Email copywriters create strategic, conversion-focused email content — including automated welcome sequences, promotional campaigns, re-engagement workflows and cold outreach. Whether you're scaling a SaaS platform, launching e-commerce products, or building B2B relationships, skilled email copywriters combine persuasive writing with data-driven optimization to boost engagement, retain customers, and drive measurable ROI.
What does an email copywriter do?
An email copywriter creates strategic, persuasive content designed to convert readers into customers, supporting broader email marketing campaigns across SaaS, e-commerce, and service industries.
Many email copywriters have backgrounds in content writing, SEO, and digital marketing, and have mastered email best practices such as:
Writing compelling subject lines that improve open rates
Tailoring messages to target audience segments
Creating persuasive copy that matches your brand voice
Conducting A/B testing to optimize performance
Analyzing campaign metrics and iterating based on data
Ensuring deliverability and avoiding spam filter triggers
Email copywriters typically have years of experience using software like Mailchimp, HubSpot, Klaviyo, and marketing automation platforms.
How to hire an email copywriter on Upwork
Upwork makes it easy to connect with experienced email copywriters. To streamline your hiring process, follow these four simple steps.
Step 1: Post your project
A well-crafted posting helps qualified specialists with relevant expertise find your post and self-select based on their skills — saving you time in the interview and selection stage. In your post:
Clarify your goals, such as increasing open rates, building your email list, or launching new sequences
Define the deliverables, including the number of emails, content length, and any landing page copy needs
Describe your ideal customer and market, whether it’s B2B or e-commerce shoppers
To create a tailored job post quickly, try the Job Post Generator powered by Uma™, Upwork’s Mindful AI. Describe what you need in a few sentences, and Uma will craft a job post in seconds. You can also review job description templates for ideas and inspiration.
Step 2: Evaluate candidates
As you begin to receive proposals, evaluating them systematically can help you quickly narrow the field to a few choice candidates.
Have Uma give instant video interviews and side-by-side comparisons
Use Upwork’s filters to find candidates by rate, location, and experience
Review proposals for signs that the candidate has understood your job post and has the skills to meet your needs
Look at portfolios for signs of a strong record in relevant areas, such as email campaigns, SEO, and cold email success
Step 3: Conduct interviews
Quick video interviews give you the chance to ask any questions you have left for your top candidates, and to get a feel for what a collaboration with them might be like.
Schedule and conduct interviews within Upwork messaging to get instant transcripts and summaries from Uma
Ask the candidates to walk you through past work from their portfolio, focusing on aspects that are similar to your project and challenges they overcame
Have candidates walk you through their strategy, including how they plan sequences that nurture leads or boost retention
Discuss the tools currently in your workflow (HubSpot, Mailchimp, or other platforms) as well the tools they prefer and why
Ask them to walk you through a case study from their portfolio, focusing on persuasive email copy that improved conversion rates
If you’re unfamiliar with interviewing or hiring independent talent, you can review common interview questions for freelancers to help your conversations stay focused and be productive.
Step 4: Hire and collaborate
Once you’ve found the right fit, you can send a contract directly through the Upwork marketplace. A solid contract protects both parties and helps collaborations be successful from beginning to end.
Use Upwork's contract workroom, messaging, and payment protection for secure collaboration
Choose fixed-price contracts for projects with clear deliverables, such as creating a short welcome email series
Break large projects into milestones, such as creating email copy, A/B testing subject lines, and optimization
Choose hourly contracts for ongoing work or projects without clear deliverables, such as creating and maintaining a template library or continuous email optimization and reporting
Upwork is not affiliated with and does not sponsor or endorse any of the tools or services discussed in this article. These tools and services are provided only as potential options, and each reader and company should take the time needed to adequately analyze and determine the tools or services that would best fit their specific needs and situation.
The rates and information provided in this article are based on current data and industry sources available at the time of publication. Freelance rates can vary depending on factors such as experience, location, project scope, and market conditions. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research to confirm current rates and trends, as this information may change over time.