How To Hire A Blog Writer The Smart Way (Don’t Get Burned!)
May 19, 2020 | Sean Foo
Now if you are looking to hire an agency or a freelancer to write blog posts for you, take some time to digest this post well.
Outsourcing your content can be one of the best or worst decisions you can ever make.
Do it well, you can drive consistent traffic to your business, build strong relationships with your readers translating to more dollars into your pocket!
But hire the wrong writer and you’d better have a heart of steel to endure:
– Missed deadlines (or a missing writer)
– Broken grammar and boring content
– Hours wasted to edit shoddy work (if it can even be salvaged)
– Good money down the drain
Your business blog is one of the strongest marketing tools you have and you’ll have to get the right blog writer on board!
The Guide To Hiring A Blog Writer That Grows Your Business
– Three Good Reasons To Hire A Blog Writer
– One Unique Situation Not To Outsource
– Six Non-Negotiable Traits Your Blog Writer Must Have
– What You Should Expect To Pay
– Is Guest Blogging The Solution?
– Where To Hire The Writers
– A 4-step Checklist To Hire The Perfect Blog Writer
Having a content marketing plan is critical – get that settled first!
Three Good Reasons To Hire A Blog Writer
A) You Have A Content Strategy In Place To Execute
What are the blog topics that you are trying to cover?
Do you require weekly content or are you trying to build authority quickly with daily content?
If you have a solid content strategy in place and understand the quality and quantity of blog post you need to publish, then it’s a good time to start outsourcing your content creation!
B) You Have To Work On The Business & Have No Time To Blog
Blogging well is hard work and unless you are truly committed (and talented) to consistently publishing quality content, your blog won’t grow.
Certain blog topics can take days to even a whole week to be well-researched and crafted – that’s time you should be spending handling the other aspects of your business.
C) You Can’t Write Engaging Content
Writing in proper sentences is one thing, but writing in an interesting way doesn’t come naturally to everyone.
When it comes to growing your blog one of the most important metrics is if your reader reads your entire article from start to finish.
In other words, if someone reads your content for a few seconds and clicks away – that tells Google your article has poor engagement and isn’t worthy to be ranked well.
If you can’t write engaging content, it’s time to outsource!
One Unique Situation Not To Outsource
While it is definitely a smart move to hire an expert to get your writing done, here is one key situation you absolutely need to do-it-yourself.
You Are The Face Of Your Blog
If you are trying to build a personal brand (and that means letting your personality shine), then you have to write every blog post yourself!
You have a writing style, personality and tone of voice that cannot be replicated by most (if any) writers.
Do not outsource your content creation, your readers will pick up on this and you will risk hurting the relationship between you and your audience, especially if you are just starting out and trying hard to establish your blog.
Focus on the stuff you are great at. Leave the writing to a pro!
Six ‘Must-Haves’ When Hiring A Writer
Finding a writer today isn’t as easy as it seems – there are tons of writers in the market claiming to be awesome blog writers but are they?
Here are six things you must confirm before you hire any writer.
1) They Have Experience Of Writing In Your Niche & Industry
Every niche is different and a writer skilled in technology will struggle writing for finance.
Hiring a writer means trusting someone else with representing your business and the last thing you want to come across to your reader is being fake.
If you are looking for a Saas writer, hire a Saas writer and not someone who is highly skilled in beauty blogging.
2) They Have A Portfolio Of Work You Can Review
A credible writer will have his or her portfolio at the ready.
While that doesn’t mean that they have to specifically showcase it on a website, they should be able to, at the very least, have a Google Doc with links to all of their published articles.
The keyword here is ‘published’.
You have to see the article live on the web to be sure.
3) They Have Driven Results With Their Articles
Do their articles bring traffic or help with converting a reader into a sale?
Depending on your end goal, you’ll need to make sure your writer has a track record of delivering the results that you desire.
Whether it is opt-ins to your email list or getting an additional 500 monthly visitors to your blog, you want a return on your investment!
Ask for testimonials as well as quiz your writer on the results that have driven.
You’ll want to hear facts and figures about:
– The click-through rates
– Engagement and shares
– Monthly visitors driven
4) They Understand SEO & Keyword Research
Writing a fantastic blog post requires planning and knowledge of SEO (search engine optimization).
A professional blog writer understands that one of the main goals of a blog article is to bring in traffic to the business and that requires knowledge of keyword research to help structure an article in a way that fulfils what the reader wants to learn (while pleasing search engines)
You’ll want them to craft engaging headlines that incorporate critical keywords and meta descriptions that entice searchers to read your post.
5) They Can Match Your Brand’s Tone Of Voice
Consistency in your tone of voice is one of the most important (and understated) factors of growing a successful blog for your business.
Not only is it the expression of what your brand stands for, but it also makes your brand unique and builds trust with your reader.
If your tone of voice suddenly switches from fun and jovial to serious and professional – it will form a big disconnect with your reader – I guarantee it!
Carefully look through your writer’s portfolio and ask if they have samples that match your desired tone of voice.
Be realistic though, no one can match your tone of voice 100%, so get as close as possible to what you want.
6) Perfect Language & Grammar Skills
Your prospective writer might have great ideas, but if their work is riddled with broken sentences, misspelt words and wrong grammar use, you’ll have to continue your search.
While this might seem terribly basic, your reader deserves the best quality of information that is easily understood – after all, they are paying you with their time.
Hiring a great writer doesn’t have to be difficult. Just follow our game plan!
How Much To Pay My Blog Writer?
Ah yes, the money question.
Well, it really depends on the type of article required for your blog and business objectives.
Always pay according to the quality and difficulty required.
Looking to tackle a popular competitive topic that has long-form content of beyond 2,500 words with beautiful illustrations and graphics?
Be prepared to fork out hundreds or even thousands of dollars if deep research is required (especially if the niche is deep such as artificial intelligence or finance).
Looking for just lifestyle pieces that are 700 words or less, then anywhere between $110 – $150 would be fair.
Should You Hire An Agency or Go Freelance?
One of the best advantages of hiring an agency is the commitment to quality they will guarantee.
Many business owners frequently underestimate the amount of time needed to vet through and approve a piece of article that could run-up to an hour or more!
An agency that has in-house writers (or hires freelancers) will take care of the entire process, including your content strategy if you don’t have one.
While you pay more, you will enjoy predictable delivery and consistent quality.
Now hiring freelancers would be a good option if your business has a dedicated editorial team or editor who can quickly edit and approve a freelancer’s work for publication.
In addition, you will be able to save some money in the process too!
Invest in quality content & pay what you have to!
What About Guest Blogging?
I know what you are thinking – why don’t I get writers to write for free and grow my business?
I’ll be frank, the only way you will get quality writers to contribute to your blog without pay is if your business can give them something of equal value or greater!
Here are some scenarios where it will make sense to get on-board a guest blogger:
– If you can send them targeted referral traffic (your blog has a huge readership)
– They can get a backlink from your website that has a high domain authority
– They can promote their products and services to your audience
Everything is an exchange of sorts and sometimes paying money is the fastest and cheapest option.
Where To Hire The Writers (3 Ways)
1. Ask For Recommendations
Sometimes the best way to hire a blog writer is through the good old’ word of mouth.
Tap into your professional network and friends in business and find out if they have a trusted blog writer that can recommend you to.
Just remember to still vet them with our list of 6 non-negotiables!
2. Stalk Guest Posters
There are many high-quality blog writers lurking out there and a great way to identify them is to go investigate some of the top business blogs (or competitor blogs) that you are trying to emulate.
Then go and find out who wrote the blog post – you will want to look at the author bio and determine if they are up for hire.
Many guest posters will have their details (LinkedIn, website etc) on the bio and that is where you want to contact them to write for your brand.
Look out for guest contributor’s bios. They are either at the top or bottom of a post!
3. Go To A Freelancer Marketplace
While you will be able to find gems in writers marketplaces such as the Problogger job board, Fiverr or Upwork, there are swarms of amateur writers that just won’t serve your business objectives well.
Remember that there is a downside of hiring cheap writers – your article might be ineffective, hurt your brand, waste of your time and money.
Check out this article by Neville Medhora who did an experiment and determined that 50 poorly written pieces of content were outclassed by one properly written article.
A 4-Step Checklist To Hiring The Perfect Blog Writer:
Hiring a writer for your blog is no different than hiring a part-time employee for your business.
Here is a game plan to make your hiring process a hundred times smoother.
1. Do I have a content strategy in place?
– Keywords and topics to target
– How many words an article should have
– What are the end goals of each article? (Drive traffic? Boost conversions?)
2. How many articles do I need a month?
– Am I going to publish weekly?
– Where am I going to publish the articles?
3. What is my monthly budget?
– $500, $1000, $5000?
– Do I have other things to offer besides money? (Traffic, exposure or helping to promote the writer’s products or services?)
4. Does this writer meet my standards?
– Do they have experience in my industry and niche?
– Does their work deliver results?
– Can their writing style match my tone of voice (or get close to it)
Hire A Blog Writer With Confidence
Hiring a professional blog writer doesn’t have to be difficult or nerve-wracking, let this guide be your north-star and help you search for a writer that your blog deserves!
Need more help to find the blog writer of your dreams? Here are 6 questions to ask them!
A blog writer is part of your business family. Treat them as such!
Want Awesome Blog Posts With A Tailored Strategy?
From driving thousands of monthly traffic on a single blog post to crafting a kick-ass content strategy to triple your traffic year-on-year, we can help!
Contact us here today or just email me directly at sean@speechsilver.com and let’s work great things together for your business blog.
