We’re rewriting the rules of insurance, and we’re looking for a full-time Principal Copywriter who is up to the challenge of bringing our evolved voice to life.

The role of Principal Copywriter can look different depending on the company. Here’s what it means for our Research and Development team at Root. You’ll be the primary writer working with our R&D team to create exceptional product experiences, as well as marketing and training materials for new B2B and B2B2C product lines. 

From app content to presentation decks, mobile and web interfaces to sales materials, you’ll be responsible for writing R&D-related content that showcases our machine learning and mobile telematic platforms. This means taking on emerging and ambiguous topics, diving deep into user-based research, and helping to build  innovative experiences from the ground up—all in an engaging, (never stuffy or snobby), supersmart way. 

At Root, we embrace the love of the problem—so if you enjoy tackling challenges head on, are passionate about simplifying complex ideas through the lens of UX, design, and brand-building; and love the AP style guide, then this role is for you.

As a Root R&D Principal Copywriter you’ll also be responsible for bridging work between multiple teams—ensuring a consistent user experience and cohesive brand voice across the new products you help to create. Working closely with designers, engineers, product owners, and business specialists, you’ll support the VP of Business Development and the R&D team in new initiatives outside of the Root Insurance app. In partnership with the Copy Director and Senior Copy Manager, you’ll regularly offer your strategic perspective to the creative process, act as a creative lead to others on your immediate team, drive innovative solutions to ambiguous problems we’ve yet to solve, and develop credibility for new products and brands with your engaging and illuminating words—all in an unpretentious, uniquely Root voice.

The team

Our R&D team is moving forward Root’s mission to disrupt the archaic, trillion-dollar insurance industry. Root is creating powerful insurance products and technology platforms that rewrite the rules for how FinTech interacts with everyday lives by promoting fairness, simplicity, and personalization. And we’re just getting started. 

We’re a tight-knit, collaborative group guided by a highly iterative, user-centered design process. With insights gained through testing, data analysis, and thoughtful critique, the R&D team is driving the strategy that grows our business and will shape the insurance industry of tomorrow. Our ideal Principal Copywriter will be able to masterfully craft content to brand standards, compose smart, engaging long-form and short-form copy, break down complicated concepts and make them easy to understand, and scour language for style, clarity, grammar, and punctuation—all while staying mindful of a tight production workflow. Your work will have high visibility and high impact on the business. You’ll be as comfortable diving deep as you are pivoting to a new business focus.

The role

The voice of Root (that’s you)

As a Principal Copywriter, you’re the voice of everything R&D outside of our Root Insurance app. Your words are seen by every person who engages with these new products, in addition to the businesses we partner with to offer our telematics solutions. Your words matter, and as a writer you have the opportunity to have a real impact on the business. Root isn’t a typical insurance company. We’re not stodgy, boring, or traditional. We aim for transparency and we innovate. We never want insurance to feel stressful, overwhelming, or mysterious. And it’s the Principal Copywriter’s job to be sure we never do.

The Root voice (what you’ll write)

Our brand experiences mirror the app that started it all: bold, human-centric, simple. The Root voice is straightforward, direct, and approachable. No matter if it’s B2B or B2C, we speak in a clear, engaging way. We take complicated, highly regulated insurance content and break it down into succinct, clear copy both our clients and customers understand. Yes, we occasionally throw in a joke or wink here or there, but it’s always well-placed and thoughtful. The insurance industry is riddled with clichés and expected lines. We pride ourselves on rising above that.

Passion for the craft of writing

Strong writing isn’t just the ability to write a great headline or a descriptive piece of prose. At Root, it’s about clarity and humanity. It’s using smart writing and grammar to communicate in a way that’s accurate and easy, often with character limits. We constantly ask ourselves how we can say more with fewer words. And we prove it’s possible every day. 

Flexibility

Due to the nature of our business, daily copy needs range from serious and empathetic to energetic and light. There will be times for creative copy to engage and times where copy should be simple and straightforward. 

Deep empathy for the user

As a Principal Copywriter, you put every effort into understanding what our clients and their customers need. Your background gives you a strong gut about how to solve problems for users. What you don’t know, you learn through qualitative and quantitative research, analyzing previous feedback, and whatever other tools are at your disposal. 

Bias toward action

We want someone who is not only up for a challenge but seeks them out. We need someone who can thrive as part of a team but who’s also comfortable working independently. Our R&D Principal Copywriter is someone who is interested in researching and learning—whether it’s continued education about UX writing, following the ever-changing trends in the FinTech environment, or becoming an expert on a new Root insurance line.

Making the complex simple

You have a knack for taking complex concepts and making them accessible to non-experts. You explain empathetically and never talk down to your audience.

Skill sets required:

• This role reports to the Copy Director.

   

  Please provide a PDF of relevant work samples or a web link to your portfolio. Applications without a portfolio will not be considered. 

   

  This is a full-time position. Due to COVID-19, our teams are currently collaborating remotely, so bring your sweatpants. A laptop and appropriate software can be provided. Once our offices reopen, this creative can either continue working remotely or join us in our Columbus, Ohio office.

   

  Root believes diverse teams build better products, and we’re looking for people who not only contribute hard skills but also offer broad perspectives that challenge us to better serve our customers.

  • Tight long- and short-form writer with an eye for simplifying the complex
  • Excellent proofreading skills
  • Advanced knowledge of email best practices
  • Knowledge of SEO/SEM
  • Advanced experience with A/B testing
  • Background in research
  • A solid knowledge of copywriting best practices for mobile development and web
  • Part-time strategist (Notice it doesn’t say “strategic thinker.” Of course you’re a strategic thinker, but Root writers connect all of their content back to strategy. And if for some reason there isn’t a strategy to be found, they’re quick to get the right people in the room to make it happen.)
  • Accustomed to working with legal/compliance teams to review content
  • Self-starter
  • Skilled collaborator
  • Flexible working style (Sometimes design will drive copy, sometimes copy will drive design, and sometimes you’ll volley back and forth.)
  • A mentor who can inspire and motivate more junior creatives on immediate and cross-functional teams
  • Adept at taking ambiguous problems, deciphering the ask, and translating the problem into an easy-to-understand creative challenge/assignment/task for the team
  • Proponent of radical candor and champion of positive team culture
  • 10+ years of relevant writing/editing experience in a creative, editorial, or marketing environment
  • 3+ years of relevant technical writing/editing experience, preferably in either FinTech or an analytics-based environment
  • A deep love of the Oxford comma (happy to support those in transition)

Who we are.

Root Insurance is the nation’s first licensed insurance carrier powered entirely by mobile. We were founded on the belief that the services you need for everyday life should serve you better. That’s why we base insurance coverages on you, not your demographic. It’s the way insurance should be. And it’s all conveniently in an app.

What draws people to Root.

Our early success is in large part due to our unwavering standards in hiring. We recognize that our product is only as good as the people building and promoting it. We look for individuals who find solutions by going through the cycle of ideation to implementation with curiosity, rigor, and a highly analytical lens. Ask anyone who works here and you’ll hear similar reasons for why they joined:

Autonomy. For assertive self-starters, the opportunities to contribute are limitless.

Impact. By challenging the way it’s always been done, we solve problems that have a big impact on our business.

Collaboration. We encourage rich discussion and civil debate at every turn.

People. We are inspired by the collection of crazy-smart people around us.