Best ways to find a great writer for your website
Every business looking to make their mark online requires high quality content that cuts through the vast marketplace. Be that video, social media marketing, promotions and tricks to garner visibility, the central objective is to create calls to action where visitors become regular guests, subscribers or paid customers.
To reach that point, there is a need to generate insightful content that is on topic and packed with all the necessary search engine optimisation (SEO) techniques that accelerates your Google ranking. Not a task for the uninitiated to say the least.
Finding a quality writer can be a lot harder than you think! The right choice will depend on a variety of factors. Photo: Tero Vesalainen, Pixabay
This is where the great content writers come into their own, delivering blogs, articles, PDFs, Q&A’s, interviews and studies to draw a connection between the enterprise and the consumer base. They will fill the gaps of your operation that many owners or operators simply cannot manage on their own accord, offering an uninhibited perspective and contributing genuine value to the brand.
The next question then arises: where do you find the best content writers for your website?
Fortunately there is an array of outlets and case studies that prove the ideal writer is not far from your reach. Let us examine the potential options to source your own content writer right here, from casual guest bloggers to regular contributors to have on hand weekly or daily.
Major Publication Niche Writers
From the outside looking in, the hiring or loaning of a high profile writer might appear to be too much to ask for a humble website. Depending on your current size and circumstances though, many journalists and writers who operate for major news organisations will be open to an interview or to garner an exclusive piece should the money be right.
Take two of Sydney’s leading publications – The Sydney Morning Herald and The Daily Telegraph. These are two outlets that hold a monopoly over many of the leading scribes from the city and around the country, attracting writers who can deliver a unique, on-the-ground insight into anything ranging from politics to real estate, the stock market, technology, sports and entertainment.
Yet these professionals are often disciples of their craft and will have a willingness to expand on their thoughts and research to a wider audience. The Herald’s Business analyst Elizabeth Knight is one such example, just as The Daily Telegraph’s Canberra reporter on all things politics in Kylar Loussikian.
Should you have someone inside the enterprise who has a background in reporting or journalism, then the HARO (https://www.helpareporter.com/) site is an ideal hub to locate key quotes and up to the minute information on a variety of topics. Networks and collaborations are often found when using the Help A Reporter Out (HARO) tool, developing a list of well-credentialed contacts that can provide another asset to your business.
Insightful Commentators
Take note of the commentators who leave well-written responses, they might be able to write for you! Photo: StartupStockPhotos, Pixabay
The best-laid plans of mice and men will lead us to believe that we have one true path in a career and once we start that journey, there is no turning back. Example after example of successful entrepreneurs and professionals tells us that is simply not the case, and no better illustration of that can be found with the hiring of writers who began as humble commentators on articles.
With outlets like YouTube, Facebook and Twitter often leaving the state of the “comments section” to the lowest common denominator, this element of your content can regularly be derided and overlooked.
Whether they are discovered on your own page or elsewhere within the niche, there are emerging, current and semi-retired writers who are eager to broadcast their own opinions on a topic or simply branch out a conversation. Perhaps they might be politely correcting a mistake made in the copy, have a new piece of information to share or simply want to congratulate and reiterate a line of argument made in the piece.
By reaching out to these individuals and enquiring about their availability, an enterprise can suddenly facilitate a wide range of opinions from writers of various backgrounds.
Forums
If commentators cannot be found on your own site or those within the niche you are based in, then perhaps you have to venture a little further to see where the professionals are talking. This will often be located within a select station of industry-based forum groups, connecting a series of specialists to create their own online community.
Rather than take a generic search for those who piece together their own articles on various topics, you can create different sub-sections of writers. Should you be looking to craft a how-to guide on a product, then find a specialist. The same applies for podcasters in an audio format, photographers, opinion writers, pollsters, data analysts and more.
Your search engine optimisation (SEO) demands will always follow in close conjunction with any website decision you make, so a quest for online content writers should keep in mind the need to be varied. The more variety that is showcased throughout your content strategy, the healthier your search engine ranking will be and the greater the possibility your brand will be advertised via different mediums.
One outstanding example for forums of highly opinionated and educated professionals is the world of tech. Whether they be domestic bloggers and writers based in Australia or specialists from North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Europe, you can scour their postings and reach out for a potential role with your site:
- Austech (http://www.austech.info/)
- Whirlpool Forums (http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/)
- CNET (https://www.cnet.com/forums/)
- PC Advisor (https://www.techadvisor.co.uk/forum/)
- VR Forums (http://forums.vrzone.com/)
- Techist (http://www.techist.com/forums/)
Quora
Quora boasts from the outset that their platform is designed to “gain and share knowledge.” In that respect, they achieve above and beyond what many similar sites propose, providing a free but peer-reviewed environment to expand on topics and issue answers to difficult, obscure and well-known subjects.
Take Todd Abrams as an example. This CEO of Big Heart Landscaping in the United States prides himself not only on the stature of his company, but his ability to broadcast his knowledge about architecture and landscaping.
In March of 2017, Abrams would publish a Quora post titled ’10 Tips to Prepare your Home for Spring Landscaping,’ (https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-value-of-a-spring-or-fall-landscape-clean-up) that would end up being one of the top Quora hits in the landscaping niche. He would expand on this talking point, yet deduced the tips to the following:
- Know your climate
- Do your research beforehand
- Know what local ‘pests’ are in your neighbourhood
- Plant landscaping at the suggested time of year
- Plan for growth
- Get inspired
- Map out the area
- Plan for maintenance
- Low and high maintenance plants
- Contrast with your exterior home
Another case study can be found with Sam Makad’s response to the topic ‘How do I calculate ROI (return on investment) on print advertising?’ (https://www.quora.com/How-do-I-calculate-ROI-on-print-advertising) The former Skyward Techno solutions specialist would issue a post on this subject examining the use of technology, traditional paper methods and checking customer behaviour as three essential elements to the legitimacy of this ongoing practice.
By tapping into an outlet like Quora, you are already discovering writers that are peer-reviewed and proven to be successful in garnering articles and responses that score well on a vast forum. In that respect, there is a lower degree of risk involved from your end of the spectrum, all the while opening up a marketplace of scribes, professionals and enthusiasts who have their fingers on the pulse.
3rd Party/Shared Economy Hubs
Take advantage of online directories listing writers who are available to work! Photo: Fancycrave1, Pixabay
The beauty of the shared economy is that website owners can bypass the middleman and venture straight to the source directly. If you are on the hunt for a web content writer or writers to tackle one or a series of projects, then there are online directories that will service this need.
- com (https://www.freelancer.com)
- net (https://problogger.com/jobs/)
- Contently (https://contently.com/)
- Copyblogger (http://www.copyblogger.com/qualified-freelance-writers/)
- WriterAccess (https://www.writeraccess.com/)
- com (http://www.journalismjobs.com/index.php)
- Zerys (http://www.zerys.com/)
- com (ttps://www.googleadservices.com)
- Scripted (https://www.scripted.com/)
- UpWork (https://www.upwork.com/hire/content-writers/)
What empowers the owner more in this scenario is the ability to filter on pricing, on quality, on past history, on a capacity to communicate and any other key performance indicator (KPI) they so desire. All work relationships under these brands are monitored and checked, so those who under-perform or mislead either party can be scrutinised for future transactions.
Of all the social media sites that are out there in the marketplace, LinkedIn (https://au.linkedin.com/) is easily the greatest source of credentialed professionals who are looking for employment. This is a site that eliminates all of the glitz, glamour and distractions that derive from the likes of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
Here is a perfect location to scour the site for content writers who openly publish their work history and profile to showcase exactly what they have to offer. Their portfolio is brandished in the hope that prospective employers are looking for their services and it ensures that their unique skill set and dedication to a particular niche is met.
Summary
It is entirely down to your mode of operation just how you want to source your writers and how often you work with them. Whether it is on a contract basis, on a retainer of some description or mixing and matching what you are looking for to keep the content optimised, fresh and uncompromising.
The best course of action recommended for most operators is to develop a comprehensive contributor list where topics and content can be scheduled and varied depending on your circumstances. Some outlets prefer to be settled with a name they know and trust, but those looking to expand their consumer capacity are well served when they branch out to new voices.
Once you have found that right group of writers who you have invested in with finances, let them loose on these forums and sites to broadcast your brand.
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