I started becoming a Full Stack Writer after following your advice to learn more than just typing on a page. It's definitely helped my content and job go further!

I like the concept of "full stack writer" a lot. I've seen it play out in the health and fitness world too.

It used to be that it was enough if you could just write a good workout program. But now adding in the skills of assessing movement, nutrition coaching, lifestyle coaching, and some borderline counseling skill are all almost necessary.

Here's an article that does an awesome job of explaining it.

Now I'm at the point where adding in the skills of marketing, sales, content creation, etc are all needed to reach that "full stack writer" concept as a fitness coach.

Awesome article, Neville!

That's awesome Julie! I really do think the next step for ANY writer is being able to make images (or at least effectively outsource them), as images are hugely important in all forms of copy, and completely dominate fields such as social media.

Totally agree Andrew....a lot of disciplines have started merging. However with easy access to so much information, it's easier than ever to pick up new skills.

Keep learning :)

Wow! For so many years, I didn't know what to call myself. I haven't niched down or anything, I was just a "writer" who knew a lot about "blogging". Now I'll keep in mind to call myself a "full stack writer", yay! Thanks, Neville! Great article!

I do, do all these things (e.g. curvasian.com)

I am a

UX designer

journalist

photographer

videographer + editor

traditional and digital marketer (I/E Marketing, Social media management, SEO & Analytics)

web developer (I build Wordpress sites and create all the content)

Yet when I put these on my CV, it just makes me look like a mess!

 

I love your content.

The copywriting process 101 my friend!

You've got lots of skills so you've got lots to talk about (think of your skills as features). You are the product you're selling.

Depending on who you want to work with will dictate what you need to communicate to that person. You've got to research and understand what their specific pain points are and speak to those primarily.

Not everything is relevant to everybody all the time. Focus on the primary two or three features that your desired work partner is looking for and really hammer the benefits you can provide them. All of the other skills you have are just bonuses (and there's no reason you can't position them like bonuses).

Maybe it would be a good exercise to pull a Gary Halbert and go get some index cards. On each individual card write down one of your skills. Then on other individual cards write down the benefits those skills bring to the work you do. Once they're all labelled, match them up to create your stack. You'll have a big library of skills and benefits.

Then when you want to work with someone figure out what's important to them and pull those skills out of your stack of index cards and that will dictate how you present to that person.

Any skills that are leftover are bonuses you can throw in. 'Oh by the way, I can also do X,Y,Z.'

It doesn't have to be any more complicated than that! Moral of the story, you aren't obligated to display everything all the time. In fact it's probably detrimental to do so.

Hope this helps!

Hey Neville,

great post!

It's an interesting concept when it seems like everyone is all about niching down and being very specific. Laser focusing on one specific thing and going deep on it. Be a master of one thing rather than a jack of all trades.

Would you say copywriting is the foundation above all else?

I've operated for awhile on the idea that I will see what skills provide the greatest return on my time and focus on those, then outsource the rest.

The idea being that if I have X amount of time, and skill A provides me the greatest return on that time, if I can outsource the rest of the things I need done and still be more profitable than learning them and doing them all myself, then I will just focus on skill A.

Alternatively, with the gig economy it's also an idea to advertise and promote yourself as full stack and then just outsource whatever you're not good at and deliver projects as a whole (even though you aren't the one doing all the work).

Really enjoyed the post! Looking forward to the next one.

Never heard of this term! Glad you brought it up because, except for the fact I don’t know InDesign, I think I qualify! And, like others here, it’s good to have a title to match the description.

I’ve never seen a job opening described with this title. Is it more of a freelance thing?

My good friend and fellow copywriter Pauline Longdon discussed being Full Stack Copywriters over a year ago. Only our context was a little different. We both write sales copy in addition to content (which is a different beast altogether), plus we also have marketing backgrounds.  Both of us are into photography, can create graphics, know basic SEO and all that good stuff too.

Hey Neville, I'll chime in here where the term "Full Stack Writer" as a role has popped up big time.

As an independently published novelist and nonfiction author (13 published titles) -- also known as self-published, I am definitely a full-stack writer!

I use tools like Vellum to lay out my book for print and digital, create marketing images in Canva, find images to use on Pixabay and Unsplash (or use my own), hire a cover designer for awesome covers, and not only write the books but also create marketing content in the form of blog posts, videos, audios, and course.

Hurrah for no-barrier to entry distribution platforms like Amazon, Draft2Digital, Smashwords, and YouTube, Soundcloud, and social media.

And I'm not the only one who can do this. We are legion and we are coming for your jobs ... No, just kidding. We're self-sufficient as indie publishers and doing decent to awesome in the marketplace. And controlling our own fate. What could be better?!

Thanks for your post!

BTW, the term "Full-Stack" comes from software development, right, or somewhere else? Just curious... word nerd here!

Thanks for the clarification. I was thinking its more of a developer, buried deep in coding. As you explain it, I come a bit closer, and feel like I could possibly bone up and do it. Thing is, the person hiring is going to have to dig in, and get a clear understanding what the candidate thinks "full stack" really means. Its open to interpretation.

Like I said, Full Stack is open to interpretation.

Interesting... When I started freelancing, I was a writer first then started picking up skills like SEO, web design, social media, graphics, videos, and recently, chatbot. The title "Full Stack Writer" is embracing and elevating being the jack-of-all-trade which is totally opposite the call of niching down so it's easy to "start-rinse-repeat".

That's great you finally found a great name! I actually really like the term "Full Stack Writer" because while it's slightly broad in it's scope, it's also very specific in the skillset it portrays!

Oh nice, then I bet you can call yourself a Full Stack Writer, or Full Stack Content Creator!

Totally agree Allen. I'm on a bunch of 1-on-1 consulting calls every week, and the only think I bill myself as is a copywriter....however we OBVIOUSLY end up covering multiple skills, subjects, and fields. However if I was to list out every small thing I could help with, it might end up being more confusing in the end!

I love this comment :-)

I think figuring out your freelancing career is like building a business and validating it:

Starting broad, trying a lot of things, then naturally gravitating to what the market wants from you.

If the market starts buying a lot of web development from you.....that might be an indication of what's in demand and what you're good at.

Bonus if you also really enjoy what the market wants from you :)

Hey Stacy...I bet if you look up some InDesign tutorials you'd learn 75% of what you need to know in under an hour.

Also you don't have to know EVERY piece of software (for example I don't know InDesign at all, but I COULD learn it if it proved useful).

I think this term is in it's super infancy. Kind of like UX Writer was a few years ago. I strongly think it'll be used more and more.

Dang THIRTEEN books? NICE!

I bet you are actually far ahead of most wannabe writers who get stuck with all those tasks like book covers and formatting because they have to outsource each piece. Maybe that's why you have 13 titles already :)

And yes the term "Full Stack" definitely comes from software development, they've been using that term for years.

Keep cranking out books!

That's true it's open to interpretation, but much like in the software world, people will often clarify what specific skills they have on their portfolio or CV.

Maybe like:

Yeah, this term is in it's super infancy, and I think it will catch on because:

#1.) It's a more useful term to showcase you know a whole "stack" of skills outside of just writing.

-and-

#2.) It just sounds cool :-P

Brilliant concept!

I want to add video writing to my copywriting skill set. Is there a particular course or quickie tutorial you recommend?

thanks Neville. 😀