Digital Copywriter
McMaster-Carr
In my three years as a copywriter for McMaster-Carr, I wrote product descriptions, crafted advertisements, and implemented design strategies for hundreds of web and catalog pages.
takING the complicated and makING it simple
I developed illustrations with step-by-step instructions to help customers properly understand how to install products.
I described the nuts and bolts of…nuts and bolts. Yes, I was the big-dog copywriter behind the fastener product category at McMaster-Carr. If you're looking at a screw on the McMaster-Carr website, there's a 99.7% chance I wrote the accompanying copy.
You might think writing about hardware is pretty straightforward and boring. But guess what? It was! Although the day-to-day work could have been more exciting, I faced unique creative challenges I've yet to face in working in other industries. My job required me to think long and hard about the best way to respond directly to customer questions which poured into the McMaster site like letters through the Dursley's fireplace in Harry Potter.
"Help! How do you install a helical insert? What's the difference between a metering pump and a dispensing pump? I need a screw with a wide head that's also strong and corrosion resistant; which should I choose?"
In addition to product descriptions, I concept and create publication elements to support facts about our products called "About Boxes".
With the support of a product merchandiser, I crafted copy to illuminate facts and instructions about how to use hardware. I sifted through a sea of customer feedback, technical questions, and transaction data to ensure accuracy. After generating a list of questions we'd like to answer through revision, I consulted manufacturers, experts, and supplier literature to write my descriptions.
I helped provide detailed answers to the "un-Googleable." I took the often complex, inconsistent, and technically intimidating information provided by suppliers and translated it into clear, benefit-oriented copy useful to both the casual consumer and the experienced engineer.
My thorough approach led to results for the company. The number of questions about nuts and bolts continues to decline while fasteners remain among the fastest-growing product lines at the company.
