Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Eszter Szőnyei. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Eszter, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.

For me, it is never a “job done and gone”. In my experience, most copywriters just quickly submit their work to the client, send the invoice, and then move on to the next project.

I just can’t do that, my conscience would never let me. That’s why I offer collaborative copywriting, branding, and marketing services. I always build an ongoing, trusting relationship with my clients, and I’m genuinely invested in their success and happiness.

One of my recent clients was a coach who wanted to launch a new program. What she thought she needed was website and email copy. But what she actually needed was guidance and reassurance.

Others would’ve just written the copy and then left. I, on the other hand, set up regular calls with her, explained the marketing process to her, and why I thought these solutions would work for her business.

I also offered unlimited editions, which resulted in a much longer timeline, but it was worth it. Because she was satisfied with the results, and she could feel that it was 100% aligned with her brand and unique voice.

Of course, my method has some setbacks. I need to be careful not to end up burned out, or underpaid. But this way I can be certain that I never sacrifice quality.

Eszter, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m a conversion and SEO copywriter. I specialize in writing website copy, emails, and SEO blog posts.

Before starting my freelancing business I worked in various positions: as an influencer marketing trainee at an agency, as a social media manager, and as an SEO content manager.

Probably a lot of people can relate to my story. I got frustrated by the traditional office environment, the unfair promotions, and the lack of creative freedom and transparency. As a woman, I experienced the famous “glass ceiling” myself, and I decided that I didn’t want to be a part of such discriminative practices anymore.

Now I’m on a mission to prove that you can achieve great business results without using others as stepping stones. I love that now I can choose my clients and the projects I want to work on. I always choose to write for ethical products and services that I believe in.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

There’s a famous Nelson Mandela quote that I love: “Do not judge me by my successes; judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.”

Every time I feel that I hit rock bottom, I think about this quote. Because the truth is, social media can really make you believe that everyone is super successful, except you.

But nobody is posting images of them crying or getting rejected. It’s important to remember, that all those enviable people have had their hard moments in life, but they managed to overcome the challenges.

One of the toughest moments of my life was when I lost my job during the pandemic. It was 2020, and my company had to cut the budget and outsource our department to another country.

Suddenly, I found myself with no job, and no idea what to do. I started applying to hundreds of places, but it was not the best time to be unemployed.

I even received a message from one of the companies, telling me, that although they want to hire me, I’d need to wait for half a year because now they don’t have the budget.

Needless to say, I did not wait for them. After 3 months of applying, I finally got a great offer and started working as an SEO content manager.

Of course, this was not the first and not the last time I had to start over. But you have to acknowledge that you are never back to zero. Every time you go further and further because you also grow as a person. And with time it gets easier to stand up and move forward.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

What most people don’t understand about copywriting is that it’s not only about writing words in a Google Doc. It’s a delicate mixture of marketing, branding, psychology, and creativity. That’s why I find it so exhilarating.

Most of my time I spend it on research: sometimes I have a 20-page long document before I write a single word of the actual copy. I have to understand the client’s brand voice, USP, who their customers are, etc.

And then I can create the structure, and write the first draft. Of course, if I work with a client long-term, the research stage requires less time, so I always prefer to build ongoing relationships with my clients.

The last part of the writing process is the most enjoyable: the editing, when I get to spend time coming up with engaging headlines and fun synonyms. It can be a very frustrating, but very rewarding process.

Once I was working on a website copy for a boutique marketing agency. I’ve already written the home page and the about page, but something was missing. I could not think of a unique tagline for them that summed up their positioning and core values.

I wrote at least 50 different variations before I had my eureka moment, and I came up with the perfect tagline.
Sometimes I get the best ideas while I’m cooking, or just staring out the window. I think if you are not a creative, it might be difficult to accept, that even when I’m not actively hitting the keyboard, I’m still creating.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/eszter.szonyei.copywriter
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/szonyeie/
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/eszter-szonyei

Image Credits
Images by Hany Photography