Hey guys I normally labor over my own copy until it's, at best, bearable to read, but it's never really great and it probably takes me much longer than it should. I'm learning, little by little, to delegate certain resposibilities to other professionals with more skill & experience. That's where you guys come in - I think it's time I started working with copywriters. I don't do a huge volume of projects (at least not yet), but I would like to hire out a few projects and get to know some of you - sorta get a feel for your individual styles and such. Here are some of the things I'm looking for in a content writer - Value I'm not really interested in the cheapest content provider - you usually get what you pay for, but I'm also usually on a pretty meagar budget. So, I'm not looking for a human script that scrapes related sites, blends the content and spits out gobbledygook for pennies - but I'm also not able to afford a Charles Dickens salary, if you know what I mean. I'm looking for someone in the middle I suppose. Quality Again, I'm new to this whole hired-content business so bear with me, but I'm not interested in paying for content that I have to rewrite - or content that I have to spend a great deal of time correcting. I would have no problem hiring new or foreign writers, if you can write a decent bit of content it matters very little to me how long you've been doing it or what you native language is. SEO Everything I do centers requires SEO - I couldn't run an AdWords campaign to save my soul, so my content MUST support my effort to rank for targeted keyphrases. I can revise content to support phrases after it's written if needed, but ideally I'd love a copywriter who understands a little about balancing keyword density and content quality. What else..? What else should I be considering? What sorts of things should I be on the look out for? What kind of information helps a copywriter respond to "I want to hire a copywriter" posts? What sort of price should I be execting to pay out? (is it per word, per page..?) Expect to see a few posts from me here in the next few days as I 'test the waters'.
Well.. I'd like to be a part of your team. And judging by the way you wrote your thread down it seems to me like we would get along very well Just give me a shout out on PM and we'll talk about it.
All three of your points seem reasonable. PM me if you have specific topics in mind, and we can take it from there. I can also PM you samples of earlier work if you are interested.
What type of articles would you be looking for? As far as what to look for, you said it best when you said you get what you pay for. I know there are a lot of people that offer articles at rediculously cheap prices however when you get the content its nowhere near close what you wanted or expected. One thing I never took into consideration before is the differences in countries. Where as people in the US may be charging more than someone in a different country it does not always mean that their writing is better but where in their country 5USD would feed their entire family for 2 days, 5 dollars is how much I usually spend on lunch Be sure to ask for references and/or examples of their work... I can't think of anything else right now, but it is 7 in the morning here Hope that helps you some
I don't know but this thread I have made might be of interest to you: http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=440209 If you need samples let me know. IT
You seem to know what exactly you are looking for, that shows you're ahead of most people looking for content. The saying, “you get what you pay forâ€, holds true to a certain extent but quality doesn't always depend on the rates charged by a writer. There could be several factors involved when setting a price, such as being new to a forum, being new to writing, the need to make a fast buck, and as Nikki points out - the currency value of different countries and so on. To answer your question on what else needs to be considered: Subject How about the fact that writers would love to know what they are responding to....the subject. There are writers that specialize in a particular subject and there are others that have their preferences. Rate Most writers charge per word and there is a large variation in rates, depending on the subject and research involved. Reputation I guess, being new, you can only go by the reputation of the writer. Check out their previous threads and assess them by the quality of their posts.. and of course ask for samples. There you go! Welcome to the world of outsourcing!
Really good point - I imagine it would be very helpful to have at least a general idea what the contens subject might be - I imagine certain writers might be less capable of writing an article on 'pregnancy' or 'homiopathic menstral cramping relief', while others might be able to pump out a stack of articles on 'wieght lifting' or 'Celebrity fashion'. Point taken. Appreciate the response!
Hello: I am Héctor Nicolás from the Dominican Republic. I really appreciate the way you posted this communication, it's very interesting. I would like be part of your team. Please do no hesitate in contact me.
I like that phrase. . . mind if I use it or at least reference it in the future? Topic is very important, and focus. The word "article" is such a broad term, finding out your intentions for the written body helps me, anyway, to determine whether I will be interested or sufficiently qualified in/to writing it. About the SEO aspect - On page efforts (such as keyword targeting within a pages body) will only go so far as to improving your website for your intended keywords. While with minimal off page efforts in place (link building) you may see a dramatic change in ranking in non-competitive keyword markets, the effects of proper on page optimization aren't as noticeable when relied on when there are hard competitors for the target keywords. You shouldn't acquire the services of a SEO copywriter if you'll have to revise the content yourself, that's their job. If you change keywords after the initial agreement, that's another story - but any writer worth anything should stand behind their work to make necessary revisions based on the initial agreement. Maybe something to watch out for is a writer who guarantees to rewrite the content as many times as necessary until you're satisfied. This should be an inherent implication when you're purchasing writing services. Personally, I estimate I have 1 or maybe 2 rewrite requests for every 70 or more articles I write, and that is usually because I go too far with creative license. It's not that I don't stand behind my content because I do vehemently, I just don't need to over emphasize the fact that I will rewrite content to meet pre-established guidelines. All that said, I offer seo copywriting services & I have an offer here on DP: http://forums.digitalpoint.com/showthread.php?t=450985 I'm going to discontinue the offer in short order, but I am potentially interested, based on the topics.
{I'm not really interested in the cheapest content provider - you usually get what you pay for, but I'm also usually on a pretty meagar budget. } I agree. Unfortunately there are plenty of writers out there willing to work for ridiculous rates like $1 for a 300 word article. Having said that, you have to take into consideration the exchange rate differences. 5 dollars may not seem like a lot in the US but its a pretty decent wage for a 300 word article, in some less developed parts of the world. BTW my rates are $1.50 per 100 words. {Again, I'm new to this whole hired-content business so bear with me, but I'm not interested in paying for content that I have to rewrite - or content that I have to spend a great deal of time correcting. I would have no problem hiring new or foreign writers, if you can write a decent bit of content it matters very little to me how long you've been doing it or what you native language is.} You should ABSOLUTELY be able to ask for rewrites until you're 100% satisfied. I always assume that this is impled when people hire my writing services, although I am happy to say that in my case the request has only come once, and that because the client needed a few specific details added to the article. {SEO{ Everything I do centers requires SEO - I couldn't run an AdWords campaign to save my soul, so my content MUST support my effort to rank for targeted keyphrases. I can revise content to support phrases after it's written if needed, but ideally I'd love a copywriter who understands a little about balancing keyword density and content quality.} You'll find plenty of writers who think cramming a page with keywords constituted "SEO writing." I was lucky to begin my career with a client who was very sure about what he wanted - keywords were important (had to be inserted a certain number of times, had to be as close to the beginning of the article as possible etc. etc. etc. ) but content was key. His site is #2 on the first page on Google for his industry and I've learned a lot from working for him. I guess it depends on what kind of writing a person has done before he got to you. If he's only worked for other writers and has had the luxury of having them edit, polish and otherwise clean up his work before sending it off to the client, then I am afraid you're probably dealing with some one who's understanding of SEO copy is pretty sketchy at best. Ask if they've worked directly with companies to create optimized copy for their websites. That's the kind of writer you should be looking out for. And oh yes...before I forget...Please PM me for details and samples if you're interested! Thanks!