What is the difference between technical writer and copywriter?

Technical Copywriter or Technical Writer: What's the Difference?

* Today's article was written by Preston A Cox, who invites our readers to subscribe to their blog and receive a free downloadable gift. Visit http://blog.prestonthecopywriter.com.

You ask an excellent question. After all, both write about products in the technology sector. Also, technical copywriters are, in fact, a type of technical writer.

But, we still talk about them as separate disciplines. Let's look at some of the key differences.

First, look at the intention of what each writer writes. If the intention is to describe or explain or instruct, then the author is a technical writer.

If the intention is also to point out benefits, then the author is a technical copywriter.

You'll notice that the technical copywriter focuses on persuading you to buy a product. But, the technical writer focuses on explaining a product.

Second, look at the style of writing. You might notice that the technical copywriter attempts to be persuasive. The copywriter tries to convince you that you need to buy a product for yourself or your company. In fact, he or she may seem to be writing to you personally.

A marketing brochure describing the benefits of the product is a typical copywriter product.

The technical writer writes to describe the product.

A users manual describing how to use the features of the product is a typical output of a technical writer.

The style of writing also reflects the target audience of each type of document.

If you're thinking of buying a product, you might read a sales brochure written by a technical copywriter. The brochure will describe the benefits of the product to you the buyer.

If you want to know how to use a product, you might read a document written by a technical writer. As a user, you are likely already familiar with the benefits of the product. Thus, you are more concerned with how to use the product.

A less obvious difference, one that may not be clear to you, is the relationship of the writer to the company.

Technical copywriters tend to be freelance writers. The technical writer tends to be an employee of a company.

This is not completely true, of course. Larger companies may hire technical copywriters as employees in their marketing department. Marketing agencies also might hire technical copywriters.

These are but a few of many possible distinctions. And it's entirely possible that some of these distinctions might blur at times. Perhaps you know of other distinctions. I welcome your comments.

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