What is the best to test a writer before hiring one?

I have several people who I am considering to hire to write articles for several of my sites daily and I was wondering if someone could give me pointers on what I should be looking for to identify a good writer and what are red flags to look for to avoid bad writers or people scraping content and selling it to me.

 

lOOK for great itrader ......

I write for many people on the forum, so if you see itrader like mine then youll know

 

Well, I'm not sure what quality level you are looking for. If you want a writer that's up to par with something you would see on Yahoo, the newspaper, etc., you'll want to ignore everyone charing a couple pennies per word.

The first thing you should do is visit the writer's website. If the site is full of errors and is hard to follow (logical flow issues), move along.

Next, ask for published samples. Tell the writer that you want to see samples that are published and not samples on their writing site or samples sent via email or other communication method.

I've been assuming that quality matters a lot to you. If it's nice, but not necessary for you to have top shelf quality, just ask to see published samples and go with what makes you happy.

 

Jason,

Very well said.....I guess I should have typed that.....

But yea if you are looking for top notch stuff that will cost you $$$ per article, then Jason and his gang ( Jason, Jen Mathern, Denise J , etc) are the ones for the job

If you are looking for basic articles, ( not poor quality ) but basic and pennies per word...then someone like me and my gang fit the Job


You could also ask the writer for a sample and then copyscape it.....there are plenty of morons that you will weed out fast this way as well

 

Trust is a big issue. No matter what quality level you are looking for, you need to have a feeling of trust with the writer.

Take Joe (Sundaybrew), if I hired him for something, I'd have no problem trusting him.

 

Awww....{Hugs}...........

 

Hmmm....so now we're all a gang? Does Jason have to be the leader? LOL

I second Jason's suggestions.

iTrader is meaningful, but it may not have been given for articles per se. I believe samples and portfolios are the most meaningful indication of what you will receive. I also feel that trust and responsibility are important.

Lots of writers post threads in the Content Creation forum with samples and (sometimes) prices. You might start there to get a feel for who's around the forum.

A lot of other writers don't directly advertise, but will respond to a post that you might create. Obviously ask for samples, rates, and previous experience. Even the PMs you receive may tell you enough about a writer's style and ability.

And some writers just respond to threads like these, so check the signatures to see samples and websites. There is a huge variety of style and ability on this forum. Decide what YOU are looking for, and then start narrowing down the field to a writer that seems to be a good match.

Rebecca

 

You Can be the leader if you want

But also great advice

 

Thanks! I'd love to be the leader - I NEVER get to be the leader. I now officially declare myself the leader of my own writing gang. LOL (Now, I must come up with a clever hand sign to flash at unsuspecting victims...)

Rebecca

 

Itrader and samples will be the best way as many people have mentioned. Also use dupe checkers like
www.copyscape.com and http://www.dustball.com/cs/plagiarism.checker/ to check whether the work is original

If the writer is new and doesn't have samples, you could consider paying after receiving the articles.

 

To be a leader, you MUST have multiple computers in use BY YOU at the same time.

I do this and I know Joe does. So, Rebecca, you just using one computer? That's so 80's.

 

Not even close. Anyone can acquire a large amount of iTrader feedbacks easily.

Set up a article for all possible candidates to write, if they choose not to then they are not serious about the job so that may narrow it down a bit. Read all the articles submitted to you, get your friends to do it too, and even some random people if possible. If you do this, pick the type of writing style you wish to have as long as it has the best possible content on it and then hire that writer.

 

The idea here is to get GOOD writers, not NEEDY ones. Any successful writer would say no.

The writers that would fall for this amateur hour routine are your brand new writers (or service providers). So yea, if your goal isn't to get the best for your business, this is a fine act to pull.

We're not talking about you serving up a taco at Taco Bell here. Writing a solid article takes time. It's not uncommon for a really good article (especially a feature one) to take days.

 

To make sure that you get a quality writing , one should take following steps :
1. ) Shortlist the copywriters who fit in your budget.
2. ) Ask for the website and the published articles of the copywriters ( as many have written about)
3. ) Once you are convinced about point 1 and 2 ,make sure that you don't give all the articles in one go , give small number initially and watch the quality.
4.) Once you are sure of consistent quality you can offload articles in bulk.
5.) Even if you have a high budget try out copywriters who can give at low rate and try above methods.
6.) Today business mantra is find the best outsourcing people and managing them afterwards.It is very easy to hire people who charge extra.

 

That's pretty much along the same lines as announcing a writing competition, with a very modest first prize. Most good writers will ignore that sort of tactic, because it simply doesn't pay.

Established writers will usually have a file full of clippings of their previous work. Just ask for a few examples in the style and subject matter that you're interested in, and pay attention to where a writer has been previously published. Were they good quality magazines, or a low circulation publications that paid peanuts and had lax editorial standards?

 

1. This is irrelevant since we're talking about quality (or at least you mentioned it).

2. Thanks for re-mentioning my point above.

3. You can do this, but if you're hiring quality to begin with, this step is a waste in time.

4. Offload? Offload means unload and how do you unload articles that aren't created yet. Were they on the Happy Trails article truck? If so, why are you unloading them to someone you are asking to create them in the first place?

5. Hire the best you can afford, period.

6. I wasn't aware that there was a position called "outsourcing person." Do you hire these outsourcing people and then manage them, so they'll outsource your writing to a freelancer? Seems like a waste of time to me. Why not just outsource your writing to a freelancer and cut out the outsourcing people?

 

Whether it be that or at least sending a sample that is directly related to the topic. Let's say I have a order I want to give to someone for 1, 000 articles on light bulbs, I would like you to write one up so I can see if you are the right one for me or not.

Any good writers would not be looking for writing on DP, right?

 

Are you making the claim that quality writers cannot be found on DP? If you are, I beg to differ.

It's true that the majority of professional writers do not use forums as a means to survive. However, I have found several clients willing to pay my rates and I will tell you right now that I charge significantly more than a mere .01 or .02 cents a word.

 

1 . This is simply not irrelavant as one has to work within his budget.

2. I agree

3. Both of us agree
4. Sometimes we use term "offloading" for work also. The work is a virtual concept so are the articles.
5. The word afford is what I call budget ,so u agree to my point 1
6. The wastage can be counted once the comparsion is drawn between Input and output.

This is my opinion and people can differ.

 

Not necessarily, there are quite a few talented writers here. Although, staying at a forum is holding you back I believe. It does not show your true talent. While some people will pay the .06-.12 per word here, it is rare and most will just laugh in your face. Sometimes you have to set aside the money and please your customers to gain experience.

Honestly, I have found that DP has a lot of really young writers, which is good because you can gain a lot of experience and build up for a later age, just think at 14 I started writing. That will add up in experience pretty good!