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Many competent writers shy away from copywriting. However, the ability to write copy for businesses is a vital skill for a high freelance writing income. Discover easy ways you can get started as a copywriter in this article.

Copywriting is writing for business; it's persuasive writing to generate sales. Since copywriting is vital for businesses, they pay well for your words.

It's easy to combine copywriting with other forms of freelance writing. I started writing copy when I was writing romance novels for a British publisher for example, and have always combined it with writing for magazines and writing business books.

Not only does copywriting improve your income, it also improves your other writing, and your ability to sell your writing. You'll use the attributes of copywriting to sell your books to publishers and your articles to magazines and Web sites.

So, since copywriting can do so much for your freelance writing career, how do you get started?

Here are two of the best ways: start local, and use the Web.

1. Start local

The easiest way to get started is to start local. Contact graphics design and editorial agencies in your city and state, and tell them you're looking for freelance writing jobs.

These agencies are always looking for copywriters, so they'll be interested in sub-contracting work to you as it comes in. You're likely to be more attractive to an agency because you're actually looking for work. Pro copywriters have more work than they can handle in the current economic climate, so they turn down work offered to them by agencies.

Create some samples to show the agencies; either write ads for your new business, or rewrite some advertising. It's an accepted practice to rewrite advertising to create your own samples before you have credits.

Although you won't be highly paid at first, because you're a new copywriter, you'll find that even in the beginning, copywriting pays much more than other forms of writing.

Once you've landed some work with an agency, you can use your newly-acquired credits to look for copywriting gigs on your own. This is where your Web site comes in.

2. Get a Web site for easy promotion

For a copywriter, a Web site is a godsend, simply because it means you can send people who are interested in hiring you to the site, so they can view your portfolio.

Your Web site lets your prospects classify themselves - you don't have to send them huge packages by mail, you just direct them to your Web site, and they can see whether you're a good fit for their needs before they contact you.

So what goes on your Web site? Basically, the various kinds of copywriting work you do, and your portfolio. Just list your services, and either let people download your portfolio in PDF form, or post the portfolio online.

Make sure that you include contact details on every page; make it easy for people to contact you. Include your cell phone number too. The easier you make it for people to contact you, the more people will do it. Please don't forget your contact details - I can't count the number of sites where the contact details were forgotten, or were hidden.

So there you have it - two easy ways to get started copywriting. Not only will adding copywriting to your freelance writing services increase your income, the benefits of your skills flow to all your other writing too.