Copywriters

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Copywriters write the words a business sells with: website pages, email sequences, ads, brochures, product descriptions, case studies, proposals and long-form articles. Some specialise by format, some by sector, and the best of them spend most of their time on research and structure rather than on phrasing. A copywriter who asks to interview your customers before quoting is usually worth more than one who asks for a word count.

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Every claim a copywriter writes becomes the client's claim. CAP Code rule 3.7 requires marketers to hold documentary evidence before distributing a marketing communication to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation, and rule 3.1 prohibits materially misleading communications. Testimonials bring their own requirements: evidence that they are genuine, contact details for the person who gave them, and permission to use them.

The ownership position also runs the opposite way to what most clients assume. Under UK law the person who wrote the text is its first owner unless there is a written agreement transferring it, so an article paid for at a per-word rate can still belong to the writer. Add to that the moral rights in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, and a short clause in the contract saves a long conversation later.

Kinds of copywriting, and why the rate differs

Website and landing page copy, priced by page or project because the research dominates the time.
Email and lifecycle sequences, where the value is in the sequence logic as much as the sentences.
Advertising copy, short, expensive per word, and the most exposed to the CAP Code.
Long-form content and thought leadership, usually needing subject interviews rather than desk research.
Technical and regulated-sector writing, where accuracy carries more weight than style and review cycles are longer.
Tone of voice work: a document and examples that let other people write in a consistent register.
Editing and rewriting existing copy, which is a different job from writing and should be scoped separately.

Claims, testimonials and evidence before publication

The evidence rule bites at the drafting stage. Rule 3.7 of the CAP Code requires the marketer to hold documentary evidence before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, for claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. Superlatives, comparisons, performance figures and environmental claims all fall into that category.

Testimonials have their own rules. CAP requires marketers to hold documentary evidence that a testimonial is genuine and to retain contact details for the person who gave it, that claims within a testimonial must not mislead, that a testimonial must relate to the product being advertised, and that marketing communications must not feature a testimonial without permission. Endorsers with a financial interest in the advertiser need that interest disclosed.

A good working method is to write the claim and the source side by side in the draft. If the supporting note is a link, a dated survey or a signed email, the claim survives. If it is somebody's recollection, rewrite the sentence. Doing this while drafting costs minutes; doing it after an ASA complaint costs the campaign.

Who owns the words once they are paid for

Ask a client who owns an article they paid for and most will say they do. UK law says otherwise. Text belongs to whoever wrote it until a signed document moves it somewhere else, and an invoice, a purchase order or a per-word rate moves nothing at all. Freelancers are treated as suppliers of a service, so the right stays with them by default. Only staff writers are different, because what an employee produces at work belongs to their employer.

In practice that means a client can pay for a set of web pages and hold no right to reuse them elsewhere. It rarely causes trouble while everyone is friendly, and it causes a great deal of trouble when the site is sold, the brand is licensed or a franchise wants the same copy.

Settle it in one sentence in the engagement terms: copyright in the delivered text is assigned to the client on payment. If the writer prefers to license, define the scope - which channels, which territories, how long, and whether the client may edit and republish. Where copy is reused across a group of companies, say so, because a licence to one entity does not extend to its subsidiaries.

Bylines, edits and the writer's moral rights

Section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 gives an author the right to be identified, but only where it has been asserted under section 78.
Assertion can be made by a statement in an assignment of copyright or by a signed written instrument, and once asserted it binds assignees and successors in title.
Section 80 gives a right to object to derogatory treatment - an addition, deletion, alteration or adaptation amounting to distortion or mutilation, or otherwise prejudicial to the author's honour or reputation.
Section 81 sets out exceptions, including works made for reporting current events and material published in newspapers, magazines and reference collections.
Section 84 protects against false attribution, which matters when copy is published under a named executive who did not write it.
Moral rights cannot be assigned, but section 87 allows them to be waived by an instrument in writing signed by the person giving them up.
The practical answer is a contract clause saying whether the writer is credited and whether the client may edit freely.

Brief, research, draft and sign-off

A written brief covering the audience, the action you want them to take, the proof points and the words to avoid.
Access to source material: sales calls, customer interviews, support tickets and the objections your team hears.
An agreed structure or outline approved before the draft, which prevents the expensive kind of rewrite.
A first draft, then a stated number of revision rounds, with a definition of what counts as a round.
One consolidated set of feedback rather than separate comments from several people, ideally in one document.
Factual review by someone who can confirm the claims, distinct from the stylistic review.
Final files delivered in an editable format, with the sources for claims attached rather than discarded.

What goes wrong with copywriting projects

A brief that describes the format but not the reader, which produces competent copy aimed at nobody.
Claims written from a marketing deck nobody has checked against reality since it was made.
Unlimited revision rounds, which move the price risk entirely onto the writer and the timeline entirely onto you.
Feedback that rewrites voice by committee until the copy reads like every competitor's.
Undisclosed use of generated text presented as original research, with citations that do not exist.
Copy lifted from a competitor, which is a copyright problem as well as an embarrassing one.
No assignment clause, so reusing the words on a new site later becomes a permission request.

Copywriter, content writer or content agency

A copywriter is usually hired for persuasion: pages and campaigns where the words have to make someone act.
A content writer produces volume against a plan, typically articles and guides, often at a lower rate per piece.
A content agency adds planning, editing and publishing capacity, and charges for that coordination.
An SEO content service optimises for search demand, which is a different objective from conversion and sometimes conflicts.
A technical writer handles documentation and instructions, where accuracy and structure outrank persuasion.
Whichever you choose, the evidence and ownership questions are identical and belong in the contract.

Copywriters: frequently asked questions

Who owns the copy we paid a freelancer to write?

The writer, unless you agreed otherwise in writing. The IPO states that someone working under a contract for services will usually retain copyright in the works they produce unless there is a contractual agreement to the contrary, and that for commissioned work the first legal owner is the creator rather than the commissioner. Add a clause assigning copyright in the delivered text to you on payment, or agree a licence broad enough to cover how you will actually use it.

Does a copywriter have to be credited?

Only where the right has been asserted. Section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 gives authors a right to be identified, but section 78 requires that right to be asserted, for example by a statement in an assignment or a signed written instrument. Section 81 also excludes certain categories, including material published in newspapers and magazines. Most commercial copywriting is published without a byline by agreement, which is the simplest way to handle it.

Can we edit the copy after delivery?

Normally yes, and most writers expect it. The limit to keep in mind is section 80, the right to object to derogatory treatment, which covers additions, deletions, alterations or adaptations amounting to distortion or mutilation of the work or otherwise prejudicial to the author's honour or reputation. Ordinary editing is nowhere near that line. If your process involves heavy rewriting, say so in the brief and agree it explicitly.

Who is responsible if a claim in our copy is challenged?

The advertiser. The CAP Code requires the marketer to hold documentary evidence before publication for objective claims, and the ASA's rulings name advertisers. That is why factual review should sit with someone in your business who can produce the evidence, separate from the stylistic review. Ask the writer to supply the source alongside each claim in the draft, so the check is quick rather than archaeological.

Can we use customer quotes and reviews in our copy?

With care. CAP requires marketers to hold documentary evidence that a testimonial is genuine and to keep contact details for the person who gave it, and marketing communications must not feature a testimonial without permission. Claims inside a quote must not mislead, and the testimonial has to relate to the product being advertised. Separately, fabricated and undisclosed incentivised reviews are banned practices under consumer protection law.

Sources

Written by the LokalMatch editorial team. Last reviewed 22 September 2026. How we write and check our guides

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What affects the fees copywriters charge

Fees depend on the work involved and how the professional bills. We only publish fee ranges when they’re backed by real LokalMatch data or reliable sources. Until then, here’s what usually changes the fee:

Scope and complexity of the work
How the firm bills: hourly, per project or on a monthly retainer
Experience of the team
Timeline and how urgent the work is
Ongoing support after the work is delivered

How to compare copywriters before you hire

Ask for examples of similar work for clients like you.
Read reviews and ask for references you can contact.
Make sure the scope, deliverables and timeline are written down before work starts.
Ask who will do the work: an in-house team, freelancers or subcontractors.
Compare two or three proposals before you decide.

Questions to ask copywriters before you hire

Have you done work like this before, and can I see examples?
Who will work on this, and who is my main contact?
How do you charge: hourly, per project or monthly?
What is included, and what costs extra?
How long is the contract, and how can either side end it?
How will you report on progress?
Who owns the work, files and accounts you set up for me?

Licences and registration

This kind of work is often limited to licensed or registered professionals, and the rules depend on where you are. Ask which body they’re registered with, and check their status on that body’s public register before you hire.

Guides about copywriting

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