Be a CMO. Not a Copywriter.

Are you a CMO or a copywriter?

Because here’s the thing, it’s not about job titles but mindset.

With more and more copywriters joining the market and AI tools now able to write basic articles, you need to offer more than just ‘copy’.

Clients need someone who’s able to strategise, solve their problems, and deliver real results they can track. They want you to be their chief marketing officer, in other words.

So how can you reposition yourself as a CMO from someone who writes words?

Here are three ways to do it:

Hold clients accountable

After you’ve decided on a strategy, don’t just email the client the landing page and upsell sequence and wish them luck.

Get on their case.

Check they’ve implemented everything correctly (including the graphic design) and DEMAND in your contract they share the results.

Record a Loom video to explain your approach

One of the most frustrating things that can happen is to discover a client has rewritten your copy. Even worse is to find out the copy has bombed before you got a chance to fix it.

Often the reason clients fire up Word and get hacking is because they didn’t understand why you’d written it that way. Or they didn’t realise the decades of proven sales psychology upon which it was structured.

So when you submit copy, also record a quick Loom video. Outline all the key points and your reasoning behind contentious areas. Then ask them to share their feedback if they still feel like ripping it to shreds.

Schedule weekly calls

You do want to keep your clients, don’t you? So find ways to make yourself indispensible.

Go through their funnels to find leaks, ask which sales pages are underperforming, and get stats on their open and clickthrough rates.

If you see they’re doing something wrong, be ‘the adult in the room’ and take control of your client’s strategy. Then when you deliver the goods, they’ll reward you with ongoing work.

Be Resilient

Hands up, I’ve had my share of bombs. And I’m always going to be anxious waiting to get the stats on a new launch.

But when my copy sizzles and dies, I don’t apologise and wish them luck with another copywriter.

I take responsibility.

I go back to digging into the market to come up with new leads and hooks to test. And I make it clear I’m willing to keep testing until we’re profitable.

Offer Results. Not Clever Words

So there you go.

To survive and thrive in a crowded marketplace of people selling words, you need to go further in what you have to offer clients.

Be the person willing to go the extra mile to get results, and make it clear you’ll stick around until campaigns are profitable.

Because to your clients, it’s results that matter. Not pretty words on a page.