Every business needs content writers and copywriters as you know. But the challenge is; how to hire the best out of thousands. Google is super smart and writing super content helps in long-term ranking on Google. I’ve personally experienced that low-quality content gets deindexed with time. And to avoid this from happening, we need to hire the best for top rankings.
I’m a content writer and sometimes I need to hire writers to help me write the content when I’m not typing away. I use some key points when hiring content writers and will share them with you in this article.
The following is a bullet list you need to look at first:
Besides these points, you also need to know your audience and their content requirements. You might need to look at his educational background. Let’s say if you need medical content for your audience then you need to hire someone with a medical background.
Now, I will share with you how you can hire a best-fit writer in detail.
Experience Level
You can find writers with different experience levels; Expert, Intermediate, Entry Level, etc. Experience level gives you an idea of the writer’s success with his content. If you are using Upwork, you can easily set the experience level on the job post. You will receive cover letters from the writers based on the preset experience level that you need.
I don’t care if the writer I’m hiring is an expert, intermediate, or entry-level, what I do is; I perform the evaluations correctly based on merit. And ignoring the experience level also sometimes proves to be budget-friendly as well. I do hire entry-level writers and they perform very well.
Don’t ask the writer “What’s your experience?”, you can better estimate this yourself.
Feedback & Reviews
If you are on Upwork or Fiverr, you can see the feedback/reviews that the writer has received. You need to look at these reviews. Reading the reviews will help you hire a content writer who can probably work for you in the long run. Also, don’t miss the negative reviews on his/her profile.
This will give info like;
Sometimes, you’ll see no reviews on the writer’s profile. It’s because the writer is new to freelance writing. In this case, you need to judge him/her yourself by asking for a free trial draft. The writer will agree with you.
Assess the Content
Once you have the writer’s portfolio or draft, you need to properly judge it. Examine the clarity of the content. Look for complexities that might confuse your readers and overall flow. See if the content is smoothly connected from one point to the next point. The content should have a logical flow.
Read through the content and see how engaging it is. If it compels you to read paragraph after paragraph then it is having good engagement. Keeping your readers hooked for longer gives Google a signal to rank it well. The writer can do this if he/she incorporates anecdotes, or injects a touch of creativity into the content.
The grammar and language of the content should be proficient. Therefore, you need to pay attention to sentence construction and word usage. The content should also align with the intended tone and style. Doesn’t matter if it’s informative, persuasive, or entertaining, consistency in tone improves the impact of your writing.
Ranking Factors
When hiring a content writer, investigate the visibility and impact of their previous work. To do this, you need to check whether their content has managed to secure top positions on Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs). A higher ranking indicates that their work has gained visibility, attracting organic traffic.
Effective content should also strategically have keywords to improve search engine visibility. A writer who understands SEO is more likely to contribute to your content marketing goals. You can also consider click-through rates (CTRs) and backlink profiles of the writer’s articles. High CTRs suggest that not only is the content well-optimized for search engines, but it also appeals to users.
Incorporating this evaluation into your hiring process ensures online visibility and marketing strategies.
Run a Few Checks: Plagiarism & AI
This step is equally important in your content evaluation process. Of course, you want the content to be original and error-free. For this, you need to run some checks. You should perform the following three basic checks using authentic tools.
Check for Plagiarism: To inspect thoroughly, use plagiarism detectors to check if the content or copy is original and not copied. Some of the best options are Quetext and Copyscape. If found you need to inform the writer about it and your content writer should remove the plagiarism.
Check for AI Text: Human content carries a unique touch and creativity that AI can’t. People read human content and they can easily AI content as well. And you can spot this too. There are many different tools available that check AI detection. I suggest using CopyLeaks, according to my experience it is the best tool so far.
Check for Grammar Errors: You can use grammar-checking tools to detect and highlight potential grammar errors, aiding in quick identification and correction. Inspect punctuation marks. Check for proper placement of commas, periods, semicolons, etc. Also, double-check homophones—words that sound alike but have different meanings. Homophones can be a common source of errors like “there,” “their,” and “they’re” to eliminate potential confusion.
Bonus Read | Hiring Content Writers & Copywriters
Maintaining high standards in content creation involves hiring the best content writer. From assessing the clarity to running checks for plagiarism, AI text, and grammar errors, you can check if the writer fits your needs. The evaluation of content also involves technical aspects, such as SEO optimization and adherence to style guides.
Using a variety of strategies, from reading to grammar checkers and seeking peer review, contributes to the creation of grammatically sound and polished content. This process ensures that the content stands as a testament to clarity, authenticity, and meaningful engagement.
