start a freelance copywriting business”. 

But it came from months of spiralling thoughts during lockdown. I was working at a chocolate shop at the time, so I was stuck at home thinking about how I could make money doing something I actually liked.

And during this time, like many others, I indulged in the Netflix monstrosity that was Tiger King, wore my oodie every day (it’s an Aussie thing, look them up!) and went for walks within the same 5km radius, because that’s all we were allowed to do. 

But, being the kind of action-taker I am, I decided to do something productive and started filling my days with educational YouTube videos and short courses, all about copywriting. I had zero copywriting experience or qualifications, had never really written anything other than a mediocre English paper, and I wasn’t even a bookworm.

I was a graphic designer and finished artist for nearly a decade, with a background in marketing and advertising. I worked for big corporate brands like Coles Supermarkets, Myer, David Jones and Spotlight. But I had always been interested in copywriting, so this was the push I needed (with endless time on my hands) to learn more…

The uncomfortable truth:

I became a freelance copywriter working with all types of clients, but something didn’t feel right

I pride myself on being someone who follows through with my word, so that little thought in my head of “I’m going to start a copywriting business” bothered me to the point where it actually happened. 

Baby-biz Sarah in my freelance copywriting business, early days. Circa 2022 or something.

But because I was still finding my feet, I pretty much took any job I could get my hands on. I would cold-pitch businesses I wanted to work with, and honestly, I was pretty successful. 

I landed my first copywriting project pretty quickly—about page copy and email newsletters for a vegan sweets brand. And then, 

→A natural pet supplement brand, refreshing their product descriptions

→An ebook for a paediatric psychologist

→A promotional social media post for a content creator

As you can see, I had a pretty good variety going on. But as time went on, I kept attracting random projects in all sorts of industries and saying yes to things I didn’t even know how to do (I wrote a Facebook ad once and I had NO idea how to do it). This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because I learned a lot, but when I realised I wasn’t actually attracting the type of premium client I wanted, things started to go pear-shaped.

I felt like I was exhausting myself trying to convince people to work with me rather than showing them that I was the number one choice. I was telling people how valuable copywriting was, why they needed it and why I should be the one to help them.

And this is where I fell flat. I was trying to get clients who would never want or need my services. People who didn’t know why they needed copywriting, or who had the budget for it.

The first time I tried to niche my copywriting business, it didn't work. Here's what happened…

So many creative service providers default to generalism. Here are a few reasons:

1. Fear of missing out on work or losing clients
2. Imposter syndrome (🙋)
3. Not knowing what type of client you want to work with
4. Lack of positioning or purpose

But it can also be because you simply love variety and doing different things. And that was also me—or so I thought.

After much “will-I-or-won’t I”, I decided to try “soft niching down”, and started targeting purpose-led businesses like not-for-profits, brands that donated a portion of their profits to charities and brands that had strong values around the environment and ethical standards. 

I chose these types of businesses because these are my values, too. I wanted to work with businesses that were not just about the money—they wanted to actually help people. So I thought to myself, “This is great, I am SO SURE this is what I want to do”. So, I got serious and hired a copywriter who specialised in SEO to help me with my website copy to target and attract these kinds of businesses.

But my website continued to underperform. The conversations I was having with businesses weren't converting, and honestly, I was miserable. My attempt at “niching” was still way too broad, I wasn’t being clear in my messaging, and I wasn’t attracting any dream clients.

Two failed project proposals later, and that was the last straw. 

My expenses were getting higher, and when I was notified that my rent was going up a massive chunk in price every month, I had a breakdown, and was like “That’s it, I’m quitting my business”.

The online event that showed me exactly what creative service providers were missing

I started applying for part-time copywriting jobs, and was moving into the phase of “accepting” that my business wasn’t going to work at this time in my life (have you ever felt like that?)

But on one fateful day, an email landed in my inbox, advertising a free 3-day online event hosted by Paige Brunton, a Squarespace expert. It was all about how to offer website design services, and for a moment, I thought to myself, “This could actually be really interesting”. As an ex-graphic designer, I was always curious about the design world and open to learning more about web design.

So, I signed up for the event, caught the replays, did the workbooks, mingled with others in the group (all web designers), and it was fun. 

But what happened next was what changed everything.

Designers started requesting feedback for their own websites, which they had built themselves. I had a look at their links and realised something they all had in common. 

Their copy was lacking pizazz.

Their designs were stunning, of course. They were clearly so good at their craft, but when it came to translating their talent and skills into words that attracted and converted their ideal client? Either AI-generated, generic or watering down their personality. 

So, I gave them feedback. Not about their design, but about their copy. And all of them were super grateful. I loved that I was genuinely helping people. This is the kind of thing I was missing in my business. 

So I did what anyone would do, and I posted an IG story sequence. 😂

I recorded a few face-to-camera vids of my findings and some tips that creative service providers could follow to make their copy stronger, appeal to their ideal client better and articulate their offers. I got a pretty good response, and I felt great about it. 

This made me realise that I had found a bit of a gap. People who were friggin’ kickass at the visual side of things, but not so confident at the copy side of things.

So this was where the cogs started turning, and I seriously considered pivoting and giving my business another shot. 

The pivot: how I decided to niche into website copy for creative service providers

I was scared to essentially “start again”. I had put a lot of time and effort into building my brand around my “soft niche,” and I felt it would be a mammoth task to change everything to match this new “idea”.

But this is where I started doing a little customer research. I started having conversations with creative service providers (mostly designers), seeing what they thought about their own copy, and what they wished could help them.

I started becoming more confident and thought to myself that this would be a really good move for me. Instead of doubting myself like before, I started thinking things like:

• I’m an ex-graphic designer, so I have this in common with my audience. I understand their chaotic, creative brain, because I have one too. The 2 am thought spirals, the perfection obsession, I’ve been there!

• I understand what it’s like to hide behind your craft, as I’m an introvert. That’s why I want to make creative service providers feel more confident and authoritative in their copy, so they can stop hiding and attract the premium client they want.

• Copy and design are a match made in heaven. My background in design allows me to think like a designer when writing website copy, because I know how it all works together seamlessly to attract and convert. 

These things were a total mindset shift for me, helping me think positively about what I had to offer and that it was worth it. So naturally, it all slotted into place…

I was going to be a website copywriter for creative businesses. People who had nailed their brand and their website design, but not their words.

I did a professional photoshoot with good friend and kickass photographer, Donald Yip. I walked away with a stack of awesome photos that represented me, my brand and my direction going forward.

The confidence boost: the coaching session that made me believe in myself and commit to my niche

From here, it was as if the universe was giving me a sign. 

I won a giveaway on Instagram from business coach Nadine Selina, winning a 1:1 coaching session, and it catapulted me forward. With her advice, I gained a better understanding of my positioning, which triggered all my ideas about how I wanted to proceed with my business. 

I ended up joining her hybrid group/1:1 5-month coaching program (because I was like “if this is what an hour with her can do, I can’t imagine what 5 months would be like!) where I successfully refined my ideal client, established my offer suite, created a signature framework, learned how to properly market myself and rewrite all my website copy to align with my new messaging.

It was so good having someone who could see what I was building, reflect it back to me, and help me build it. It’s exactly what I needed at the time. 

What happened to my freelance business after I niched into website copywriting for creatives

As I write this, it has now been a whole year since I put my niche into place, and here are the results:

• Landed a dream website copy client: a Squarespace website designer + copywriter, whose project is my absolute favourite to date, showcasing her bold and sassy brand voice, embodying her values, boosting her positioning and point of difference. And she’s gotten great results so far!

• I was a guest on the ‘How I Do Content Podcast’ with the magical marketing and messaging wizard Tahryn Bolt from The Social Bolt. She also became my client, and I am working on refreshing her website copy at the moment—another dream client!
  👉Listen to our episode here, it was such a juice conversation all about how to show your authority in your content.
  

• Landed more clients for both done-for-you website copywriting and website copy audits, including a graphic design studio, a marketing agency in the wedding industry and a purposeful coffee brand (which was my biggest project to date, with a brand voice guide and full website copy overhaul).
  

• Rewrote ALL of my website copy to reflect my pivot, and relaunched my website even though it’s not even finished yet (progress over perfection), and I'm feeling super confident about it because I KNOW who I’m talking to now and am confident in my offers and results.

I relaunched my website, even though it isn’t finished yet. So far, I have gotten such a positive response on how it looks and reads.

• Partnered up with kickass illustrative branding designer Amy from Studio Slatem (who also designed my freaking awesome branding that levelled-me-the-f-up) to create a combined copy and branding offer for creatives who are ready to get their homepage selling for them, The Creative’s Homepage Revival.
  

• Made a white-labelling partnership with a skilled SEO content strategist, who helps me deliver the on-page SEO portion of my copywriting services to clients. This helps me focus on my specialty of brand voice and strategic messaging, so I can fully be in my zone of genius while she takes care of the technical stuff. This delivers a refined job to my clients, without me running myself into the ground.
  

• Allowed me to partner up with website and branding designers for collaborations and white-labelling opportunities. This has been an amazing step up for my business, as I provide a bigger, better service to creatives, helping their clients without them having to fiddle with wording, which isn't their forte.

Since niching down, I have also rebranded myself as a website copywriting specialist. I focus on the specialised area of website copywriting, with a brand-voice-focused approach that follows a strategic, persuasive copy formula (my A+ Copy method within my Booked in the Background framework, ask me about it!). 

This all means I can work with creative clients that light me up. I can collaborate with them to get their website copy finally reflecting their experience, expertise and personality. Website copy that sells for them, bringing in aligned enquiries and call bookings without always relying on social media and referrals. 

Thinking about pivoting your creative business? Here’s my two cents

The best part of my pivot is that I’m not “convincing” people to work with me anymore. The clients I want to attract know the value of impactful website copywriting for their business. They are creators themselves, so they know what it means to put in the effort and hard work to deliver a valuable service. 

They understand it, appreciate it and want a copywriter who is like-minded and has the skills and experience, just like them. 

If you’ve been thinking about pivoting or niching down in your creative business, here’s what I want you to remember:

Nothing is ever set in stone, and you are never stuck.

We put so much pressure on ourselves to “get it right” that out of fear, we don’t take action, and ultimately sabotage ourselves. 

If you do decide to make the leap and it doesn’t work for you, then that’s okay! You have the power to change things for yourself, create your own path, dust yourself off, and try again.

It’s not the end-all, be-all.  

But if you do decide to take the leap and niche and it DOES work out for you, then F YEAH. 

I can honestly say that niching down was the best thing I did for my business. Getting laser-focused, clear about who I wanted to work with, what services I wanted to offer and how I wanted to position myself has changed things for the better, and I’m positive about the future.

And if I decided to throw it in the too-hard basket, I wouldn’t be where I am today or have had the opportunities I’ve had so far.

So here’s your permission to give it a go. But you know what, you don’t even need permission because I know you. You’re a fired-up creative badass!

If you have an idea, a strategy, a whole other ballpark…

Just do it (thanks, Nike).

I’ll be here cheering you on, with my coffee, notebook and greyhound (Rosie) by my side.

Want to talk copy, pivots or Netflix? I'm here for it

If something in my story resonated with you, I’d love to hear it.

My DMs are always open on Instagram or LinkedIn, so come say ahoy! 

Or if you’d like to connect and have a coffee chat, whether it’s about your website copy, a potential collab or just to talk shop or brainstorm (like what you’re watching on Netflix at the mo) I have a casual connection call for exactly that. 

Book below, I'd love to meet you!