4 Ways to Ensure You Hire the Right Freelance Writer

We probably all have heard a nightmare experience from an employer who hired the wrong writer (like the guy my first client hired before me). Not getting a freelance hire right the first time often results in lost time and money and puts a project into a time crunch situation. Here are 4 tips to help you avoid that sort of conundrum.

1. Determine Your Expectations

One mistake that employers make when searching for a freelancer is recognizing that they need a writer but not having the details of the project worked out yet. Before you search for a writer, determine the scope of your project. Do you need one article that you can grab from a writer on Fiverr, or are you looking for someone to provide ongoing content? Know what your deadline is and other useful information such as word count, keywords, and your budget.

...many clients require an NDA so that no one ever finds out someone else is writing their magazine articles, eBooks, and blog.

2. To Credit or Not to Credit

Ghostwriters are happy to perform their job without being publicly credited. If you have a problem with the rate that you have been quoted, consider offering a byline to your ghostwriter. One major struggle that ghostwriters face is a chronic lack of portfolio content because someone else takes credit for their work. For example, the content here on this blog is my primary portfolio of written content. That is because many clients require an NDA so that no one ever finds out someone else is writing their magazine articles, eBooks, and blog.

3. The Interview

Do not leave out this stage simply because you are hiring a freelancer. Yes, it is easier to drop one freelancer and hire another than it is to change employees, but you still lose time and money if you don’t hire the right person the first time. Here are some things that you should be curious about:

• Experience

• SEO knowledge

• Revision policy

• Prices

• Turnaround time

• Requirements

4. What to Expect (and What Not To)

Most freelancers are not marketers, meaning that they will not be able to come up with marketing slogans or develop an ad campaign from scratch. That having been said, some writers have enough marketing experience to write solid sales copy and landing pages. If you are looking for copywriting services, ask your freelancer if they have experience in that field before expecting professional marketing content.

Learn More About the Benefits of Hiring Freelancers

There is a great article about this topic on the Best Staffing Agencies website. Check it out here: https://www.beststaffingagencies.com/advantages-of-hiring-freelancers. You'll learn more about why freelancers are a great fit for your business and get help to find the right freelancer to add to your team.