Were you put in charge of the company blog?
Are you still staring at a blank page?
Writing articles online is no easy task. It takes a different type of writing than what you’ve been taught in grade school.
What winds up on the pages of your website or blog needs to be engaging, enticing, and persuasive.
Not everyone has the knack for it.
Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a way to free up your time, and spend more of it doing the things you actually like to do?
Fortunately, for you, I’ve got the answer. Read on and learn how to hire a freelance writer to save yourself headaches and time.
What Does A Copywriter Do
If you’re new to digital content marketing, you may be wondering: “what does a copywriter do?” or “Why do I need one?”
Well, like I said before, writing effective copy is an acquired skill set.
Copywriting is purpose-driving driven writing with an end goal in mind.
The goal can be getting you more clients, getting Google to rank you higher, managing your online reputation, or public relations.
In order to achieve these results, the words representing your online brand need to be written with a certain…”pizzazz”.
That’s where a copywriter comes in.
Where Do I Find Them
Great. Now you’ve decided to learn how to hire a freelance writer. Well, you’re probably wondering where you’re going to find them first. Am I right?
Shockingly enough, writers spend most of their time WRITING! Wow! Who’d have thunk?!(read as lighthearted sarcasm).
Because they spend so much time writing, the best place to find them is online.
Here are the top 3 ways to find a freelance writer online.
Freelance Job Boards
If you’ve spent anytime searching for a freelancer you’ve probably heard of Upwork or Fiverr.
These are the two biggest freelance sites right now. You can find freelancers for just about any task on these 2 sites, including writing.
But there are other options. In fact, here are two industry-specific job boards where you can find a “hidden gem” of a writer:
- Contently
- ProBlogger
A quick Google search will bring you to either site. Follow the directions for posting your newest project and you are good to go!
Facebook Groups
Seemingly everything has moved to Facebook now. Finding a freelance writer is no different.
Search Facebook Groups for a term like “copywriting jobs”. You’ll get dozens of search results for freelance writing job board groups.
Ask to join as many as you can. Some are private, and require subscription to some other course. But some will let you in without a problem.
Make a post about your project, or the position you’re looking to fill, and you’re all set.
This actually might be your best option. As someone in the trade, I’m a member of some of these groups and I see the activity on new posts.
As soon as a project gets posted there’s no less than 20 comments on it from hungry copywriters looking for the next client.
It won’t take you long at all to find what you’re looking for
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “LinkedIn is just like Facebook”. You’re not wrong.
However, if you use this little LinkedIn trick, it can be much more effective than Facebook.
Most people don’t know this, but LinkedIn gives you the option to filter your results by ‘People’.
Search a term like “freelance writer” or “[Your Industry] writer” in LinkedIn search.
Once the results come back you can click the “People” button just below the search bar and LinkedIn will help you find the perfect freelance writer. Your search results will be filtered to give you only people with your search phrase in their bio or work experience.
You’re welcome!
How to Hire A Freelance Writer
We know now where your next potential writer is hanging out, but what’s next? How do we hire them?
Here’s a quick step-by-step process on how to hire a freelance writer:
- Post your project on a freelance job board(Upwork, Fiverr, etc.) or social media
- Interview applicants. Ask them any questions you may have: rates, turnaround time, experience.
- Offer them a simple paid writing task. Once you’ve narrowed down your top 3-5 applicants, you want to see their writing style and tone. This is to make sure they can, in fact, write copy and also to see if they are a fit for your brand.
- Bring them on-board! Sort out paperwork, payment, and deadlines. Then set them to work on your latest project!
Take Your Business to The Moon
We’ve covered enough about how to hire a freelance writer here today to get you going in the right direction.
With the resources and checklist I’ve given you here today, you can confidently go out and find a high quality freelance copywriter to handle your next project.
What other questions do you have about working with freelance writers? What other topics would you like covered on the blog?
Let me know in the comments!
If you have a project you’d like to discuss, just reach out! I’d love to talk about how I can help you reach your goals!
