10 Things You Need To Find Out From Your Website Content Writer
With the internet taking over pretty much all aspects of our lives, freelance content writing is gaining more and more popularity. For writers, it is a fast and efficient way of making money on their own terms. For you as a business owner, on the other hand, it is a chance to get in touch with gifted minds in order to come up with content that will help make your website an online hit. With a high supply of freelance content writers, it may be a little difficult for you to find the best person to work with. Therefore, below are a few tips and guidelines that should help you find, work with and make the most out of your business relationship with the best website content writers in the world.
One of the best ways to prepare your list of prospective website content writers is by asking the right questions. Below are 10 things you need to find out before getting into business with an individual writer or a content writing company.
1. How long have you been in the website content writing business?
One of the most important things to establish is the writer’s experience. It goes without saying that your odds of getting high-quality work are higher with more experienced writers. In this case, someone who has been writing for several years is the best to work with.
2. What are some of your speciality areas?
Experience is important but if the writer has no experience in your field of interest, they will be of no use. Imagine getting a seasoned fashion and lifestyle blog writer to write content for your professional business website. Chances are that you might not get exactly what you want. It is thus very important to find out what specific topics and themes the writer is comfortable and skilled in writing about.
3. How do you get your content?
The next important information you need to find out from your writer is the source of their content. It is important to establish how exactly it is they do their research in order to come up with relevant content. With most businesses, spun content is a big no-no as it results in poor rankings on search engine result pages. In order to avoid this, you will have to find a company or individual writer who knows how to do proper detailed research and come up with their own content.
4. What is your writing style? Formal; Casual; both?
Another very important question to ask your potential website content writer is their preferred writing style. This is important as it determines whether or not they will provide content appropriate for your website’s general vibe. With professional and official websites, you need a writer who knows how to put across the information in a formal manner. For more casual and laid-back sites, a friendly-toned writer is the best way to go. However, it goes without saying that finding a writer who can successfully pull off both styles is the equivalent of hitting the jackpot.
5. How much are you willing to do in terms of content preparation?
Different website content writers offer different services. Some just deal with words and will only submit the article part of the post. However, there are a few that are willing to do everything, including formatting, videos and images and hyperlinking content. Depending on your needs and preferences, you need to ask this question. That way, you will get to establish your company’s contribution at an early stage.
6. What are your charges?
Another important factor to consider is writing cost. These differ from writer to writer and company to company. With individual writers, it is possible to negotiate based on work done, content type and urgency. Whatever the case, it is important to find out the charges in order to factor them into your business budget.
7. What is your work schedule or ideal timing?
With website content writers, establishing a work schedule is very important. Most of them make their own hours and you, therefore, need to find out when would be the ideal time to get content from them. It is also important to figure out how much time it will take them to come up with the content you need in order to establish deadlines.
8. What do you know about Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)?
One of the best ways to ensure that your well-written content actually reaches the viewer is through Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). SEO contributes a great deal to how website content writer writes their articles. It is necessary to establish how familiar they are with this strategy in order to ensure website visibility via written content.
9. Are you available for rewrites and revisions?
Even with the best writers in the market, you might receive content that you feel doesn’t exactly hit the spot. In this case, rewrites and revisions are a necessity. Rewrites may also be on existent and outdated content on your site, in which case the writer revises work that wasn’t originally theirs. Not all writers are available for this service. You, therefore, need to establish in advance whether they are willing to offer it and if so whether or not additional charges will be incurred.
10. Can I see a few samples of your previous work?
Finally, it is important to ask the website content writer for a few samples of their work. This will give you a better idea of what to expect and will allow you to establish whether or not they have what it takes to satisfy your website content needs.
Bottom line
After all, is said and done, it is not very hard to find the right website content writer in spite of market saturation. All you need to know is what questions to ask and what answers to look out for. All factors considered, it is safe to say that creativity, content mastery, experience and reliability are the most important traits. That way, you can rest assured that you will be receiving interesting and relevant content in a timely manner. In order to establish the presence of these and many other important qualities, it is important that you as a business owner or website manager ask the 10 questions above; they will make your life a whole lot easier.
