How much should I legitimately be making in NYC for the work I do now?
April 13, 2018 11:11 AM Subscribe
I need serious professional assistance in determining what my real monetary value is objectively in my field as a copywriter in the beauty industry.
I work in the beauty industry as a copywriter, and currently make less than what a complete newbie retail clerk makes at a department store like Saks. Here is a quick breakdown of my responsibilities:
1. write PR pieces spoonfed to Youtube influencers to promote specific brands.
2. ghostwrite quotes on beauty products for Marketing Dept. as part of an interview situation needing expert knowledge of the field.
3. Proofread/edit/write e-mail marketing campaigns/online CTA's/banner ads.
4. Give training presentations on beauty products for entire staff.
5. Assist Customer Service in recommending products to difficult clients for repeat business.
6. Write online product descriptions for fragrance and skincare for our catalog.
7. Write between 3 and 7 blog posts a month featuring new releases.
8. Write copy for brand advertising mailers.
9. Write HR onboarding materials.
10. Interview potential creative new hires.
11. Write job descriptions and creative copy tests for potential new hires.
12. Create SEO-driven product information for our website.
13. Create copy for landing pages.
14. Produce, write, and act in training videos.
I am curious about what my actual value would be to a company given the NYC economic climate. BONUS POINTS for giving me a job title based on this amount of responsibility (i.e. Jr. Copywriter, Associate level, whatever.)
I work in the beauty industry as a copywriter, and currently make less than what a complete newbie retail clerk makes at a department store like Saks. Here is a quick breakdown of my responsibilities:
1. write PR pieces spoonfed to Youtube influencers to promote specific brands.
2. ghostwrite quotes on beauty products for Marketing Dept. as part of an interview situation needing expert knowledge of the field.
3. Proofread/edit/write e-mail marketing campaigns/online CTA's/banner ads.
4. Give training presentations on beauty products for entire staff.
5. Assist Customer Service in recommending products to difficult clients for repeat business.
6. Write online product descriptions for fragrance and skincare for our catalog.
7. Write between 3 and 7 blog posts a month featuring new releases.
8. Write copy for brand advertising mailers.
9. Write HR onboarding materials.
10. Interview potential creative new hires.
11. Write job descriptions and creative copy tests for potential new hires.
12. Create SEO-driven product information for our website.
13. Create copy for landing pages.
14. Produce, write, and act in training videos.
I am curious about what my actual value would be to a company given the NYC economic climate. BONUS POINTS for giving me a job title based on this amount of responsibility (i.e. Jr. Copywriter, Associate level, whatever.)
Are you salaried, exempt, office-based, and working 40ish hours a week?
posted by kapers at 12:33 PM on April 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by kapers at 12:33 PM on April 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
Just because companies are unlikely to triple your pay (if you're really making close to minimum wage), I think the best way to find out is to apply for jobs elsewhere and see what their offers look like. Just from the perspective of you being simply a Content Manager (no training or product reccos), your skills are probably in demand enough to get offers in less than X months.
Frankly it looks like you're a glorified office manager as far as they're concerned, but your responsibilities and actual experience point in better directions.
posted by rhizome at 1:14 PM on April 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
Frankly it looks like you're a glorified office manager as far as they're concerned, but your responsibilities and actual experience point in better directions.
posted by rhizome at 1:14 PM on April 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
Who's your boss? Does anyone report to you? Do you share any of the tasks you listed with another employee, or perform them as part of a larger team? Depending on your company's size and structure, you may be the Senior Content Editor or higher, with HR duties mixed in.
posted by Iris Gambol at 1:14 PM on April 13, 2018
posted by Iris Gambol at 1:14 PM on April 13, 2018
Best answer: I think the most marketable stuff you’re doing is the marketing stuff — ad, email, catalog and blog copy. The HR stuff you do is not generally part of a marketing job and unfortunately won’t have much value to other companies.
Depending on your seniority you could call yourself a marketing copywriter, associate or manager, but the extent to which you know your metrics (especially banner and email clicks and conversions) and can tell a story about what you’ve done to improve them is what will really affect your salary/marketability.
Check glassdoor for companies like yours and companies you would like to work for, it lists positions and salaries.
posted by mrmurbles at 7:59 PM on April 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
Depending on your seniority you could call yourself a marketing copywriter, associate or manager, but the extent to which you know your metrics (especially banner and email clicks and conversions) and can tell a story about what you’ve done to improve them is what will really affect your salary/marketability.
Check glassdoor for companies like yours and companies you would like to work for, it lists positions and salaries.
posted by mrmurbles at 7:59 PM on April 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: You may need to switch your niche to do better. The writing skills should perhaps pay more but in beauty you’re up against a lot of people who for whatever reason may be willing to work for peanuts for access to product.
posted by warriorqueen at 9:24 PM on April 13, 2018
posted by warriorqueen at 9:24 PM on April 13, 2018
"NYC is about 30% more expensive on a cost of living basis than Toronto, so that would equate to $78k CAD or $62k USD."
It does not work like this. It is supply and demand. Many people want to live in NYC. I know even (employed) MDs in NYC that make not a lot.
posted by yoyo_nyc at 8:35 AM on April 14, 2018
It does not work like this. It is supply and demand. Many people want to live in NYC. I know even (employed) MDs in NYC that make not a lot.
posted by yoyo_nyc at 8:35 AM on April 14, 2018
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My job title was "Communications Editor," though job titles are a hairy mess from organization to organization.
posted by 256 at 11:45 AM on April 13, 2018