When you’re looking to get a writer to create content for your brand, you’re likely hoping to find someone who knows your subject matter inside and out. While many experienced content writers pull double duty as master researchers, those who are already familiar with your niche are invaluable. They can hit the ground running, creating content using insider knowledge and industry specific keywords a newbie may not know.
Today I’d like to share a few ideas and suggestions to hire freelance content writers who specialize in your industry. You can try navigating the hunt on your own or take advantage of these ideas and suggestions, as well as Crowd Content tools that help simplify the process.
Tip 1: Reach Out to Writers Whose Work You Admire
When you read great blogs posts in your industry, see which great content writer is behind all that pithy prose. You’re already seeing the author’s talent at work, making it easier to see how they approach your niche.
Their voice might also be in line with your vision.
Often a content writer’s byline will also connect to their website, portfolio or an author page for that specific publication. Take a moment to sift through their
This approach allows you to skip the “Do you have any samples?” back-and-forth that typically goes with the interview process. But you may find that published writers have an exclusivity clause or are not interested in freelancing.
Tip 2: Create Job Postings
Job postings are a great way to let you specify the exact knowledge and experience you need your writers to have. Many companies post these directly on their own sites, and you can also choose to post job ads on sites like Indeed and ZipRecruiter.
Other places you can post on include various writing service sites, industry job boards and on social media (linking back to a posting on your site).
Creating a digital “help wanted”
Doing this often results in many, many applications, and the sheer volume of applicants may make it a bit overwhelming to sift through and qualify.
There’s a good chance you can find a great writer with the niche expertise you want among all those applications, but it can prove very time consuming to review large numbers of them. Remember, you’ll also have to review samples, check references and generally vet all applicants before working with them.
Tip 3: Casting Calls
Casting calls are a special Crowd Content feature that let you audition a large number of vetted writers as quickly and painlessly as possible. With casting calls, qualified writers come to you.
Your casting call lists important project information and may share other details such as pay rate and scope. You’ll specify questions that all applicants need to answer in their submission, and you can also ask for a project-specific sample to help whittle down your choices.
Casting calls are a lot like job posts, except you’re shrinking the applicant pool significantly. Rather than broadcasting your opening to the entire world, you’re targeting Crowd Content’s cache of qualified writers. And, you can even restrict your casting call further to only make it available to writers of certain ranks and qualifications.
This system gets you responses and samples tailored to your business, so there’s no guessing as to whether a writer’s past work is a good example of their ability. You also won’t have to imagine how they’d interpret your niche.
The only downside here is you’ll still have to do a bit of digging. Most casting calls get a lot of applications you’ll still have to review, but you can rest easy knowing that Crowd Content has already qualified these writers for you.
Plus, you can also review each applicant’s profile on the site to learn more about them, see how other clients have rated their work, and see more samples.
And that leads me to the next tip…
Tip 4: Writer Search/Profile Reviews
Curious who’s a search engine optimization wunderkind and who rocks at writing website content? Crowd Content clients have an option to search and view writer profiles, sharing insights into everything from a writer’s areas of expertise to their performance stats.
Each profile includes all of the following:
- A short bio created by the writers themselves, detailing their education, experience and key writing skills
- A quality star level determined by Crowd Content’s performance-based rating algorithm
- Category badges denoting whether a writer is among the top 10 in a specific category
- Testimonials and client ratings/reviews
- Performance stats by category
- General writer statistics such as average words written per hour and how many orders a writer currently has in progress
- Samples of the writer’s work
These are metrics you wouldn’t normally have access to, even if you had a contract with a marketing agency or had your own in-house writers. After all, who has the time to track so many moving parts?
Ahem…. Crowd Content’s awesome algorithm 🙂
Tip 5: Networking in Industry Groups
Word of mouth is powerful in any industry, but it’s especially valuable in content marketing. Consider asking for writer recommendations from colleagues. You’ll quickly learn which writers are known for great content, who delivers on-time, who nails ideation and whose copy has increased conversion rates by 300 percent.
You may even meet writers themselves, and you’ll be able to zero in on a few high-quality candidates without opening yourself up to a barrage of hopeful contractors who are also total strangers.
You probably already know some great industry groups locally, but consider checking out professional groups on LinkedIn, Reddit and Slack communities for some online recommendations.
This approach might not be as scalable as others, but it can help you find really authoritative writers in your niche.
One caveat for this approach — while industry experience is great, it doesn’t always mean that the writer’s writing is strong enough for you. Be sure to still check out samples of their writing before starting any projects.
Not All Roads to Niche Expertise Are Equal
There’s no inherently wrong way to to find a freelance writer who knows your niche, but some paths may be more difficult. Ultimately, you’ll have to decide which approach makes the most sense for your business.
But, the benefits of finding a great niche writer with solid writing chops are huge.
Regardless of your niche, save yourself time and energy by connecting with writers who are proven performers.
If you’d like a hand finding the perfect writer for your business, sign up for Crowd Content services today or call our team at 1-888-983-3103 to talk about our talent.
