The formula for growing a blog is simple when you boil it down. As long as you produce content on a regular basis and you target the right keywords, traffic and conversions should follow. The problem is that it's often hard to keep up content production on a consistent basis without burning out.
The good news is that hiring talented writers for your blog isn't complicated. Chances are, there are plenty of capable candidates available regardless of your website's niche. With the right writer on your team, you should be able to relax a bit, and focus your energy on other tasks to help your blog grow even faster.
In this article, we're going to talk about why hiring a writer can help your blog. Then we'll provide you with three simple tips to find and bring on the perfect freelance writer(s) for your website. Let's get to work!
Why You Should Consider Hiring a Writer for Your Blog
If you run a blog that you intend to monetize – or one that's already making you money – it stands to reason that you want it to grow as much as possible. In a lot of cases, that means posting articles once or twice a week, and even daily if it has a large enough audience to justify that time investment.
It's easy enough to handle creating one new post a week and all that entails, such as research, writing, editing, and more. However, things get tricky when you try and increase the frequency, especially if you're working on your own. If you feel like you're starting to burn out, you have two options. You can either take some time off, or consider bringing in a writer to help you out.
Here's why we favor the latter approach:
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You get more time to focus on the bigger picture. With someone else handling part of your writing duties, you can concentrate on other aspects of running your blog. Those include Search Engine Optimization (SEO), A/B testing, and more.
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It enables you to increase your content output. The more writers you have on your team, the more engaging content you can produce.
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New writers bring in their own expertise and points of view. Even if you're a master in your blog's field, bringing in new voices from time to time can prevent it from getting stale.
There are situations in which hiring a writer doesn't make much sense, of course. For example, if you're running a personal blog then it stands to reason readers will want to hear mostly from you, perhaps with the occasional guest post. Blogs that are just starting off should hold off on expanding their writer pool as well, at least until they start bringing in enough income to justify it.
3 Tips to Find the Perfect Freelance Writer for Your Blog
If you're confident that your blog is at a point where growing your team makes sense, then by all means go for it. Still, you shouldn't just hire the first freelance writer you meet. Finding the perfect candidate might take time, but it's effort that can pay off in spades. Here are a few tips to help you in your search.
1. Set Aside a Decent Budget
These days, it's easy enough to find freelance writers willing to produce long articles for a few dollars. However, top talent warrants a premium, just like in any other field. While it can be tempting to hire someone who's willing to work for low wages, chances are the results won't be up to your standards.
To be fair, it is possible to find talented writers at low prices, but it won't be long before they move onward to better opportunities. That leaves you in the position to have to find, interview, and train someone new regularly, which takes time away from more important tasks.
When it comes to freelance writing, most people charge by the word, which means you only pay for the work they produce. In most cases, you won't find talented freelance writers working for less than $0.05-0.06 per word. That works out to $50-60 for a 1,000-word article, for example.
This may sound expensive, but consider that it may take hours of research and work to write an excellent piece, so it's money well spent. Also, the more specialized your blog's topics are, the more you should expect to pay for quality writers with the right knowledge.
2. Look in the Right Places
A lot of people go straight to freelance platforms when it's time to hire a new writer. Since these websites offer thousands of candidates, it stands to reason that there should be some quality writers among them. However, those people are often hard to spot.
The problem with platforms such as Upwork is that you have to sort through dozens of applications for even the simplest of jobs. Personally, we've had better experiences using freelance marketplaces that target writers exclusively, such as Problogger Jobs:
That isn't to say that you can't find great talent in places like Upwork, but it may take some time. In either case, you'll want to include the rates you're willing to pay in your job listing, as well as a thorough description of what it entails. That way, you'll avoid a lot of back and forth discussion. Hopefully, it will also discourage unqualified applicants.
3. Target Writers With Experience in Your Niche
Ideally, you'll want to bring in someone who knows their way around your niche inside and out. There are a lot of freelance writers who can cover any topic you throw at them, but in most cases, their work won't compare to what a specialist could accomplish.
The more experienced a writer is, the less micromanagement they'll need, which should save you time. Plus, they should be able to help you come up with better topic ideas and writing angles, and maybe even assist you in overseeing other writers if you continue to expand your team.
In most cases, the best way to spot someone with expertise in your blog's field is to check out their portfolio. If you're talking with someone who's been freelancing for a while, they should have a portfolio that showcases their best work. At the very least, anyone you consider should have some bylines for websites in your niche, or be otherwise able to prove their expertise.
Before you hire anyone, though, be sure to give them a paid trial run with a test article. As long as you pay for their work, no serious professional should be offended by the request. Plus, you'll be able to get a real-world sense for what they can do.
Conclusion
Hiring a writer for your blog is a big move, but it's one that comes with a lot of benefits. If you bring the right person on board, they should help your blog grow. Plus, you'll get more time to relax and focus on writing the posts you really want to spend time on.
When you're ready to take the next step in your blog's growth and hire a writer, here's what you'll need to know to find the ideal candidate:
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Set aside a decent budget.
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Look in the right places.
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Target writers with experience in your niche.
Image credit: Pixabay.
