This article was updated in November 2024 to reflect changes in the Blackford Centre courses, as well as amended contact details. Along with these changes, you’ll find an offer that that can save you money and, for full transparency, will financially benefits me too. Read on and all will be revealed…
You’re about to learn a lot about copywriting courses. But first, there are some things you need to know about this article.
The core lessons about how to write effective copy haven’t changed much since the 1800s. But the ways we market to people and the tools we use, have. Considerably. (AI being the recent big shift.)
Staying relevant and useful means restructuring copywriting courses so they’re up to date. Couple this with societal changes that influence how an audience thinks and interacts with marketing, and it’s clear that our craft can’t remain static.
So it’s with that in mind that I want to point out that I took these copywriting courses way back in 2014 and 2017. They’ve both changed a lot. In fact, one of them doesn’t even exist anymore. The Copyblogger Authority certification has been scrapped, replaced with Copyblogger Academy. And The Blackford Centre has made big changes too, focussing heavily on copywriting for digital mediums.
With so many differences you’re probably wondering, Is this article still relevant?
Fair question.
If you’re torn between whether to take a course or not, this article can still help. Here’s how.
- Both of the courses I talk about are online, distance learning courses. If you’ve never studied this way then you’ll get a feel for how it works.
- The thought of adding ‘must study’ to an already busy schedule of full-time work, family, and self-care activities can feel daunting. In my write up I’ll share how much time I had to set aside to get the thing done.
- Understand the benefits and drawbacks these courses may have on your business.
Right that’s the caveats done. I hope you still want to stick around and find this article helpful as you decide whether copywriting is the right career path for you.
For those of you who decide you are serious about taking a course, I’ve negotiated a discount with The Blackford Centre. I’ll explain in full later on. First, let me share what I know about online learning, how much time copywriting courses take, and the effects they’ve have had on my business.
Are copywriting courses worth the time, energy and money?
You’re thinking of a career change. Copywriting and content marketing sound like good options. I mean, you’ve always enjoyed writing. You’re creative. And your manager has had you writing the business emails and social media captions for months now.
Realising you’ve tasted something you like you’re keen to try a bit more. It’s time to get your mitts on a certification that solidifies what you already know and then progresses your skills.
Taking a course is, you think, a good way to achieve this. For 3 reasons.
- You get to be tutored by someone with real life copywriting experience.
- All your learning can be done in one place, rather than scouring the web.
- You get a swish looking certificate (or similar) from some sort of copywriting authority.
I get it. I’ve been motivated by the same thinking and attracted to courses for the same reasons. Copywriting courses are useful. But, IMHO, they’re not the be all and end all. Questioning their worth is a good idea. Especially because there are so many of the freaking things now.
Writers new and senior, often get in touch wanting to know about my experiences with these courses. Really, this article is my attempt to answer that commonly asked question:
Were they useful and worth the money?
I asked the exact same question to copywriters who were a few steps ahead of me. Mainly because I don’t like spaffing money up the wall. (Does anyone?) And trying to get my business off the ground meant every penny counted. There needed to be a clear return before I invested.
That’s the mindset I went into each course with.
One thing I want to make clear—and that I appreciated others saying to me—is that my reasons for taking these certifications may be very different to yours. So you won’t hear me say, “These are the best copywriting courses. Take them!” That’s daft. Instead, you’ll get some facts and personal insights into my experiences of them. How you use that information is up to you.
My desk used to be so tidy.
Two copywriting courses (at two very different stages in my career)
Here’s a quick outline of the courses I took and when I took them.
The Blackford Centre’s Diploma in Copywriting
Started it in: 2014
Time to complete: Too long. Took me about 18 months. But if I remember rightly, the course notes said it’s possible to complete in around 6 months.
Course qualification: Level 4 Diploma (read more here).
Course/tutors based in: The UK
I was living in: The UK
Copyblogger Authority Certification
Started it in: 2017
Time to complete: About 7 months.
Course qualification: Certificate from course body.
Course/tutors based in: America
I was living in: Australia
My motivations for taking each copywriting course
The Blackford Centre Diploma
I was working as a freelance journalist but realised there was more work and more money in writing blogs, website copy and marketing emails for businesses. What I quickly discovered was that copywriting and journalism were very different disciplines. My university degree was purely writing for media (journalism, TV, short film). It didn’t cover any type of marketing writing.
Apart from the occasional advertorial, my job hadn’t given me much to go on either. If I was going to spend more time writing marketing copy and make a living from it, I thought I should improve my skills and plug any knowledge gaps I had. (Which were many.)
These were my reasons for signing up. And I picked Blackford Centre because, at the time, it was the only distance learning course I could find in the UK that:
- resulted in a diploma regulated by an external awards body
- didn’t cost an absolute effing fortune.
Copyblogger Authority Certification
I took the Authority certification for two very simple reasons.
1) I’d just moved to Australia. I was relaunching my freelance business. Copyblogger is a huge platform. Being listed as one of their certified writers would bring leads.
2) Even though I was (mostly) confident in my writing skills, I didn’t know how to run a business. This course covered ‘how to run a copywriting business’ as well as teaching the technical stuff about writing conversion copy.
How was it?
The Blackford Centre Diploma
This was a really well-structured course. It made me look at different ways copywriting is used, from crafting press releases to creating scripts for radio ads and everything in between. Having the chance to try a bit of everything helped me work out what sort of stuff I liked writing and what I didn’t.
Note: There have been changes to the course content since I took it. New modules that weren’t around when I did it, include:
- SEO copywriting
- email marketing
- social media marketing
- UX writing and microcopy.
There’s also way more bonus material available compared to when I did it, fewer assignments (lucky you!), video content, and you get access to your tutor for a whole year.
As I’ve mentioned tutors let me explain how that works.
Each student has a dedicated tutor. It’s their job to mark your assessments and offer you feedback. It’s a great way to put what you’ve learned into practise.
Having worked as a journo on-staff, I already knew the mechanics of some writing techniques. Stuff like structure—headings, lead lines and placing hooks—I was confident with. But all of the marketing techniques —funnels, direct mail and site maps—were new to me.
My favourite module was writing radio ads. I loved how creative and playful I got to be.
Copyblogger Authority Certification
Resources, resources, resources! Copyblogger isn’t short of them. Worksheets and modules were PDF downloads and there were lots of links to podcasts and articles. Plus, a steady stream of emails. There were also regular live Q&A sessions and webinars, but time the time differences between the US and Australia meant I never tuned in. (And I was too lazy/busy with work to rewatch them.)
Having so much content available was… Well it was good, but fuck it felt overwhelming at times. I have no idea if this is still the case since it’s become Copyblogger Academy. 🤷
Part way through the course, I realised I could still complete the certificate without reading, watching or listening to all of the things. This was a relief. Partly because I’d been a professional writer for around 8 years by this point and had on-the-job experience. I was finding that a lot of the course content was stuff I already knew so found myself getting frustrated that I was wasting time going over old ground.
Remember, my main reason for doing this was to complete the certification and get leads.
I started cherry-picking modules that went through business processes and content creation ideas I wasn’t familiar with. And this course did really well at showing and teaching the strategy stuff. I came away feeling confident I knew how to plan, create, and use content marketing strategies that would get results.
This course doesn’t have assessments at the end of each module. But it does include useful exercises. It’s up to you if you do them or not, and it’s completely your call if you take the big certification assessment. Although you can’t (or at least couldn’t) get listed on their directory without doing it, and as that was my whole motivation I did the big cert ass at the end.
How the Copyblogger certification used to work
Note: I don’t think this exists anymore. I think it’s more of a membership that you pay for quarterly or yearly to access all of their content.
You submit three pieces of work to their certification board. At the time I took it, I was asked to show:
- a website landing page,
- a blog article
- and a sales email.
The Copyblogger team were really helpful when pulling this together. If you’re a new writer without a portfolio, they’ll give you ideas for copy you can write.
Once they’ve reviewed your work, you get a mark out of 100 (I got 94!) and if you pass you get your directory listing.
Completing copywriting courses gave me the confidence to get out and about, meeting peers at events.
How much study time you need
The Blackford Centre Diploma
The size of the modules varied. Some involved reading a 5 or 6 page PDF, whereas others were a lot longer. Generally, I took 1-3 hours to read through it all and complete any exercises.
For modules with assessments, I’d put at least 2 hours aside. Assessments that involved longer copywriting forms, would take roughly 3 hours with 30- to 45-minutes of editing time.
Today, the course creators tell me changes to the format have been made. You’ll now find more videos and online quizzes to test your knowledge, making the whole thing a lot more interactive compared to when I did it.
Copyblogger Authority Certification
Given that most of the PDFs were 5-10 pages, I could get through them in my lunch hour. Sometimes I’d need an extra 30-90 minutes after my working day but the bottom line was that it was really manageable. (Once I realised I didn’t need to consume every little thing published.)
Impact on my business
The Blackford Centre Diploma
Although there is some crossover between copywriting and journalism, ultimately they’re 2 very different disciplines.
The diploma delivered much-needed confidence during the very early days of my copywriting career. Even though there was a fair bit of the course content I knew from holding professional writing jobs, having a certification stopped me from feeling like a total newbie and went some way to putting a lid on imposter syndrome.
Copyblogger Authority Certification
Impact = huge. This certification achieved exactly what I wanted. It brought more leads to my business. Most of them quality leads.
I kept paying the annual fee for the first 3 years of my business so I stayed registered as a Copyblogger Certified Marketer. This wasn’t cheap. However, I only needed to convert one lead each year to cover the cost. Having my profile on Copyblogger was also a great backlink, bringing a healthy amount of traffic to my site.
Why I left Copyblogger
I got what I needed from it. My business is now settled, has evolved, and my profile has grown in other ways. Leads and jobs now come from places more specific to my niche and interests.
Final word on copywriting courses
Before investing in a copywriting course, get clear on what you want out of it. There are many free and very affordable resources you can check out before investing in a course.
A couple of examples I’ve found helpful (and still use) are:
The Art of the Click by Glenn Fisher
Read Me by Roger Horberry and Gyles Lingwod
Marketing Examples by Harry Dry
I suggest getting stuck into these and seeing how far you get before plunging into a course. You may surprise yourself.
3A special treat for those who are course-ready
🎁 I’ve wrangled an arrangement with The Blackford Centre.
One that saves you money on their Diploma in Copywriting course.
And, for full transparency, earns me a few quid along the way.
(More on that in a mo.)
So what’s the offer?
So instead of paying £690 for the online edition, you get it for £517.
If you prefer it in US dollars…
Rather than a hefty $1,254, it’s all yours for $630.
You can enrol and get the discount by following this special link.
Alternatively, you can phone 01373 800 815 (+44 1373 800 815 outside the UK) and say Rose Crompton sent you, to secure your discount.
But before you do one of those, you should read the course contents and understand what you’ll learn. This is a big investment—of time and money—so it’s important you feel confident the course will give you what you want.
That said, signing up to the Blackford Centre is a pretty safe bet.
It comes with a 30-day, no-quibble refund. This was one of the qualities that caught my eye. (Along with the fact it was the only course I could find that offered a recognised diploma.) I felt safe that if it wasn’t for me, my money would be refunded within 30 days.
Having read this, you know I didn’t take them up on that guarantee.
What do I get out of you signing up?
I’ve written this article to help other copywriters. I’ve felt that torn, confused feeling as you weigh up whether the course is going to be worth it or not.
All I wanted was share my opinion in the hope it helps you.
But I was getting contacted a lot by people wanting to talk more about studying copywriting, with most people interested in my experience with The Blackford Centre. After our discussions, some of those folks went on to sign up. So then I wrote this article. And heard that more people signed up. So then I thought, well why not see if I can strike with the Blackford Centre that benefits you, me, and them.
The Blackford Centre get a fab new student (that’s you) who’s coming to them informed and confident.
I get a small monetary kickback for sending you their way.
You get the copywriting training you’re searching for and money off.
And the positive comments I’ve made about the course aren’t based on me trying to make money.
In fact, I’ve previously warned new copywriters away from signing up.
One example was a woman who was looking to change careers. She asked if she should do the course, and I said, No. At least, not yet. Then I sent her towards the free resources because that made more sense. (Remember, no one likes spaffing money up the wall.)
So I’m not going to push you into something just because I get a few quid from it. Far from it. I’m not that type of person. I can’t be that type of person. I’m the type of person who wants to help and see you do well, just as others have helped me through my career. (And goodness knows I’ve needed that guidance at times!)
This special offer is if you know, for sure, that taking a copywriting course is exactly what you want.
If that’s you, then I’d love it if you sign up through my special page or phone 01375 800 815 (+44 1373 800 815 outside the UK) and say Rose Crompton sent you to secure your discount.
Thanks in advance if you choose to do this. And as one of my people, please let me know how you go on the course. Email me any time.