How to hire a senior copywriter

How to hire a senior copywriter, step by step

Here's a step-by-step senior copywriter hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a senior copywriter job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new senior copywriter
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a senior copywriter do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the senior copywriter you need to hire. Certain senior copywriter roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect senior copywriter also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of senior copywriter salaries for various roles:

   Type of Senior Copywriter	Description	Hourly rate
   Senior Copywriter	Writers and authors develop written content for advertisements, books, magazines, movie and television scripts, songs, blogs, and other online publications.	$24-55
   Managing Editor	Managing editors are individuals who coordinate and oversee the editorial activities of a publication. They administer the daily operations or a website or publication, such as generating ideas and planning and editing content... Show more	$28-63
   Editor	An editor is the one responsible for polishing and refining a story, article, and any material for publication in newspapers, magazines, books, or websites. Editors have the power to either accept or reject a material as they need to ensure that every manuscript which will be offered for publishing is at the best version as it can be... Show more	$16-37

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Copywriting
   • Digital Marketing
   • Healthcare
   • SEO
   • Proofreading
   • Web Content
   • Brainstorming
   • Creative Concepts
   • B Testing
   • Art Directors
   • Marketing Campaigns
   • Video Scripts
   • Content Strategy
   • Strategic Thinking

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage publication review process, including technical and editorial review by in-house and outside reviewers.
   • Maintain all sports teams' twitter and blog accounts.
   • Conceptualize and craft blog and Facebook posts to drive traffic to client websites.
   • Complete assignments covering diverse genres, including autobiographical, fiction, and financial planning.
   • Traffic jobs between creative and proofreading and ensure all dates are met and work are distributed equitably.
   • Document and maintain detail Wiki of frequent RFP questions and answers for the PCS and ORM solutions.

   More senior copywriter duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your senior copywriter job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A senior copywriter can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, senior copywriters' average salary in tennessee is 53% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level senior copywriters 57% less than senior-level senior copywriters.
   • Certifications. A senior copywriter with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a senior copywriter's salary.

   Average senior copywriter salary

   $76,238yearly

   $36.65 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level senior copywriter salary

   $50,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 20, 2026

   Average senior copywriter salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$133,582	$64
   2	New York	$103,656	$50
   3	Utah	$97,066	$47
   4	Nevada	$95,826	$46
   5	District of Columbia	$93,471	$45
   6	Massachusetts	$91,101	$44
   7	Indiana	$91,041	$44
   8	Washington	$90,942	$44
   9	Wisconsin	$90,369	$43
   10	New Jersey	$85,204	$41
   11	Illinois	$84,305	$41
   12	North Dakota	$81,449	$39
   13	Connecticut	$81,011	$39
   14	Delaware	$79,372	$38
   15	Pennsylvania	$79,115	$38
   16	Colorado	$78,971	$38
   17	Oregon	$78,919	$38
   18	Maryland	$78,858	$38
   19	Virginia	$74,885	$36
   20	Rhode Island	$73,589	$35

   Average senior copywriter salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	DoorDash	$143,341	$68.91
   2	Apple	$142,596	$68.56	1
   3	PVH	$140,400	$67.50	1
   4	Nike	$137,845	$66.27
   5	Expedia Group	$137,098	$65.91
   6	Intuitive Surgical	$129,710	$62.36	1
   7	Amazon	$129,200	$62.12	17
   8	Okta	$127,876	$61.48
   9	Intuit	$127,311	$61.21
   10	ZS	$127,204	$61.16
   11	VF	$121,586	$58.45
   12	TBWA Worldwide	$117,372	$56.43
   13	23andMe	$116,511	$56.01
   14	The Walt Disney Company	$116,426	$55.97	18
   15	Wpp Us Holdings Inc	$115,742	$55.65	10
   16	Hubbell	$115,670	$55.61
   17	mcgarrybowen	$113,170	$54.41
   18	MullenLowe U.S.	$112,804	$54.23
   19	The Marketing Arm	$111,869	$53.78
   20	Bose	$111,321	$53.52	1

4. Writing a senior copywriter job description

   A senior copywriter job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a senior copywriter job description:

   Senior copywriter job description example

   Responsible for collaborating, researching, consulting, writing, modifying, condensing, organizing, correcting, reviewing, and proofreading customer-facing communication. Ensures communication is correct, consistent, complete and representative of the Whole Foods Market brand.
   Senior Copywriter & Editor
   
   We're seeking a Senior Copywriter to join our Amazon Fresh creative team. As the Senior Copywriter & Editor, you'll help to define the brand voice for Amazon Fresh and report to the Creative Director, Copy & Editorial. You'll play a lead role in writing copy and content for customer-facing messaging across all channels including in-store signage, paid media, social, web, email, private brand packaging, and editorial.
   
   To be successful in this role, you'll be skilled in writing with a distinctively Amazon Fresh voice. You'll need to be an agile learner who is adept at navigating change in retail and adapting to new processes. Working daily with your counterparts in Design, Art Direction and Packaging, you'll craft an ownable and cohesive brand voice.
   
   From brand building campaigns to tactical promotional messaging, you're passionate about writing all of it and see how both are critical to the brand and business. You have retail expertise and understand the nature of clarity of messaging and are confident but not precious about your work.
   
   This role is based in Austin TX, within the Whole Foods Market corporate offices. We are a people-first company and big egos don't work out here. We thrive on collaboration and have a laid-back, hard-working culture that thrives on having self-responsibility and earning trust.
   
   Responsibilities
   Skilled at writing for all customer-facing deliverables, including in-store signage, paid media, social, web, email, exclusive brands packaging, and editorial Work with Creative Director in writing Amazon Fresh brand guidelines for voice and tone Mentoring other Copywriters by example with skills and teamwork
   
   Skills
   Proven ability to operate among ambiguity and fast-changing business goals Proven ability to build cross-functional partnerships and inspire collaboration and action Proven ability to juggle multiple projects while maintaining a clear sense of priorities
   
   Qualifications
   4+ years of copywriting experience at a brand or agency Retail experience preferred Passion for food a plus
   
   At Whole Foods Market, we provide a fair and equal employment opportunity for all Team Members and candidates regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, age, marital status, disability, or any other legally protected characteristic. Whole Foods Market hires and promotes individuals solely based on qualifications for the position to be filled and business needs.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find senior copywriters for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   To find senior copywriter candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as problogger, media bistro, journalismjobs.com, content writing jobs.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting senior copywriters requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new senior copywriter

   Once you've selected the best senior copywriter candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new senior copywriter. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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