Draft after draft after draft. That’s how copywriting seems sometimes.

You’re trying to make each draft better, but what does “better” mean? What’s a good benchmark?

After hours of writing and editing, you throw in the towel. That has to be good enough, right?

Not exactly. If you don’t edit your work with a fine-toothed comb, you can come off as unprofessional. A reader doesn’t see the hours of work you put in. They do see the errors and typos that may end up in your work.

That means all that time writing was a wasted effort. Who’d bother reading more from someone that can’t write and edit well?

• On the flip side, well-written B2B copy is the start of most business relationships.
• Your professionalism and personality can jump off the page.
• A cold email or warm lead can blossom when your copy is well-written.

In this article, we’ll discuss copyediting strategies for your B2B copywriting to drive more conversions. It’ll reduce your time spent editing so you can have top-notch copy going out every time.

What To Check For When Editing

First, let’s look at why you would be editing in the first place. You edit to make your writing better, of course, but what is “better”? 

This is a tricky question to answer. Copywriting varies. That means what works for one brand or medium could crash and burn on another. 

The good news is that no matter what you’re writing, there are five pillars at which you can look. Good copywriting rests on these, and they make a good start for your editing checklist. So what five things should be on your checklist?

You want your writing to be accurate, clear, authoritative, empathetic, and have finesse. Let’s go through these in more detail, one by one. 

Copyediting Strategy #1: Make Your Writing Accurate

First, check for accuracy. Inaccurate writing will make your B2B conversions sink like a stone. You’re talking to business owners.

They know their field, and they know it well. Like you, they eat, sleep, and breathe their business. That means they’ll spot when something’s wrong right away. 

Before they even read it, they’ll notice if your formatting is a little off.

That sentence was distracting to read, wasn’t it? One word is one point larger, and one word is one point smaller. Even with those tiny differences, you can miss the whole point of the sentence.

That can leave you wondering, “What is going on with this font?”

If you have other formatting errors, the problem gets even worse. 

Each line might get centered in a different way.

You might not have been able to decide on a font and didn’t make sure it all matched.

You could have     copy and     pasted and something     odd happened to your     spacing or     characters. 

No matter what it is, inconsistent formatting makes your document look unprofessional. 

Formatting isnt the only thing eithr.

Unless you want your copy to look like a grade-schooler wrote it, check your grammar and spelling. This can be a tricky one — we’re only human, after all. Regardless, obvious errors should never make it through editing. 

You can use tools to help with this. Grammarly is an online resource that helps with grammar errors.

The free version helps you check for basic spelling and punctuation errors. A tool can often catch things you overlook and will help you look at your work with fresh eyes. 

Grammar is something you want to check and double-check. Look yourself, use a tool, and even have someone else look over your writing before you publish, to be safe.

That goes for factual accuracy, too. For instance, say you told a vet that it was ok for dogs to eat grapes. A vet knows that grapes are toxic to dogs, even though many other people might not.

In B2B copy especially, it’s essential to ensure your information is up-to-date and accurate.

Out-of-date info, grammar errors, and formatting inaccuracies will make your B2B conversions plummet.

Your B2B customers have a lot on their minds, and they’re careful with who they trust with their business. Keeping your writing accurate will build trust. They know you’re someone who puts in the work and cares about the details. 

Here’s your checklist for accuracy:

• Ensure the formatting of your document is consistent.
• Verify everything is factual.
• Check for grammatical errors, spelling, and typos. (Double-check this one, to be sure.)

Learn how to master the copywriting process here.

Copyediting Strategy #2: Make Your Writing Clear

Second, we have clarity. This one is harder to identify. Often, our writing makes perfect sense to us. Writing in a clear manner can feel like something you have “in the bag.” The problem is, even though your writing is clear to you, it may not be clear to your reader. 

Not to worry, there are ways you can check for clarity.

The first thing you can do is read it aloud to yourself. Does it sound natural? Do you have to pause for breath in the middle of sentences? Do you sound like someone talking themselves in circles? You can also have a friend or colleague look it over and ask for feedback. 

Finally, you can run it through a tool like Hemingway. Hemingway will check your sentence structure and difficulty. You want to aim for around a 4th-6th grade reading level. Staying in that range allows you to express your ideas without dumbing them down.

Don’t speak down to your readers, but don’t go too far the other way, either. Don’t use language that's too formal or obscure. A thesaurus is helpful, but only some of the time. Speaking in simple language doesn’t make you sound less intelligent. Analyzing a thesaurus for your morphemes gives the impression that you’re fatuous.

Bananas are the best example in the whole world of sentence structure.

Ok, that was a two-for-one. First, it’s an example of structuring your writing. You never want an idea to come out of nowhere. Otherwise, you'll leave your readers confused. You want their mental energy going in a positive direction, converting. Instead, it’ll all go into trying to figure out what you’re talking about.

Second, that sentence is hyperbolic. Hyperbole is something to avoid for a whole host of reasons. For one thing, it can get you into legal trouble. Proclaiming a 100% success rate without having a 100% success rate is a recipe for disaster.

Hyperbole is more likely to tank your conversions than get you sued, though. Everyone is suspicious of “too-good-to-be-true” claims. Even though you’re confident in your product, it’s essential to be realistic, too. 

Giving it to your readers straight, without confusing sentences or hyperbole increases trust. Your customers will want to convert because you'll appear straightforward, honest, and intelligent. 

Here’s your clarity checklist:

• Double-check that your sentences are well-written and well-structured. 
• Verify that you're getting your point across to the reader in a clear and concise manner.  
• Avoid hyperboles and formal terminology.
• Make sure the structure of your document makes sense. 

Learn the strategies on how you can improve clarity in your copy here.

Copyediting Strategy #3: Show Authority

Next up, you want your writing to show authority. Whose advice would you trust about a root canal: a licensed dentist with 15 years of experience? Or a banana farmer who happens to like dentistry?

Bananas are great, but you want a dentist giving you advice on dentistry. Your readers want to know they’re speaking to a professional, too. We talked about being realistic, and showing authority is a great way to use that to your advantage. 

You didn’t need to hear that the dentist was the world’s best dentist to prefer him. You needed to hear that he had a license and 15 years of experience. You can do this same thing in your copy. 

Rather than making claims, you can give details. That could mean you talk about your experience or list your certifications. Sharing details might mean showing examples of what you could do or links to past successes. It’s even better when you have a healthy balance of both. 

When you share your experience and back it up with examples, your customers breathe a sigh of relief. They know you’re someone who knows what they’re doing and can prove it. You’re speaking their language.

Speaking of language, your words can also inject authority into your writing. That is, they can if you’re careful. Jargon can boost your writing or crush it. 

Finding the right balance of jargon can be tough. Get it right, and you sound like an experienced professional. Get it wrong, and you can sound under-confident or go over your reader’s head. 

The trick is to research. Take a look at your audience’s speech in its “natural habitat.” Do interviews, attend conferences, or look online. What kind of jargon do they usually use when speaking to other professionals? How often? 

You can also look at what your competitors or other people in your niche are doing. Check the top Google results for content and copy in your niche. What kinds of jargon are in them? 

Finding the right balance of jargon will ensure your reader understands your ideas. It adds authority and professionalism to your writing. 

So here’s your authority checklist, short and sweet:

• Give details, don’t make claims. 
• Find an appropriate balance of professional jargon. 

Copyediting Strategy #4: Show Empathy

This is a biggie. Your writing needs to show empathy to reach your customers. Being empathetic will reassure your customers you understand them. If they think you don’t, they’ll be looking for someone who does. 

How do you show empathy to someone you don’t know? The answer is research again. 

Learn about your audience as much as you can. Take notes on their unique fears, hopes, and desires. You can refer to this list of things your audience wants or doesn’t want as you’re working. You have a bit of an edge in B2B writing because you have something in common with your audience. You’re both business owners. 

Be careful with this. If your writing makes assumptions, it comes off cocky and arrogant. Your customer will hear, “I know you, so I know best.” Be understanding, but stay away from assumptions. 

An easy way to do this is to ask questions at the beginning of your copy rather than make statements. Here’s an example.

You can’t find good bananas anywhere you look. They’re all too expensive or overripe. You don’t want those bananas. 

This example is full of assumptions. It assumes the reader:

• Can’t find bananas
• Has been looking
• Only sees two problems with the bananas they find
• Is upset by the cost of bananas
• Doesn’t have any use for overripe bananas

What if one or more of those things isn’t true about your reader? They won’t convert. They’ll assume the offer isn’t for them, even if they’re in your target market.

Take a look at this one instead:

What if one or more of those things isn’t true about your reader? They won’t convert. They’ll assume the offer isn’t for them, even if they’re in your target market.

Take a look at this one instead:

Have you been struggling to find bananas that fit your needs? If you have problems with the current bananas on the market, we’ve got your back. We have problems with it, too. That’s why we created Banana Standz.

In this case, you show empathy without making assumptions. First, the question draws in your target market. “I do have a problem with finding bananas,” they think. Then, you don’t assume you know their problems. You reassure them that you know there are problems. You don’t like those problems, either.  

The last thing to look at in this example is tone. This tone is friendly and personal. Some copy might call for a tone that’s even more informal. Others might call for more professionalism. The important thing is to find the tone that will speak to your brand and your audience. 

This is another place that research will come in handy. Knowing what your audience sounds like makes it easy to speak to them in their voice. Using something familiar to your audience will boost your conversions. They won’t see you reaching for their wallets, but instead, as a friend trying to help.

That leads to the final step in empathetic writing. Give them something to do. It seems like a no-brainer, but it’s a crucial step. Make sure that every single piece of copy you write has a Call To Action.

Without it, you’ll miss out on your conversions. Say your customers see a Facebook ad or an email, or even a blog post they like. They want to buy from you. Then, right at the crucial moment, they can’t figure out how. They could go hunting for your website… but they won’t. 

They’ll mean to, sure. As we know, though, your customers aren’t likely to get around to it. How many times have you followed up on a leaflet handed to you, even if you liked the deal? Not too often, I'd guess. Your customers are the same way. 

Leave out the CTA, and they’ll end up frustrated. It’s another thing on their to-do list, and it’s not high up. Instead, they’ll end up converting to a competitor who does give a CTA.

Giving your readers a CTA shows your audience you understand they need to solve the problem now. Not when they have time to go looking for you, but right away. 

Showing your readers you have empathy for them means they’ll convert, but that’s not all. They’ll also be loyal customers. When your writing is full of empathy, they don’t only see you as a business but as a friend.

Here’s your empathy checklist:

• Understand your audience without making assumptions.
• Use a tone and voice that speaks to your reader. 
• Give them a way to act.

Here's how you can inject empathy into your copywriting to improve conversions.

Copyediting Strategy #5: Have Some Finesse

Finally, your writing needs finesse. Finesse is the hardest thing on this list. What does “finesse” mean? Well, in this case, it’s that special pizzazz. It’s a certain sparkle. It’s the kind of thing that converts and keeps customers. 

Your writing isn’t going to have much finesse at first. Sometimes even I look at the things I wrote when I was starting and cringe. It’s so much worse than the writing I do now. The only way to get better is to practice. 

Before you practice, you can study. Find your favorite copy ever and find your favorite copy in your niche. Look it over, or even handwrite it. Scientific studies have proven handwriting increases retention and comprehension. 

When you handwrite your favorite pieces of copy, you might start to see a pattern emerge. You can use this pattern in your work. 

Then, it’s time to get practicing. Write drafts of your copy in lots of different tones. Try one that’s way too silly and one that’s far too serious. This is especially good if you have writer’s block. Often going in a direction that’s off the wall shakes things loose and gets you going in the right direction. 

Regardless of the direction you go in, make sure your copy is enjoyable to read. Sometimes it can seem challenging to make a whole piece of copy engaging. 

If that’s how you’re feeling, take it one sentence at a time. Remember that the goal of every sentence of your copy should be to get the next sentence read. Particularly when you’re writing shorter pieces of copy, ask yourself, “What can I write here to make someone want to see what comes next?”

Finally, when you have a draft you’re happy with, get a second opinion. Find a friend or a colleague that you know isn’t afraid to be honest. Ask them how you can improve it. Even better, ask them if they enjoy reading it. If they don’t, ask them why. 

Then, take that feedback and edit some more. Be prepared to go through more than a couple of drafts at first. Finesse is something that comes with mastery. Mastery comes with time. Keep practicing, and the number of drafts will get smaller over time.

Here’s your finesse checkbox:

• Create an engaging message that’s enjoyable to read. 

Your Checklist

Alright, that was a lot of info. To make things simpler for you, here’s your whole editing checklist:

• Ensure the formatting of your document is consistent.
• Verify everything is factual.
• Check for grammatical errors, spelling, and typos. (Double-check this one, to be sure.)
• Double-check that your sentences are well-written and well-structured. 
• Verify that you are getting your point across to the reader in a clear and concise manner. 
• Avoid hyperboles and formal terminology.
• Make sure the structure of your document makes sense. 
• Give details, don’t make claims. 
• Find an appropriate balance of professional jargon. 
• Understand your audience without making assumptions.
• Use a tone and voice that speaks to your reader. 
• Give them a way to act.
• Create an engaging message that’s enjoyable to read. 

Remember, this is a baseline. There are many forms of B2B copywriting, so feel free to expand on this list so you can hit all your goals. 

Editing To Make The Best Use Of Your Time

Editing can be tough. If you don’t have practice or guidance, it can even feel impossible. It doesn’t have to be a herculean task, though. The important thing is to get organized. Organization helps you to achieve all your writing goals in a quick and easy way. 

The end goal of copywriting is to boost your conversions. That takes patience and practice. Keep your roadmap handy, and look for the signposts of good copy. Whether you use the checklist above or make your own, it should include these five markers.

Your copy should be accurate and clear. It should show authority and empathy. Finally, you need to add that special touch unique to your brand. 

By following these tips, you’ll have concrete ways to improve your writing. Without them, you sit down to edit without a plan. With them, you can pick out specific ways to improve. Being able to be specific will keep you on the road to better and better copywriting. Better copywriting means better conversion rates, after all.

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