How can you demonstrate your ability to write in different tones during a copywriting interview?

Consistency is key. Understanding the tone of the brand and what the audience is looking forward to helps make a good impact. Whether you want to launch a new product or giving it a fresh look, knowing the pulse of your audience is the first step towards turning them into potential clients.

Get into the headspace of the reader your piece is meant to target. Use language your reader is familiar with and can easily understand. Every brand has its own unique tone - immerse yourself into the world of the brand and get inside the head of both the seller and the consumer.

Every brand's tone of voice evokes an emotion. To show that you understand a brand's tone of voice, you'll need to describe the feeling it evokes accurately. You can easily write in a brand's tone if you understand the emotion.

A consistent tone and unique brand voice not only defines companies, but it also helps them stand apart from their competitors.

What personally helps here is putting oneself in the Buyer Persona's shoes. -What problem is your service answering? -Is the solution long-term and adaptive to the future necessitating a future interest? You're not creating BPs out of your imagination but basing them on real people who ultimately influence tonality. You can decide on a tone once you know the type that responds and reacts favorably to it, so emotion and a thorough understanding of what your target BP is is critical to changing and evolving your copywriting style!

What’s even better than showing samples of your work is sharing feedback from real life projects you’ve executed. This is easier if you’ve done some freelance copywriting gigs before seeking a full-time role.

In my experience, showcasing diverse tones in a portfolio has proven invaluable. For instance, I presented a formal tone in a client's website content, fostering professionalism. In email campaigns, adopting a conversational tone enhanced engagement, while on social media, infusing an inspirational tone amplified brand enthusiasm. Crafting a playful slogan further showcased adaptability, proving effective in leaving a lasting impression on varied audiences. Explaining the rationale behind tone choices during interviews has consistently emphasized strategic communication in my copywriting approach.

Alongside samples of your work, it can also be effective to gather testimonials from happy clients — the more recent and high profile, the better! It's well worth sending a message out to a few who you have built a strong relationship with. Be transparent about why you are reaching out to them and provide a few simple questions. Examples could be: 1. What did you appreciate most about how I approached this copywriting challenge? 2. How did your most important stakeholders feel about the end result? 3. Are the results of this project measurable? If so, what impact did the new copy have?

I think it is important to create a portfolio. Your portfolio should reflect the different types of projects you have worked on. During an interview, give a walkthrough of your projects. This is the first step. In order to demonstrate your ability to write in different tones, pick up projects from your portfolio that involved different types of writing. If you have worked across different industries and have written copy catering to different genres, then it shouldn't be difficult to demonstrate.

I suggest be prepared with examples from 2-5 different clients. That shows your work can be dynamic and you have a range of versatility. The examples themselves should reflect what is needed from the specific client. For example, the job calls for email marketing and ad copy, bring examples of email workflow copy and ads you have done in the past.

If the interviewer adopts a friendly tone and asks, "Tell me about yourself," you might respond: "Well, buckle up for the story of my professional journey! Picture me navigating the twists and turns of various roles, all leading to this exciting moment." For a more formal interviewer asking the same question: "Allow me to present a concise overview of my professional background, emphasizing key achievements and skills pertinent to the role at hand." Tailoring your tone showcases adaptability without sacrificing authenticity.

Do your research! How does your interviewer communicate? What are their values? What feelings do they evoke? What worlds and images do they create in the reader's mind? If you can get that down to a T, you can wow the interviewer by giving them a taster: - Mirror them in style (which will show that you've done your homework!) - Show them where you see potential for even better copy (maybe they're not showing their personality enough in their cookie banner, or the newsletter is bland, or the latest social media post was completely off-brand...?) - Ideally, zoom out from their brand and hone in on 1-2 case studies from previous clients; what were your challenges there? Did you have to develop a brand guide for them? How did you work together?

Before setting out to an interview, it is your duty as a job seeker to do some background checks on the job. This not not only helps with ensuring your safety, but also helps you arm yourself for the interview. Imagine walking into an interview with no idea of what they do or how they operate? How will you engage your interviewer? How will you make them see you as a potential candidate? How do you win them over? What little contributions can you make that can potentially get you hired? It is always advisable to do an intensive research on the job and the company before going for an interview. Follow up on all their social media handles and research on what they do, to gain knowledge about the type of work they do.

Never assume that you know what the interviewer or client means when they describe the tone. I've had this happen on a project where the client loved my sassy writing style and how I added personality to my LinkedIn content. However, when working on the project I got stuck in the genre and niche missing the sassiness that attracted them to my work in the first place. You can then ask them to elaborate what they mean by "edgy" or "professional" or "fun" to give you a better idea of what they expect. So, when listening, take notes and highlight or circle key phrases the interviewer or client uses. I do this in discovery calls and strategy calls all the time because the client will leave clues.

As a copywriter, it's important to develop an understanding of the brand's overall strategy — the context it operates in, stakeholders and relationships, and where it wants to be. It may not be possible to grasp all of this through desktop research, so arrive prepared with the kind of questions that will shed light on this. Your interviewer should (hopefully) be impressed.

Almost as important as the writing itself is your ability to make a case for it. When you're sending across the test, it can be helpful to include a few lines in the email articulating how you went about the process — how you decided to structure the copy, interesting data or references you pulled from, and how you read the brief in your own words. In the eyes of a potential employer, this could be the difference between a good copywriter and a great copywriter.

From hiring perspective, this should be the top priority - even higher than showing samples of work - although these are also important. The difference between the two is that samples of previous work have already gone through an extensive editing and feedback process and were adjusted accordingly to the brand. In a writing test, candidates have a chance to show how do they respond to brand's voice and how do they think on their feet. This is the real skill. In many hiring processes, I have seen candidates with seemingly great portfolios - but the skill they presented in a writing test was lacking. Of course consider that many factors contribute to a performance on the test - but nevertheless it is useful.

Never do test work. At least, not for free. You should be able to build a case for your adaptability through a portfolio of previous examples. And by demonstrating your process. Even if you’ve only worked for one brand, you’ll have examples of different TOVs from writing for different platforms/channels. Showcase that. If you’re a freelancer and are asked for a test. Charge for it. (Even if it’s only a little.) It’s your time after all.

In hiring, prioritizing writing tests over work samples is key. Unlike polished portfolios, tests reveal a candidate's ability to adapt to a brand's voice and think quickly, offering a true measure of skill.

I agree, one thing is that we are keep learning. Getting feedback shows the willingness to learn and improve. We are not perfect and understanding that,will help one as a copywriter to improve.

Cultivating the habit of seeking for feedback from the interviewer is important in your career as a writer. Here, you get to maintain some sort of ‘relationship’ with them, in case another offer turns up. You get to widen your network too. Plus you also get to learn where you fall short and this will help you improve on your skills for more/better opportunities in the future.

Seeking feedback from interviewers is crucial. It builds relationships, expands your network, and highlights areas for improvement, paving the way for future opportunities.

To write in different tones, change your audience. But don't write to a demographic; write to the person you know personally who most matches the audience. It's all the inspiration you need. Change the audience and then write to the rest of the brief.

Research the company's style and craft tailored responses in your interview to mirror their tone, showing your ability to align with their brand voice.

Be careful that they're not asking you (and your competitors) to write their entire content for free. True, but sad, fact that some unethical customers ask for samples of different pages, tell everyone their work isn't needed and, hey, presto! They have a first draft of their entire document / website. So, my advice would be to create a short video that points them to your past work so they can see your versatility and strengths as exemplified in your portfolio.

Write to engage the five senses and interweave the brand's key messages, enabling those unfamiliar with your subject or those who have limited knowledge of your brand to connect at a more universal level. This approach enhances clarity and gives room for improvement.