How Working In A Content Agency Helped Me Finally Explain My Job To My Dad

March marks Sophie’s first year as one of our wordsmiths here at Making You Content. Turns out we were all she needed to finally have a decent conversation about her work to her dad… 

When I told my dad I wanted to study English Literature, his response was, “What are you going to do with that? Teach?”, which is why I ended up with a Politics degree instead. Not one to give up so easily, a year ago I answered MYC’s ‘variety is the spice of life’ job advert. For my dad, it finally confirmed that I’m not just a monkey with a typewriter… 

Early ventures into content 

I landed my first copywriting role in 2019, composing on-hold marketing scripts to be read out by a voice artist over a personalised soundtrack. The majority of my clients were American companies, and regional voice-overs were used. When I played these for my dad, he would immediately get hung up on the American accent and couldn’t conceive how I had possibly written them. My job remained a mystery, but it required going into an office from 9 to 5, and that was enough for him.

Fast forward two years, and I left on-hold marketing behind for a career in PR. I’d finally realised my dream of writing long-form content for cash-money – but if dads don’t know what on-hold marketing is, then they certainly don’t know what PR is. That’s when MYC entered the picture, I got the chance to write for a complete range of industries, and things started to click for my dad… 

Dads can read blogs

The very first pieces of writing I did for MYC were business blog posts. While these were nothing I hadn’t written before, my long-form content had previously been limited to goings-on in the PR industry alone. To keep up with varying trades and tones of voice, I quickly learned how to put myself into someone else’s shoes and then seamlessly slip on the next pair. One morning might be spent writing budget-planning posts for an accounting firm, while the afternoon could be dedicated to writing social posts for robot NFTs engaged in a bitter civil war (it’s happening as you’re reading this, trust me). 

FYI – dads will finally believe your job is real when they can see your words on an ‘official’ website for an industry they recognise. 

Dads can download eBooks

Once I’d got to grips with juggling various industries and disciplines, it was time for me to master my first eBook. Here, I got really hung up on the word ‘book’ – who did Kelly think I was, Ernest Hemingway? (I may have said that it was my dream to write a book in my interview, but that was beside the point). Fortunately, it turns out every strong piece of content here at MYC is backed by an equally strong framework, and after plenty of research and support from our senior editor (AKA the Swiss Army Knife of MYC, Lucinda), I was confident that I’d built a strong scaffolding for my piece – the rest was just filling in the gaps.

Digital literacy isn’t every dad’s forte; they will be confused by the concept of an eBook and wonder why it’s not a physical book they can hold in their hands. But they will respect that you wrote it.

Dads can browse online retailers

Not everything we do at MYC is long-form – we switch formats just as much as we switch industries, so there’s always a chance to mix things up and find your flair in different areas. Recently, I enjoyed returning to my advertising roots to write product descriptions for a leading sportswear brand. It was refreshing to write short, punchy paragraphs to enable athletes to envision themselves in different items and realise that I hadn’t lost any of my skills, only gained some new ones along the way – who knew just how many ways there are to describe a 1/4 zip top? (Plenty!)

As far as dads go, mine isn’t very sporty. But all dads know who Andy Murray is, and they will look on in awe when you point out him being interviewed on the telly wearing a brand that you wrote the product descriptions for.

Do it for your dad

There you have it. My dad probably still isn’t 100% sure what my day-to-day consists of, but he definitely knows it’s copywriting and not copyrighting – which is enough for me (fellow  copywriters will relate). 

Looking for a career that’ll add years onto your dad’s life? MYC’s supportive team will probably even lengthen your own. Here’s why you should consider joining our award-winning content agency.

Words by Sophie

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